Marketing & Brand Growth
Before anyone calls you, they look you up. Do you know what they find?
Customers check a business on a map, a search page, a social media page or a review site before they spend money, even when a friend recommended it. This session starts with the owner searching for their own business as a stranger would, then works through what is wrong, what is missing and how to deal with the things that are said, fair or not.
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Reputation is a result. The work happens in the business, and the audit happens online.
A business cannot fix an online reputation with clever wording if customers are repeatedly let down. But it often damages itself by neglect: old details, unanswered reviews, an angry reply written in a hurry, a page nobody manages.
This session separates the two. First, see what customers see. Second, fix what is simply untidy. Third, deal with what comes from real service problems, because that is where the lasting improvement is.
What the session covers
35 topics across 7 areas. Seven parts, from the audit to prevention.
Searching for YourselfDo it as a stranger would.5
- Searching the business name, the name with the area and the service with the area
- What appears on the map, on search and on social media
- What a customer sees in the first three results
- Old listings, wrong addresses or closed branches
- Writing down what you find, good and bad
Use a private browsing window or a friend's phone, so that your own history does not shape the results.
Fixing What You ControlStart with the simple corrections.5
- Claiming and verifying the business's own profiles
- Correcting name, address, phone and hours
- Removing or updating old profiles you own
- Asking directories to correct entries
- Keeping a record of where you are listed
Responding to PraiseThank people, specifically.5
- Naming what they mentioned
- Short and warm, not a template
- Not using replies to advertise
- Letting staff know when they are mentioned
- Why positive replies matter to later readers
Responding to CriticismWrite for the next reader, not only the unhappy one.5
A calm, honest reply can persuade the next reader more than the original complaint harms you.
- Waiting before replying
- Acknowledging the concern without making excuses
- Offering a way to put it right, offline
- Never arguing or revealing a customer's personal details
- Fixing the cause so the same thing does not recur
Unfair, Fake or Abusive ContentKnow what the platforms will and will not do.5
- Telling a harsh but genuine review from one that breaks the rules
- Using the platform's own report or flag tools
- Why you cannot delete a customer's review yourself on most platforms
- Not paying anyone to remove or post reviews
- When a matter may need a qualified adviser
Platform rules vary and change. Read the current content policy of the platform before you act.
A Weekly HabitTen minutes, not a project.5
- Checking new reviews and messages
- Checking tagged posts and mentions
- Replying within a day or two where you can
- Noting patterns in complaints
- Sharing what you learn with staff
A Plan for Something Going WrongDecide before you are upset.5
- Who speaks for the business
- A short, honest first response
- Which facts to confirm before saying anything
- Contacting the affected customer directly
- What to change afterwards
What participants leave with
- A completed reputation audit for their own business
- A list of corrections to make this week
- Sample replies for praise, criticism and a rule-breaking review
- A weekly ten-minute checklist
- A one-page plan for responding if something goes wrong in public
What this session is not
- A service for removing reviews or search results
- Crisis public relations for large companies
- Legal advice on defamation or on any dispute
- A promise that a good reputation brings more sales
How the session runs
Two to three hours, in a small group, with each person's phone. Participants search for their own business while the practitioner asks what a stranger would conclude. They write the audit, pick the three most important corrections and draft replies to a real or sample review. Owners swap replies and read each other's as a stranger would. The session ends with a weekly routine and a plan for dealing with a problem.
What your students leave with
- A written audit of what appears when someone searches for the business
- Corrected details wherever they are wrong or out of date
- A calm, honest way to reply to praise, criticism and unfair comments
- A simple routine to check mentions once a week
- An understanding of what can and cannot be removed
- A plan for fixing the cause of repeated complaints
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
See yourself the way a customer does, then fix what you can.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.