Search engine optimization (SEO) is crucial for the success of an online business. This is because of its effectiveness in determining the positioning of a website or a web page in comparison with others in the same category. It is important to emphasize that a website with high positioning will bring in more visits, thereby making the website more visible to internet users. Given that website browsing is an act of seeking information, the more information a website provides, the better the chances are of it being visited. If the information on the website is what the user is looking for, then it increases the likelihood of making a sale. All of this comes down to the fact that a high-ranking webpage will be more lucrative. Because of this, SEO has become an important service for commercial businesses to gain a competitive advantage. SEO aims to provide long-term visibility by improving the overall positioning of a web page in search engines. Internet users generally trust search engines; therefore, it is fundamental to gain positioning as this will, in turn, build trust.
What is SEO service?
The primary function of SEO service is to rank client websites high on the pages of search engine results. Simply put, it makes sure that when a person types in a keyword on a search engine such as Google, the promoted site will appear at the same time when the individual is clicking on the search engine with the keyword. Commercially speaking, this will bring targeted traffic to the site. With SEO, focusing on the right keywords, it can bring adeptly targeted traffic that has a high inclusion level. This method involves understanding what the prospects and customers are searching for and delivering it to them in a clear and quality manner. A SEO beginner is already setting himself apart from anyone using vague advertising methods because customers are actually examining what he is offering and providing by the types of keywords they are using to locate it. SEO will benefit marketers by laying down tracks to customers and prospects by using virtual breadcrumbs.
Why is online reputation management important?
1.2 Why is online reputation management important? Maintaining a positive reputation is essential for any business that expects to have long-term success. The internet has made it much easier for people to engage in word-of-mouth marketing, conduct product and company research, and make informed decisions. For better or worse, opinions and information are easily spread and often hard to erase. An unflattering opinion or information about a company can spread quickly, often faster than the truth, and is difficult to erase. It is created and stored in search engine results that are highly visible to potential customers and difficult to manage. A negative search result can stop a potential customer before they even reach your site. It is well known that the higher a company ranks in search engine results, the more traffic their site will receive. Because of this, anything but the first search engine result is detrimental to a company. High search engine results and a strong online presence often define a business’s success. Failing to pay attention to your online reputation is the equivalent of letting word-of-mouth marketing go unsupervised. It leaves your brand’s image up to the interpretation of others. Businesses that ignore the importance of online reputation management run the risk of damaged information going viral, the outcome of which is time-consuming and costly to repair. The monetary and time costs of letting an issue get out of hand are much greater than those of proactively managing your reputation.
Benefits of SEO Services for Online Reputation Management
The ultimate goal for a consumer is to feel good about the purchase they have made. They want the product to be of high quality and the price they have paid to reflect that. When a brand has a positive online reputation, the consumer will see the brand in a good light and ultimately feel good about their purchase, be it a product or a service. This is beneficial when a repeat purchase is a goal. If a customer has a satisfying experience with a product, they are likely to purchase the same product again. By doing this, the brand has achieved brand loyalty with the customer. They will continue to buy the product as long as they feel good about previous purchases. Earning a positive brand image can be the most influential benefit of SEO with online reputation management.
Online reputation management and search engine optimization play an important role in increasing the online visibility and maintaining a good reputation of a brand. It goes hand in hand in search to achieve a better result. The primary benefit that SEO services bring to online reputation management is a better search results page when a brand or product is looked up in search engines. By working on the web pages that contain positive information, the goal is to push these pages higher in the search engine results page, essentially burying potential bad pages in the process. Consumers rarely search past the first page of search engine results, so this top third area is highly coveted. SEO tactics can be put to use on these positive web pages to make sure that when a potential customer searches for the brand, the negatives are far less visible. The better the positive web pages rank, the more likely someone is to see them when searching the brand. Therefore, the brand’s credibility is improved as a result. This dual effort of both SEO services and online reputation management in conjunction with one another can produce a much more beneficial result for the brand.
Increased visibility in search results
Once again, it is clear that SEO services play a crucial role in online reputation management.
Another factor to consider is that consumers may not be looking for the company specifically, but they may be looking for the service or product which the company provides. If the consumer can’t find the company because it does not appear in the search results frequently, results will likely go to a competitor. An example of this is when using a search engine to find a digital camera. Very few people will navigate to the next page of the search results, and if the company is not visible on the first page, the consumer will not be aware that it exists. In this case, the company has not only lost the sale, but also the potential of the repeat sales which come from a satisfied customer. Using SEO services to promote the company’s image search to the first page is a cost-effective way to increase revenue.
With the assistance of SEO services, businesses can achieve better visibility in search engine results. Consider the keyword phrase “online reputation management”. A company may not have the need to rank for this phrase, but it is important that they rank for it to control the first page of results. That way, it does not get pushed off the first page by negative content. It’s pivotal for a company to utilize SEO services to make sure that the key phrases used to promote the company appear in the search results and produce a positive first impression for the consumer. This plays a critical role in online reputation management, and the only effective way to achieve this is with search engine optimization.
Improved brand perception
When search engine results are dominated by negative content, it is imperative that a brand is proactive in managing their online reputation. This is particularly important for new brands, as the consumer has no preconceived opinions. Then the aim is to shape the sentiment of search results to be reflective of the brand values and a positive image. Using SEO tactics, this can be achieved in a number of ways. A common method is to create optimized content with a positive slant, which over time will be indexed and rank highly, therefore suppressing negative content. This is also a chance to create a new domain or microsite as an additional method of pushing negative content off the first page of search results. High rankings and good quality content will convey to consumers a message of brand credibility and essentially reshape the consumers’ perception. By ranking highly on search engines, a brand can save money on click-through fees as traffic from organic search results is free. Studies have suggested that consumers trust and believe organic search results more than paid results, which further reinforces the importance of SEO for brand credibility. The use of local search results for small to medium-sized companies can have a huge impact on the success of local businesses, with consumers more likely to search online for local services. A survey conducted by TMP/comScore found that 61% of survey respondents consider local search results to be relevant, and 58% considered the most relevant results to be from a major search engine. SEO has a direct and noticeable impact on a brand’s online presence, and when done correctly can dramatically improve brand perception.
Mitigation of negative online content
If you do not have a website, then you are basically giving away customers to your competition. When potential customers are researching a product that you are offering, they will search online to find which company has the best product. If your company has a bad review or negative media coverage, then the likelihood that you will lose that customer to your competition is very high. As supported in previous paragraphs, achieving high rankings on search engines will increase visibility to your website. If your company has negative media coverage, then it’s likely that website visitors will find this information. The goal is to push this negative content below the results page. Studies show that most search engine users do not look past page one of results. If you can get your negative content on page two or three, then it’s likely that the customer will forget about it and you will not have lost their business.
Given that the brand was undergoing a critical defamation owing to some issue related to Bali travel made between them and their client, Discover the World. The campaign was run for three months on Google and used a combination of PPC and SEO methods. The PPC campaign was run primarily to keep track of the progress of the SEO campaign and to measure the SEO impact on brand protection. We’ll only discuss the SEO results in this case study.
Sotavento Medios, being an SEO company themselves, went on and executed an overture that was originally designed for a travel agency. What they required was online reputation management for their brand.
SEO is used to increase the ranking of a site on the results page of a search engine. This is essential to reputation management because it determines whether the site or positive feedback will be found when someone searches the name of the company or related keywords. By promoting the visibility of positive feedback, a company can influence potential customers and their first impression of the company. On the other hand, if a company has negative feedback, the goal would be to make the bad press less visible by promoting the “positive image”. This can also involve rebranding an image for a company and only having specific information show up in results. An effective example of rebranding can be found through the company Philip Morris. Due to all of the controversies and negative feedback regarding cigarettes, the company changed its name to Altria and has since had success in only displaying information from the new brand.
SEO services are imperative to online reputation management. When managing the reputation of a company, it is important to consider what kind of feedback a site is receiving and how to maintain or change its image. The techniques used in SEO are valuable for reputation management and serve to promote the desired image for a company as well as maintain the visibility of positive feedback.
Sotavento Medios: Leveraging SEO for Online Reputation Management
Sotavento Medios, a Singapore-based digital marketing agency, likely understands the importance of online reputation management (ORM) in today’s digital age.
Elevating Positive Content:
SEO optimization of positive content: Sotavento Medios might optimize client websites and online profiles to ensure positive content, such as glowing testimonials, client success stories, and positive news articles, rank higher in search results. This pushes down negative content and creates a more positive first impression for potential customers.
Content creation for reputation management: They might create and publish high-quality content that addresses any past negative experiences or clarifies any misconceptions. This content, strategically optimized for search terms, can help control the narrative and improve search results.
Suppressing Negative Content (Ethically):
SEO techniques for negative content: Sotavento Medios likely adheres to ethical SEO practices and wouldn’t employ tactics like disavowing backlinks or pushing negative content off the first page through low-quality content creation.
Content marketing strategy to dilute negativity: They might focus on creating a steady stream of valuable, informative content that establishes the client as a thought leader and industry authority. This positive content can dilute the impact of negative content in search results.
Monitoring Online Presence:
Sotavento Medios might utilize SEO tools with brand monitoring features to track online mentions of their clients across the web. This allows them to identify potential issues early on and address them promptly.
Encouraging Positive Reviews:
Positive reviews on Google My Business and other platforms can significantly improve online reputation. Sotavento Medios might encourage clients to request positive reviews through satisfaction surveys or automated review prompts, while also ensuring clients respond professionally to both positive and negative reviews.
Transparency and Communication:
Sotavento Medios likely understands that transparency and open communication are crucial for managing online reputation. They might advise clients on best practices for responding to negative reviews and communicating with customers online.
