Why reputation matters
in News
In our recent advert, we talk about reputation management and how we communicate our clients’ stories in the media. But what exactly is reputation and why does it matter so much?
According to the Oxford dictionary, reputation is ‘the beliefs or opinions that are generally held about someone or something’. Most PR directors know how important a good reputation is in maintaining staff, keeping suppliers onboard, attracting new customers and increasing visibility to investors. After all, you only have to look in the news and watch a company’s share price to realise how powerful the media can be in making or breaking a company. So how can a PR agency help maintain a reputation? More than likely, they will do one of the following:• Change behaviours through storytelling. Good PR people communicate news stories in a variety of media, sometimes known as earned, owned or paid. To me and you, that’s social media, your website or paid media such as newspapers. But it’s more than just gaining column inches or improving your SEO ranking: it’s changing the way people think about your brand that really counts.• Provide crisis management. Even with the best intentions, things go wrong. PR helps to manage your reputation when they do. Take the recent 02 problems – their PR department was savvy enough to ease the situation through social media by keeping customers updated. • Manage your reputation online. There’s a great saying “You can’t please all of the people all of the time”. And we all know there are dishonest people out there trying to trip you up. Yet, you do need to watch out for what is being said about your company – especially online as it can affect the way others think of you and have a negative, snowball effect.• Create a brand personality. With so many media channels, it can be hard to be heard. Your message needs to be different to get across. This type of creativity is where PR agencies really prove their worth as they take a fresh perspective on your business and come up with refreshing ideas to create an effective PR campaign.• Gain trust. Reputations are fragile in today’s unforgiving times. Just look at the banks and CEO’s as their pay is scrutinised. It’s harder than ever before to gain people’s trust. A PR agency will advise you on the best techniques to raise visibility of your brand in a professional, honest way. We always ask our clients this question: “If we had a PR magic wand, how would you like to see your company appear in the media?” So, now over to you! If you had a magic wand, what would you like others to think of your company?
