A CEO’s reputation directly impacts a brand’s reputation, though that impact also affects customer loyalty, revenue, investor trust, and more. As Justin Dillingham knows from working in the industry, CEO reputation management is a necessity in an age where every action or response is under the microscope of public scrutiny. Too much is at stake to let your reputation take care of itself. You need a proactive strategy for building and preserving it.
Table of Contents
The Impact of a Reputation
The reputation of a CEO influences the potential for investment and strategic partnerships. A positive perception of an individual typically produces a level of trust and respect, two foundational elements for working together. If a CEO is associated with being a loose cannon or unpredictable, essential business relationships start to falter, while other connections begin to distance themselves from the company and individual. The CEO’s reputation has a direct link to shareholder value.
Corporate Culture
The CEO’s reputation also impacts employee retention and company morale. A reputation, as discovered in online research from negative posts, reviews, or media accounts, can potentially foster or destroy trust in the company. Employee disloyalty is often linked to poor job notifications and higher turnover rates.
Public Perception
A brand’s reputation is tied to the public’s perception of the company’s executives. What you do as a CEO directly impacts how well your company’s brand performs against the competition. Adverse media exposure for the actions of the CEO is negative advertising for your brand. It’s much harder to sell your services or products when the behaviors of the CEO have eroded public trust in the brand.
The Tactics That Protect Your Bottom Line
It takes just one negative story or ill-worded social media post to destroy your reputation and sabotage the company’s bottom line. These tactics can help protect you from these liabilities.
Identify the Opportunities and Risks
Evaluate your Google search results. These show you what you are up against when it comes to the reputation that is already out there. Seek to control as many domains surrounding your name as possible to manage the information accessible to browsers. Increase your online presence and public-facing digital assets.
Develop an Online Narrative
Go past the first page of Google results to get a big-picture perception of your reputation. Look at how you stand compared to competitors and where the downfalls are in the existing content. Use this information to develop a narrative that reshapes your image.
Address Your Content Challenges
Your existing content may need to be optimized to reach target keyword groups. Increase your backlinks to redirect to positive content you want shareholders and customers to discover.
You should also spend time creating new, relevant, and high-quality content. Incorporate engaging posts on social media accounts, keyword-focused blogs, and attention-grabbing press releases. Your online engagement should happen frequently and consistently.
Rely on an Online Reputation Management Firm
Managing a reputation takes a lot of time and attention to detail. Although you could try to handle it on your own, you are better served by letting an ORM firm build and maintain a positive online reputation for you. These firms are experts at uncovering unfavorable material and know the best ways to quickly and effectively redefine the public’s perception.
Your company’s success is online if you don’t manage your reputation. Being CEO comes with a lot of responsibility, and managing public opinion is one of your most important roles.
About Justin Dillingham
Justin Dillingham has devoted his career to helping individuals of all backgrounds and experiences develop and protect their online reputations. His skills allow him to handle the most challenging criticisms and situations, building consumer confidence in an individual and the brand they represent.
