Top 4 Tips to Improve the Reputation of Your Startup

A lot of people make a mistake of believing that funds and business structure are by far the greatest problems of an average startup. However, problems with company’s reputation (the lack of it, to be more precise) are just as dangerous. Imagine a situation where you walk into a supermarket and decide to purchase a product. What are the chances of you buying a product which displays a name and logo you have never seen before? Not that great, right? Because of this, one of your first corporate goals should be finding proper ways to improve the reputation of your startup, and here are a few tips that can help you do just that.

1. Mingle with your peers

A lot of people automatically assume that the reputation of your business has something to do with whether or not you are recognized by an average consumer. The example used in the introduction may seem to be backing this thought, but in reality, things are not always that simple. It is also very useful to make yourself known to people of authority in your business niche. Luckily, there are more than several ways of accomplishing that. First, you might want to consider attending industry-related events and mingling with your peers. Another way of doing so is through the good old B2B outreach.

2. Use your 8 seconds

According to numerous surveys, the average time that a new customer spends on your website is usually not longer than 8 seconds. Because of this, you need to make every single second count. The call to action button must be clearly visible, your contact information needs to be displayed on the hot page and most importantly, the content of the landing page needs to be captivating. Still, in order to tailor your website to the needs of your customers, you must first know some of their behavior patterns. The safest way to do so is through adequate business intelligence software.

3.  Employees as brand ambassadors

Even though this may not always be the case, when observing your employees, your clients sometimes tend to associate them with your business as a whole. Now, this can be both good and bad depending on what they see. This is something you need to be aware of when you first start hiring people, but this process doesn’t end with them getting hired. During their training, you need to try and instill in them as many of your corporate values as possible. Explain to them that they represent your entire organization and prove to them that this is both a responsibility and an honor. Only in this way will you manage to shape them into admirable brand ambassadors.

4.  Think about the first impression

Making a good first impression in person is even more important that doing so in the digital world. As they approach your headquarters, your clients must be completely captivated by what they see. Your parking should be adequate, your company’s exterior pressure washed and your driveway clean. Next thing to consider is your reception area. Here, you need to be as careful with the design as you are with the choice of the person working behind the desk. Keep in mind that your receptionist is the first member of your organization that your customers will meet. Therefore, it is vital that this encounter goes well.

Conclusion

As you can see, improving the reputation of your startup is not as difficult as some people make it out to be. A small business has a low chance of someone actually hearing about it, so if such a thing were to happen, it is a paramount that the first thing they hear or see is something positive. Luckily, with the abovementioned four tricks, such a feat shouldn’t be that hard to pull off.