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Pros and Cons of Providing Rep Management

by PaulintheSticks
18 replies
I'm seriously considering offering this service and am just trying to make sure its a good opportunity. Please add to this list if you have any insights. Thanks.

Pros
non-exclusive - everyone can be a customer (unlike consulting or SEO)
easy for prospect to understand
most business owners value a good reputation
easy to deliver
recurring (at least for a while)
Should be a long term strategy.
Good data to support the value
Very little competition
Hard for prospects to price shop

Cons
The best prospects probably would be businesses you wouldn't want to work with. There's probably a good reason they have a bad reputation.
Its a new service business owners aren't familiar with.
Hard to measure roi.
Easy for businesses to do in-house
#cons #management #pros #providing #rep
  • Profile picture of the author Matt Lee
    I do a lot of SEO & Web design, but the people who contact me about rep management are the hardest clients to close - even though they contacted me. I'm sure there's a lot of offliners making a killing with rep management but I've found SEO & Design services are my cash cow.
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    • Profile picture of the author PaulintheSticks
      Matt,

      Originally Posted by Matt Lee View Post

      the people who contact me about rep management are the hardest clients to close - even though they contacted me.
      Any idea why or what their big objections are?

      Thanks.
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      • Profile picture of the author TheCG
        Originally Posted by PaulintheSticks View Post

        Matt,

        Any idea why or what their big objections are?

        Thanks.
        Not Matt but I can tell you on my end it is that they don't see the value...not really.

        They have no idea the work involved to actually manage their reputation and when you give them the price to get it done they see it as way too much.

        Even when you spell out what all needs to be done they still see the price as too high.
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        • Profile picture of the author PaulintheSticks
          Thanks for the feedback How much were you typically charging?

          Originally Posted by TheCG View Post

          Not Matt but I can tell you on my end it is that they don't see the value...not really.

          They have no idea the work involved to actually manage their reputation and when you give them the price to get it done they see it as way too much.

          Even when you spell out what all needs to be done they still see the price as too high.
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          • Profile picture of the author TheCG
            Originally Posted by PaulintheSticks View Post

            Thanks for the feedback How much were you typically charging?
            It depended on the situation, the difficulty in ranking and how much needed to be done.

            Simple situations (bad ratings or reviews, etc.) usually $499 - $999 a month

            Stalkers or situations where someone really went after a person or business or the competition was tough might be 3k and up a month.

            My prices were always way better than the heavy hitters but still my closing rate on rep jobs is always way less than other work.
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            • Profile picture of the author MainstreetMarketer
              I think it helps if you position the service correctly. Reputation management is essentially a reactive, negative term, because it implies that there is something bad going on, that the client indeed has a bad reputation. I prefer to frame it more along the lines of "revenue protection". Even if a client doesn't have a "bad" reputation online, they might no have a positive one either. Think of it as building up the good, not just reacting to the bad.
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              • Profile picture of the author ronr
                There are certainly people doing well with reputation management but be careful when you see the many wso's an other courses telling you how great it is becuase the businesses with bad reviews will be begging you to help them.

                It's not that easy.

                It's surprising the response you often get when you contact businesses with really bad reviews. You would think they would be upset when they see/hear what is being said about them. Instead the response is often that it hasn't hurt their business so they don't care.

                Ron
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                • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
                  Originally Posted by ronr View Post

                  There are certainly people doing well with reputation management but be careful when you see the many wso's an other courses telling you how great it is becuase the businesses with bad reviews will be begging you to help them.

                  It's not that easy.

                  It's surprising the response you often get when you contact businesses with really bad reviews. You would think they would be upset when they see/hear what is being said about them. Instead the response is often that it hasn't hurt their business so they don't care.

                  Ron
                  How bad is bad and how many "bads" are tolerable?

                  A bad review may not be that bad for that industry.
                  The owner or manager should know the situation
                  and how unreasonable (perhaps) the customer was
                  and decide to let it get bumped down by other reviews.

                  And then, if it's one or two out of every ten there may not be
                  much a business can do - depends upon the industry.

                  I manage a hotel and we literally have not had the budget,
                  for around $40,000 in expenses, until this year, to address
                  some TLC issues we need to address and get negative
                  reviews about. I can explain why and what we've done
                  and what our plans are...

                  And, bad reviews MAY have a negligible or un-measurable
                  effect on many businesses business.

                  --------------------------------

                  "Easy for a business to do in house."
                  True, but you could offer individual or seminar
                  training on how to do it properly.
                  I cannot believe how poor some owner or manager
                  responses are.

                  Also, as an example, it may take four hours a week
                  for someone in house and they have other duties as
                  assigned. So you can save them man hours and
                  ensure it gets done and done correctly.


                  Dan
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                • Profile picture of the author Rus Sells
                  Originally Posted by ronr View Post

                  It's surprising the response you often get when you contact businesses with really bad reviews. You would think they would be upset when they see/hear what is being said about them. Instead the response is often that it hasn't hurt their business so they don't care.

                  Ron
                  Of course they say that! They don't feel it has hurt their business because they never "loose" the extra business they would have, by having a better star rating.
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                  • Profile picture of the author ronr
                    Agreed Russ I don't any business realizes how much business they "loose" Just giving you a bad time. I understand your point

                    Ron

                    Originally Posted by Rus Sells View Post

                    Of course they say that! They don't feel it has hurt their business because they never "loose" the extra business they would have, by having a better star rating.
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      • Profile picture of the author Matt Lee
        Originally Posted by PaulintheSticks View Post

        Matt,



        Any idea why or what their big objections are?

        Thanks.
        Yeah a couple actually.
        1. Price. One of my clients wanted to change the suggestions Google lists when searching his name/company & he didn't like the rate I quoted him, which was about half of what reputation.com was charging.
        2. He was set on a 1 time service. Pay one amount, and make the problem go away for good. Which you and i both know won't work in today's market.
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  • Profile picture of the author globalpro
    I think you have to consider Rep Mngt. part of the 'new SEO' that all businesses online (even if they aren't online) need to consider.

    They did several studies that showed people would look for a product or service by:

    1. Do a search and see what businesses would pop up.

    2. Search the big 'review' sites for more info/ratings, social media as well.

    3. Make decision based on what others were/are saying.

    Number 1 is how Google has evolved with the emphasis on local businesses, changed the way they handle reviews on G places/+ and the last thing I saw was how they are going to start dropping the rankings of 'bad' businesses (poor reviews).

    The problem I still run into is either a business doesn't understand it or doesn't care, But if they are already online/spending money marketing, it's a bit easier. You can get them to refocus on spending more effectively.

    To me, any marketing strategy without some form of Rep. Mngt. is a wasted effort, especially if it's not a proactive approach.
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  • Profile picture of the author ATAC
    Not always about not being a business that you do not want to work with.I had a client that owned a soda blasting company and someone put all over the net that he beat his wife ...
    He paid me a small fortune for about 15 minutes worth of work ..
    I am talking a couple of G's ...15 MINUTES

    Anyway he turned out to be a super great guy and I ended up hooking him up with a site and some other services too take good care of him..
    He is still a customer to this day over 2 years later...

    So it's a interesting niche .You never know what you are going to come across..

    Just take it with a smile and raise your quote according to the risk level of being a jerk or not ...
    Thats what I do and you never know most of the time you end up with friends for life ...
    I guess they get the feeling as if they owe us after we take stuff down from the web that was really bothering and hurting them.

    Best of luck...
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  • Profile picture of the author PaulintheSticks
    I'm just feeling out the market right now but I'll say this:

    It seems pretty obvious to me but maybe it isn't to most business owners that a business with higher ratings and more reviews is going to get more attention which is going to lead to more business.

    They might say their competitors don't have many reviews and no star ratings either so they aren't worried about it but to me it seems they are missing out on a good opportunity to position their business as the most trusted and popular....the leader.

    When I shop online, the first thing I do is look at products or services that have the highest star rating and the most reviews. Most times I won't even look at products with lesser reviews or ratings because I'm extremely busy like a lot of people.

    I may be in the minority but reviews and ratings are going to have a big influence whether I buy a product or do business with a company. And the bigger or more important the decision the more influence it will have.
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    • Profile picture of the author ronr
      We know that Paul but some business owners often don't. But it's just like anything any other offline service you can offer. Some businesses don't feel a need to modernize their 10 year old WIX website, while others whose site is only a few years old understand the need (or are open to be educated) how a new mobile optimized, lead gen site could get them more business.

      My suggestion is don't go into rep management thinking it is necessarily an easier sale than any other services you can offer. It very well could be, but the only way to find out is do try it.

      Ron


      Originally Posted by PaulintheSticks View Post

      I'm just feeling out the market right now but I'll say this:

      It seems pretty obvious to me but maybe it isn't to most business owners that a business with higher ratings and more reviews is going to get more attention which is going to lead to more business.

      They might say their competitors don't have many reviews and no star ratings either so they aren't worried about it but to me it seems they are missing out on a good opportunity to position their business as the most trusted and popular....the leader.

      When I shop online, the first thing I do is look at products or services that have the highest star rating and the most reviews. Most times I won't even look at products with lesser reviews or ratings because I'm extremely busy like a lot of people.

      I may be in the minority but reviews and ratings are going to have a big influence whether I buy a product or do business with a company. And the bigger or more important the decision the more influence it will have.
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      • Profile picture of the author PaulintheSticks
        Originally Posted by ronr View Post

        We know that Paul but some business owners often don't.
        I wasn't arguing with you Ron. Just giving my perspective.

        But it's just like anything any other offline service you can offer. Some businesses don't feel a need to modernize their 10 year old WIX website, while others whose site is only a few years old understand the need (or are open to be educated) how a new mobile optimized, lead gen site could get them more business.
        Agreed.

        but the only way to find out is do try it.
        I don't think that's necessarily the smartest approach. If you ask 10 people who have tried to sell it and everyone says its a hard sell, then why waste your time.
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  • Profile picture of the author internetmarketer1
    Pro:

    Helps business owners gain a better presence for gaining more customers.

    Cons:

    It is tough to convince a large majority of customers since some business owners really don't need help with ther sites, and it is tigh to find the ideaL customer. Hwever, if you are willing to put in time on finding the right people, it does work well and you can earn thousands a month from a single client if you know how to do it.
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