Online Reputation Management in the Face of Competitor Sabotage

Online reputation management is critical for positive brand resonance.

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” – Warren Buffett

With this in mind, you might start to recognise the importance of having an action plan when your company’s reputation is at risk, particularly when there is the potential of false accusations and competitor sabotage.

One client, was the subject of a negative review that came up on the first page on Google search results.

Whilst the review proved false and turned out to be a case of competitor sabotage, it nevertheless caused a stir and resulted in a flurry of activity to shut it down.

Having to deal with a reputation crisis is never easy. If we hadn’t had an action plan and hadn’t acted quickly, the review could have more seriously damaged the brand resonance of the Client and it’s CEO.

How to Recognize False Accusations and Competitor Sabotage

Tim Ash (CEO of Property Investors), received a negative write up on an American site. The review came up (and still does) on the first page of Google.

While any negative review can prove dangerous for brand resonance, the fact this review came up first page on Google meant that it could directly impact the brand positioning in a prospects mind and impact sales opportunities.

How we recognized the review was a fake:

• Tim Ash checked in with all clients within the time frame stated in the review and received 100% positive feedback
• The review was on an American-based site (Property Investors is an Australian company)
• The formatting was inconsistent
• The spelling errors were very obvious

Online Reputation Management Response to Competitor Sabotage and False Accusations

Even when you know the review is a fake, it is important to respond to the author in a calm and understanding manner.

For online audiences this is an example of how you would respond to legitimate criticisms, you need to provide top quality customer service.

The team at Conversion Leadership took note of the core themes within the critical review; CEO defamation and negative client relations.

The immediate action we took was to respond to the review through the American website.

Our communications represented a desire to help, as if the accusations from this review were legitimate and real.

But our investigation also revealed that Property Investors were unable to identify who this person was and what situation they were talking about (allowing the question of legitimacy to enter the minds of any potential audiences).

We contacted the website admin and asked them to remove the defamatory review, that we knew to be false.

While the request was declined (which we anticipated), we were already in the process of implementing a campaign, focusing on the real and positive impact that Tim Ash and Property Investors had on their clients.

Create a Campaign to Counter Competitor Sabotage and Defamation

Since the review attacked Tim directly, we wanted to assess and review his current online representation, through social media and other online platforms.

We cleaned up his online profiles and Tim was prompted to begin looking at the social media behavior of all employees and ensure that every one of his staff behaved like the brand advocates they are (which wasn’t too far from what they were already doing).

"The review was posted around Christmas," Tim says. "I was obviously too busy to deal with it, but my advisors countered it pretty quickly. In the end, Property Investors ended up looking even better than it had before."

Online Reputation Management in Social Media

Positive client relationships became the focus of the ensuing campaign.

When prospects encountered Property Investors they would see the positive impact the company has made; which is especially important for any prospective clients that may have seen the bad review.

We used existing client testimonials and found suitable stock photos (with appropriate copyright) that supported the theme of the testimonial.

The images were posted on all of the Property Investors sites and accounts and were even included in their email marketing, demonstrating the ability in leveraging this campaign for future marketing communications.

"Focusing too much on the negative would have cost us. We decided to invest some money into boosting our reputation instead"

Deal with Competitor Sabotage and False Accusations with Grace and Dignity

The negative review was a tactic to nurture bad word of mouth for Property Investors.

Tim’s experience is far from unusual. In fact, false bad reviews are making Uber drivers feel the need to film their passengers.

Responding to a bad review through attacks, accusations or a rebuttal is inefficient and a waste of valuable time (and money) and has the ability to amplify the wrong kind of attention for a business.

For Property Investors, we helped Tim respond positively by bringing attention to the satisfaction of past, existing, and REAL clients. The results of the campaign created to oppose the negative review were positive and encouraged growth of positive brand resonance for both clients and employees.

Are you experiencing a crisis and need assistance with your reputation in the digital space? Contact Conversion Leadership Today!