Updated 6/23/20
Designing a review management services page is a challenging endeavor for most marketing agencies.
The terms ‘Reputation Management’ and ‘Review Management’ are often used interchangeably.
Here’s where things get tricky.
Whether you’re offering local SEO, web design, social media management, or reputation management, you need to speak the language of your prospects. Clearly presenting what you do, what your services achieve, and how they solve your prospect’s problems are critical.
What do reputation and review management clients want?
The content on your services page needs to answer a series of questions; this is difficult because, without research, you may not know what your customers are actually looking for. For starters, reputation management is not the same thing as review management.
So we’ll need to define our terms.
Technically speaking, reputation management tends to be reactive, while online review management tends to be proactive. Reputation management services are all about recovering a reputation that’s already tarnished or currently under fire. Review management, on the other hand, focuses on recruiting client or customer feedback ahead of time.
Note: Read this guide for a more detailed explanation if you’d like more clarity on these differences.
Here’s why this is important.
Potential clients don’t always understand what they need. Inexperienced clients tend to gravitate towards the term “reputation management.” Sophisticated clients who are in-the-know, they’re likely to use both terms interchangeably.
This means some clients may need:
- Reputation management services for key managers and executives involved in a scandal or misunderstanding.
- Review management to attract more clients or customers.
- Reputation management to combat cancel culture or a social media faux pas.
- Review management to boost traffic and conversion rates for the business while simultaneously addressing previous mistakes.
- Reputation management to deal with slander (spoken), libel (written), or inaccurate information.
- Review management to boost or dominate local search results in Google, Bing, or Yahoo.
Then there are agencies.
Do agencies need white label review management services?
When I speak with agencies using Grade.us, we frequently discuss how to promote their services. A typical barrier agencies run into is uncertainty about what they’re actually offering clients. If you’d like your services page to convert well, you’ll need a clear idea of your service offering.
- Are you providing a white label review management platform for your customers to manage their own online reviews?
- Are you replying to online reviews on behalf of your client?
- Are you providing clients with the tools to market and amplify their positive reviews?
- Are you offering reputation management that includes the press, publicity, and legal muscle required to remove harmful content?
As an agency, your review management services page needs to answer four specific questions.
- What’s your offer? Describe your offer (reputation, reviews, or both) without overwhelming your prospects.
- What’s your value? Educate customers on the value of the service you offer.
- What problem to do you solve? Clarify why this service is valuable and what it will do for clients.
- Why now? Give customers a compelling reason to take action now.
Let’s take a look at the 12 types of content you can include on your service page to attract, educate, and convert new prospective clients. I’m pulling from firms listed on Clutch.co.
Table of Contents
Example #1: Quantify the value of their reputation
Branding is often confused with elements like logo, typography, or approach. Marty Neumeier, the author of “The Brand Gap” and brand consultant to Fortune 500 brands like Apple, HP, Google, and Adobe, distills branding to its purest form.
“Your brand isn’t what you say it is. It’s what they say it is.”
He states that your brand is essentially your reputation.
Take a look.
Neumann Paige states this clearly on their review management services page.
Here’s what makes their services page compelling; they describe the qualitative and quantitative costs to poor/no review management. Then they clarify what they do, what you get, and how it works.
Beautifully done.
Example #2: Tell or share a story
If you through facts and your clients, they may pay attention. The information you share activates Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area, the language processing areas in your client’s brain. The downside to general information? Your clients may tune out shortly after that.
Tell a story and everything changes.
Stories activate the sensory cortex — it activates our whole brain. Your clients begin to feel, empathize, and imagine; they begin to root for and relate to the characters in your story. A good story motivates customers to act.
Reputation Management Consultants do just that.
They do something incredible on their review management services page. Instead of telling you a story about their business, they get their clients to tell you their stories themselves. Their stories are short, concise, and results-driven.
If you wanted to hear the rest of these stories, you aren’t alone.
Example #3: Empathize with your clients
In the beginning, small businesses focus their time and attention on putting out fires. Many of these local businesses are focused on a variety of urgent issues. Often times, business owners aren’t sure how to address the problems they’re dealing with.
Big Leap empathizes with readers, and they do it concisely.
Even better, their entire page is focused on prospective clients.
Example #4: Sell with social proof
Over and over, Dr. Cialdini’s research has documented the power and impact social proof has had on compliance rates. Reviews, at their core, are all about social proof.
The team at NetReputation.com leads with social proof on their service page — “Take back control with the #1 online reputation management service.”
The obvious and immediate question that follows is this:
How do we know they’re actually number #1? Oh wait, they tell us; at the bottom of this headline we see:
Rated
Best Global Reputation Management firm 2020 by Newsweek.com
Their focus is simple, clear, and precise.
Example #5: Pitch a powerful value proposition
A strong value proposition is a powerful motivator. If you have all four of the ingredients needed to build a compelling value proposition, you have the tools you need to persuade your clients to take action.
Reputation Resolutions does just that. Take a look at their services page, and you’ll see what I mean.
“Improve your Google search results. Only pay for results.
Our experts can repair, enhance, protect & manage your online reputation.”
Business Services | Individual Services
Then they take it a step further.
They use social proof via their BBB rating and As Seen In logos to build influence.
Example #6: Sell outcomes and benefits
WebiMax is a top provider on Clutch.co. One of the reasons for their high ranking? They lead with benefits. Take a look at their landing page.
See the headline?
“Get Online Content Removed or Buried FAST!”
It’s concise and backed by social proof
“WebiMax is ranked the #1 Reputation Management Service on Business.com and Clutch.co.”
Example #7: Dispel hidden myths and sacred cows
Inexperienced clients have a naive understanding of review and reputation management. If I do a great job, take care of my customers, and tell the truth, I’ll get lots of positive five-star reviews.
It’s a reasonable assumption to make.
As we’ve seen, it’s also not always the case. Some customers are willing to take advantage of your client’s generosity.
Netmark.com shatters this myth immediately.
See the sacred cow?
“Integrity and Honesty are Not Enough.”
What a gut punch! It’s an important realization new clients need to face quickly. The sooner they face this unpleasant truth, the easier it will be for them to ignore disgruntled reviewers who are willing to harm others to get what they want.
Example #8: Absorb client risk
What’s a familiar fear clients have when they hire a marketing agency? They’re afraid that they’ll pay a hefty retainer fee and receive nothing in return. It’s a risk that makes it difficult for many clients to invest in the services they actually need.
Gadook absorbs all of this risk.
Many agencies follow the pay per lead model, which is effective as well. Gadook takes it a step further.
See what they did there?
“You get exclusive local inquiries, 100% contact rate, or you pay nothing.
That’s right, we take the risk, we pay the bills, you pay only for phone calls.”
It’s incredibly compelling, and it’s something most clients would prefer if they’re struggling to generate leads themselves.
Example #9: Educate the beginner
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, clients are often confused about the differences between review management and reputation management. This confusion makes it difficult for you the agency to sell your services to clients who genuinely need them.
This is why it’s good to lead with education.
Go Fish Digital takes things back to the basics, beginning with entry-level education.
What is Online Reputation Management (ORM)? They provide a grade level explanation of ORM terminology, giving prospective clients the education they need to have an intelligent conversation with you.
Why is this important?
Prospective clients aren’t quick to admit what they know. Doing that creates information asymmetry, a power imbalance that makes negotiations difficult. The greater the power imbalance, the harder it is to negotiate with clients.
Example #10: Teach with process
Teaching prospective clients about your process is a great way to “ruin them” for your competition. Leading with process familiarizes clients to the way things are “supposed to be.” This is an advantage for you and an objection for every other competitor. If you’ve explained your process well and prospective clients have bought into your process, they’re ruined (for your competitors).
When they approach other competitors, the implicit questions create resistance automatically.
- Why don't you do....?
- I don't see _______ is that something you offer?
- Do you handle _______ in-house, or do you outsource?
- Which tools do you use to optimize _______?
This is exactly what REQ chose to do.
They shared their process on their services page outlining that they:
- Build custom microsites
- Craft messaging, creative, and content
- Provides a real-time dashboard
- Always available via phone
- Combine social media, public relations, search engine optimization, and branding
Then they share case studies from two notable clients —The Empire State Building (yes that one) and the Miami Design District.
Example #11: Make a promise
ReputationX is a well-known provider. They’ve been in business for 15 years, serving a variety of industries. What do they lead with?
A simple promise.
They follow up by answering the “why” question.
Why Reputation X
As one of the oldest and most experienced reputation management companies in the world, we are proud of our methods, our ethics, and our track record for increasing media visibility.
- Ethical. search engine friendly techniques
- Management of knowledge panel, Wikipedia, search, and social
- Over ten years of reputation management experience
- Removal of information from Google
- Results that stand the test of time
- Based in California
Their reputation precedes them; their website is filled with case studies, research, data, stories, and details outlining the results they were able to achieve for their clients.
Example #12: Combine design, data, and tools
If your competitors have outstanding content, how do you compete?
You create exceptional content in multiple realms. You create build drama, integrate data, create amazing messaging, design beautiful, well-thought-out materials. This how you create what Michael Stelzner calls “nuclear content.” Here’s why this kind of content is so significant.
It takes a tremendous amount of work to create.
But it’s well worth the effort because the rewards are disproportionately large. If maintained, 10x content pays off indefinitely.
Reputation Sciences create this kind of content.
First, they map the client’s journey.
Then, once you read a client’s story, you’re met with data, story, and drama.
And finally, the tools.
It’s an immersive journey that teaches prospective clients rapidly, attracting their attention, educating them, and increasing their engagement. It makes lead generation an intuitive process that’s difficult to compete with.
Agencies need a high-quality white label review management services page
Your clients need you.
Online review management has become an essential service for local businesses. However, it’s still a challenge explaining the value of the service to potential clients that don’t ‘get it.’
As the expert on the topic, we need to have a review management services page that removes any guesswork.
This includes explaining clearly what services our agency will be providing, highlighting the value of the service, and making it obvious if our service is appropriate for them.
Using videos, deliverables, and statistics to show off the value only elevates the service in the eyes of the prospective client.
While it’s necessary to explain the service (and we now know there are a variety types of content to do that), we still need to make sure not to clutter up our review management services page. Present the information and content in a clean, easily consumable way, and clients will sign on the dotted line in no time.
