Online Reputation: When negative reviews aren't the only enemy

Having a business implies having a presence on the Internet, which can be a double-edged sword for the online reputation of the business.

Many businesses choose to create a "Business Profile" ("Google My Business"), which creates exposure to any kind of negative criticism, the so-called reviews. 

But are reviews the only ones that can seriously damage the reputation of a business? The answer is no. 

On the Internet we can find diverse content as well as platforms and this creates the possibility that the reputation of a business can be affected through other types of platforms. 

For this reason, the following are a few of the most important content or posts that can also damage online reputation. 

WEBSITES 

In this sense, we should not only think of websites that are purposely created to damage the reputation of a business, but also of those that allow the valuation of various companies.. 

There are many platforms that allow you to rate businesses, from restaurants to bank branches that are open to the public. 

Well, such postings can also seriously damage the reputation of the particular business, in exactly the same way as negative reviews in Google's "Company Profile".. 

Therefore, we should not overlook these "other profiles", which are often created by third parties outside the business and may also contain very damaging reviews or comments.. 

FORUMS 

Another type of platform is forums, which can be created by anyone. 

In this case, there are many cases in which specific forum lines have been created to discuss experiences in business, especially in the workplace, with the creators being former employees. 

This type of content, even if it goes more unnoticed than others, is also very harmful and constitutes a clear violation of the right to business honour.. 

Similarly, Such platforms can also lead to the creation and management of smear campaigns, This is a consequence of any person having access to them. 

A clear example would be if a particular person created a forum thread with the sole purpose of grouping more people together to post negative reviews on any business profile, be it Google or any other website. 

For this reason, it is of utmost importance to monitor this kind of content and, once identified, to try to remove or block it as soon as possible, preventing further impact.. 

SOCIAL NETWORKS 

Although social media has many positive aspects for our online reputation, it can also be a very dangerous tool. 

In this sense, and just as in the case of forums, social networks are often used to generate defamation campaigns and to generate fake newsknown as hoaxes. 

The big problem that social networks generate, unlike forums, is the viralisation. 

There are many cases in which huge hoaxes have been generated as a result of a small publication on a social network. 

This viralisation has a huge impact on the online reputation of the business in question, as the publication reaches a large number of people, who automatically fall for the hoax and believe it.. 

Therefore, social media can also be a big problem for many businesses, and preventing the possibility of possible fake news or hoaxes spread, because disproving facts believed by a large number of people is not impossible, but it is hard and exhausting work..

MEDIA 

Last but not least, there is the media.  

In this type of platform, unlike other platforms, often involve events of a media or public nature, such as the bankruptcy of a large multinational company or the accusation of fraud against a business.. 

Although it is content that may not directly attack the business, we may still see negative and damaging information about our business.. 

However, there is a positive aspect to the media and that is the fight against the above-mentioned hoaxes.. 

Many businesses that have been affected by this situation have taken to the media to deny the viral facts, with very good results in terms of reputational improvement. 

Therefore, the reputation of our business should not revolve around Google reviews, there are many other platforms that can be extremely damaging and that we must control and monitor to avoid potential damage and maintain a good online reputation..