Online comments that determine the first impression of a brand
Online comments that determine the first impression of a brand
Marketing companies explain their services while at the same timeHigh-involvement service industry that requires persuasion of trustno see. Since the structure does not allow immediate comparison of visible results like products, potential customers search for the company first and check external reactions before consulting.
At this time, there are many cases where community posts are accepted as more realistic information than the official website. Sometimes these community posts are helpful, but in many cases, unverified answers such as “It is expensive,” “I don’t know the effect,” or “There are many conditions” are spread.
From the perspective of a marketing company that actually operates a service, we work with a complex system that analyzes the customer's industry-specific situation rather than a single fixed product, designs a proposal considering the budget and regional characteristics, and adjusts the direction by looking at the data even after execution. However, if only negative expressions without context are consumed as our brand image, even if we want to work hard, we feel really discouraged.
Also, posts containing such false informationThe article that appears at the top when searching for our companyWhat if ? Even if you didn't think it was a big deal at first, if the damage continues,It is likely to take a toll on salesThis must be it.
Marketing agency S, the protagonist of this customer case, was also experiencing a similar situation.
It was a company that provided marketing services for small business owners. In one Naver Cafe post, a question was asked, “Has anyone used Company S?” and in the comments, an anonymous account appeared claiming to be using it.
Afterwards, conversations surrounding cost and effectiveness continued, and the client company said that it was difficult to figure out how to respond as false stories about the service were being circulated in a situation where they could not even confirm whether the author in question was actually a user of the company.
In this way, one small comment or post online can become a nuisance that can harm sales. Today, I would like to introduce a case where Company S solved this problem with White Me.
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- Can brand perception be influenced by one trivial comment?
- The more highly involved a service is, the more dangerous it is to spread false comments.
- It was unsettling to just ignore it, and complicated to respond to.
- With one false comment gone, the flow of consultation has also changed.
- If clarification comes before explanation, check with White Me.
Can brand perception be influenced by one trivial comment?
Can brand perception be influenced by one trivial comment?
First, please briefly introduce yourself. What role do you currently play at the company, and how do you usually consult with customers and make suggestions?
Yejin: Hello, my name is Yejin Lee, and I am in charge of consulting, suggestions, and operational communication at marketing agency S. When an inquiry comes in, my role is to look at the industry, region, and current operating situation first and then explain which direction is most appropriate.
Even if it is the same marketing service, each store owner needs a different method, so we tend to provide guidance by looking at the situation together rather than explaining it as a fixed product from the beginning. So, how a customer first understands our company has a significant impact on the consultation atmosphere and subsequent review process.
When you first checked the posts and comments that inquired about White Me, rather than simply being embarrassed, you probably decided that it could have an impact on actual sales. What did you think was the biggest problem for Company S?
Yejin: At first, we thought it was just a common reaction from the community. However, when I looked at the comment flow, it was not just a simple chat, but it read like the words of someone who actually used it. The problem was that we couldn't verify that the author was a real customer.
When we consult, we explain the conditions based on the industry or regional situation, but if you look at the comments, it may seem like a company that operates under the same uniform conditions. Then, I thought that people who searched for the first time might already make a negative judgment before hearing our explanation.
The point that Yejin first noticed as a problem was not that ‘there were simply unpleasant comments.’ In a marketing company like Company S that builds trust through consultation and suggestions,The first impression given to potential customers who encounter the company for the first time.This is very important.
However, if a comment without the identity of the author is read as an actual review, the company will be in a situation where it will have to clarify the misunderstanding before offering the service to the customer.
In particular, in the case of Company S, since it is a ‘marketing agency exclusively for small business owners’, it has suggested appropriate directions to customers by looking at the industry/region/budget/expectation level together, so it was inevitable that it would be even more embarrassing when a comment was made that said it was selling a set product in batches.
Anyone who has done marketing at least once has probably worried, “I can explain it when an inquiry is made, but what if it is already judged negatively?”
Considering this, we cannot say that Yejin's acceptance of this situation as a risk was simply an overreaction.
Rather, it was a decision that was possible because I was well aware of how consultations and proposals are made and the order in which trust is built between a company and its customers.
From the company's perspective, thisDistortion of initial perception of serviceThis is because we are very aware that it can change the starting point of this consultation and ultimately affect the contract review process.
The more highly involved a service is, the more dangerous it is to spread false comments.
The more highly involved a service is, the more dangerous it is to spread false comments.
On the surface, it may seem like just a few comments in a cafe, but why did this situation actually feel more burdensome and dangerous? In particular, was there any part where the nature of marketing services had a greater impact?
Yejin: Marketing is essentially a very high-involvement service and one that requires a lot of explanation. It is different for each industry and region, and the results that store owners expect are also different. However, if you exclude all such context and only look at the cost and effectiveness, those who read the article will judge the entire company in a very simplistic way.
From our perspective, whether or not the facts are true is important, but the fact that our service was misunderstood was more burdensome. Since many people search before actually consulting, I thought that one comment could be the first impression of the company.
The key point that Yejin pointed out was realistic but deep content that practitioners can think about at least once.
Marketing services cannot be summarized in one short sentence in the first place. Depending on what industry it is targeting, what region it is operating in, and what goals it is implementing, the proposals and standards for interpreting the results also differ.
However, this context is rarely conveyed online, and if only some expressions of cost or effectiveness are extremely distant, viewers end up judging the entire company and service based on the fragmented sentences.
This is why online reviews are scary. It is not necessarily only high-level expressions that are problematic.
Rather, the shorter and more ambiguous the sentence, the easier it is for the reader to interpret it by adding their own anxiety.If thoughts such as “Maybe it will become more difficult if I sign a contract with this company” or “Can I trust it?” naturally arise, a situation will unfold that is the same as starting from a disadvantageous starting point even though no explanation has been given yet by the company's working staff.
The risk that Company S felt was realistic enough, and it is a problem that any company that provides services, even if it is not a marketing company like Company S, cannot help but feel it deeply.
It was unsettling to just ignore it, and complicated to respond to.
It was unsettling to just ignore it, and complicated to respond to.
Even after recognizing the problem, it must have been difficult to respond immediately. From the company's point of view, there is definitely something unfair, but outsiders may see it as just a review... What was the most difficult part of the actual response process?
Yejin: The most difficult thing was that the size of the problem we felt could be different from the size of the problem seen from the outside. We thought this could have an impact on actual consultation or contract review, but to others, it might just look like a community comment.
However, if you react emotionally, the company may seem sensitive. So, rather than just saying this is unfair, I thought it would be important to calmly explain why the problem is. So, when I agreed to this interview, it was only half joking, half serious, and I also wanted to sincerely express my feelings of injustice. (Laughs)
The difficulties that Company S experienced are similar to the concerns that many companies face when faced with online reputation issues. Internally, it clearly feels like a problem, but externally, it may be accepted as “Isn’t that common?” Professionals who have directly experienced consulting and sales will be more sensitive to how a single comment can affect the conversion of inquiries, but to someone who has not experienced the process, it may seem like a passing reaction.
So Yejin said she also had a lot of concerns in this area. From the company's perspective, it was inevitable that they would feel aggrieved, and if they just left it alone, it would seem like their trust would be eroded little by little, and if they responded strongly, they were cautious because they might look like a sensitive company. This is why online reputation issues are difficult.This is because recognizing a problem and explaining the problem in language that others can understand are much different than you might think.
So, rather than letting emotions take precedence, Company S tried to calmly summarize why a single community comment could have an impact on the actual business.
We first tried to point out that comments whose actual use status is unclear are being read as reviews, that the comments can lead to misunderstanding of the service structure, and that they can change judgment at the pre-consultation stage. There may be a lot of resentment within the company, but outside of it,The structure of the problem can be conveyed better than the emotion.You knew it.
Why is it difficult for a company to manage its own online reputation?
이런 과정을 겪다 보면 많은 기업이 비슷한 피로를 느끼게 됩니다. If you don't have a standard for what you can just overlook and what you should look into, you end up paying more attention to some issues than necessary, and you end up noticing some problems only after they've passed.
soOnline reputation management is not a matter of responding only when a specific incident occurs, but is closer to an area that must be constantly checked and reviewed on a daily basis.
As each search result, comment, and community response accumulates, it can gradually influence brand trust and consultation flow.
That's where White Me believes we can help as a company's reputation management manager. Rather than reacting one-time only when individual issues arise, we organize what exposures should be considered risks, what should be checked first, and what standards should be used to manage online reputation.
In the end, it is more realistic to monitor reputation management on a regular basis and have standards for making quick decisions when necessary, rather than only acting after a problem arises.
With one false comment gone, the flow of consultation has also changed.
With one false comment gone, the flow of consultation has also changed.
The problem that Company S was experiencing in the previous stage was not simply that there was a single comment left. To be more precise, the bigger problem was that the comment could affect the way potential customers first encountered the company.
From the company's perspective, there was sufficient information to explain the service structure and proposal method, but even before the explanation began, anonymous comments could become the basis for judgment.
Yejin also said that she felt this point the most. In reality, it is a service that requires sufficient explanation depending on the industry and situation, but online, it only requires a few lines of comments. Because the company was simple to readno see. That much inside Fatigue, as if trust has been taken away before the consultation even begins.It was piling up.
During this process, White Me did not view the exposure as simply a negative comment. Rather, I have organized together how this comment is causing misunderstanding.
- Converting comments that are difficult to confirm whether they were actually used or not
- Simple interpretation of service structure due to only some expressions
- Exposure structures that may influence pre-counseling judgments
We pointed out one by one that comments that make it difficult to confirm actual use are being read like reviews, that the service structure can be interpreted simplistically with only a few expressions, and that such exposure can affect judgment before consultation. Rather than reacting emotionally, it was important to first distinguish what the actual risk was.
White Me and S Company summarized what risks these comments actually pose, and then First, it is judged to be an exposure that requires response. Delete Naver Cafe commentI was able to proceed up to this point. This process does not stop at simply organizing one comment, but also Criteria for distinguishing which exposures should be responded to firstIt also helped establish .
Previously, you had no choice but to react individually each time you looked at search results and community reactions, but now you can view them separately into issues that require a response and those that do not, thereby reducing the burden of explanation and unnecessary internal consumption.
Ultimately, this case If even one anonymous comment is read like an actual review, it can be a significant burden to the company.shows the point. And to reduce that burden, rather than reacting to individual posts one-time, The process of interpreting which exposures are actual risks and establishing response standards togetherIt also shows that this is more important.
If clarification comes before explanation, check with White Me.
If clarification comes before explanation, check with White Me.
So, in which companies does this situation occur more often?
For example, some companies may find it difficult to determine whether a comment or post left online is simply a reaction or a signal that actually influences consultation and contract review.
Additionally, some companies may frequently encounter situations that require explanation before explanation due to search results or community reactions.
Even though it may seem like a small exposure on the outside, if you continue to worry internally and feel the burden of repeated explanations, it may already be in need of inspection at least once.
Rather than reacting to individual posts, White Me is focusing more on organizing which exposures should be viewed first, what should be interpreted as risk, and what standards should be used to manage online reputation.
What is actually important is not to immediately respond to every negative comment, but to first distinguish the points that affect the company's trust formation and consultation flow.
- Review of remarks whose actual use is unclear
- Simple interpretation of service structure due to only some expressions
- Exposure structures that may influence pre-counseling judgments
- Consultation flow that requires clarification before explanation
- Accumulation of internal fatigue due to repeated exposure
In particular, if the above situation is recurring, we need to look at our company's online reputation a little more structurally.
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Ultimately, online reputation management isn't enough if you only respond to problems after they arise.
This is because one search result, one comment, and one community reaction can gradually change a company's trust and consultation flow.
If you're feeling the need to manage your online reputation but aren't sure where to start, now may be the time to take a look. If you need standards that fit your company's situation, contact White Me right now.
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※ This case image was created with AI to protect customers. White Me protects customer information in accordance with NDA.
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