If you own a business, whether large or small, you know that reputation is everything. Successful businessman Warren Buffet once said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” And with the arrival of local review websites such as Yelp, the Internet has become a place where negative or unflattering content spreads like wild fire — except it never disappears.
While most people use Yelp to find a business, others utilize it to read consumer critiques of a company’s products or services. Online business reviews, including the 5-star rating system used by Yelp, have the power to influence the purchasing decisions of the consumer. Just as positive reviews can convince a buyer to shell out cash for a product or service from your company, negative critiques can persuade them to run the other direction, especially if the reviews appear prominently on popular sites such as Yelp.
A negative online reputation can be disastrous for your business. What’s worse, it is nearly impossible for small businesses to control what is being said about them online, let alone remove negative reviews from Yelp. This is where online reputation management comes in handy.
Online reputation management is vital for mainstream businesses; however it requires the special skill set of a professional reputation management firm. While there is no way to remove negative listings from Yelp, there are ways to bring up your overall rating. Through our proactive Yelp Negative Review Repair service, Submit Express can help businesses improve their Yelp ratings and repair their online reputation before it’s too late.