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Regardless of the size of your business consumers often turn to the Internet to research a product before buying.

Online reviews can make or break you and it’s a difficult game to monitor and mange that’s for sure, but it’s one that can’t be ignored.
(see the infographic below)

According to Marketing professors Duncan Simester of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Eric Anderson of Northwestern University who carried out a study based on reviews posted on the website of a major private-label apparel company.

The practice of cyber-shilling (businesses posting negative reviews of their competitors, or rewarding users to write glowing reviews) is alive and well.

The duo found that about 5 percent of the reviews were written by customers with no record of actually buying the item. Those reviews were “significantly more negative” than the others.

While referrals are timeless it seems that over 72% of consumers will trust an online review as much as a personal recommendation. What’s more the proliferation of online review sites have mimimised the influence of traditional print based advertising (including coupons) on people’s buying decisions.

Are negative review really so bad for your business?

Well Yelp reports that higher rated restaurants are generally fully booked where as lower rated ones are only 1/3 filled.

And a study out of Berkly showed that a half-star improvement resulted in a 30-49% increase in site visits and sales.

Those bogus reviews have consequences, Simester said.

We have some evidence that these negative reviews do drive purchasing decisions and can reduce sales. Low ratings result in significantly less demand for an item for at least 12 months.

 

So how does this tie back to your business?

We recommend that you ask the following questions:

1. Are you currently monitoring your online reputation?
2. Are you receiving notifications when bad reviews are posted?
3. Are you responding to them?
4. Are you seeking ways to address customer negative experiences as a preventative to then posting a negative review?

Creating a business wide strategy for addressing honest negative customer experiences, and also bogus negative reviews may be key to managing your reputation.

If you need assistance with your reputation management we recommend Maya Mendoza and her team at Milagro Fusion Marketing

Source:MilagroFusionMarketing.com/Blog

 

Social Media, when done right, is a business boosting activity.

Many business owners still do not understand the value of adding Social Media activities to their marketing strategies. Nor do they understand that modern marketing and 2013 SEO strategies demand that a business has some kind of Social Media presence on at least 2 of the major players.

Engaging with customers via social media allows businesses to reap benefits far beyond simple Facebook “likes”. Social media brings numerous opportunities to develop brand loyalty, grow market share, and build a positive reputation that leads to increased revenue. But… does it suck up too much time.

A well-developed social media strategy shouldn’t be taking hours of your time to maximize the income it would bring it to your business.

Spending just 30 minutes a day on managing your social media activities may sound too good to be true, and in truth as a professional Digital Marketing consultant, if you are trying to manages 5 or more accounts, I’m not convinced that you can actually make the best of your ROI from Social Media with 30 minutes activity a day.

From my own experience I can say that over time people become more efficient at finding and posting interesting content and therefore need less time to share and respond to comments and brand mentions.

In my opinion you need to choose and focus on the most appropriate social media channels for your business or industry – ones that the majority of your customers interact frequently.

Having said all that, the infographic below was too good to miss out on.

Although it somewhat over simplifies social media management, it does give a basic guide for you to follow and is a great starting point for any individual or business getting to grips with the social media landscape.

 

Did you get a light-bulb moment this morning?

If you are like most business self-starters and entrepreneurs I’m pretty sure that you think about and come up with a new idea for a project or product several times a week?

The idea may be a good, or or even great one, the problem is how do you know if it will work? Is it a money spinner or a drain on your time and financial resources? Do you have the expertise to plan, implement and execute it?

The Founder Institute  hosts hundreds of free start-up events across the globe to help aspiring founders improve their ideas and entrepreneurial skills, all in a low-pressure environment.

Here is their 10 step system for checking out the viability of your idea.

Virtual Offices give you the freedom to run your business from just anywhere.

For those of us who do almost all of our work from the comfort of our homes,  a virtual office provides a business address and telephone number, without the full time office premises to go with them.

For many people who run a business from home, this is an ideal way to promote a professional image and means you don’t have to give out your home address.

So what are those advantages?

Chief among the perceived advantages are lowered costs, and greater flexibility for the business owner (such as the ability to hire people in different geographic locations)

With typical cost savings of around £7,000 a month by using the “virtual” environment. It can also be an ideal first step for entrepreneurs who plan to have their own premises later but want to get their business up and running first.

 

Have you ever needed to relocate your business to a new premises?

Did it all go to plan or did it fall apart?

We all know that moving house is one of the most stressful things that you can do in life. I have to tell you that moving your business, whether it’s going from from a desk in your bedroom or upgrading from a business incubator space into a larger more permanent location, can create just as much stress or even more.

There is so much for you to consider beforehand, and if you have a lease that is due to expire,  and you are under time pressure, then the clock will be ticking.

We found this very helpful infographic provided by Flexioffices. You can see some great tips and strategies for making the transition into to a new commercial property or a serviced office much easier.

The infographic shows you all the main stages that are involved in moving – first considering a move, then going through the planning stages and then finally your moving day – it’s great checklist and helps to make the process a lot more simple.

 

 

The tip that I found the most useful was to have my team identify specific issues with the old space and how to resolve then in the new one.

What about you? Do let us know how this infographic has been useful to you by leaving a comment below.