Payless. Toys R Us. Sears. The world has been rocked by one bankruptcy declaration after another in recent years. Any company who wants to protect the reputation of their business should put measures in place to prevent the inevitable from happening.
What if that’s bankruptcy? Can you do anything to protect your company?
Protect Your Name
Everything about your company trickles down to one thing: your name. It’s your identity that everyone else knows and remembers. Specifically, they will remember how that company name decided to do things, so it’s important for you to uphold company values.
Whatever is most important for you should be apparent in how you do business. Look around you at how other companies make it a point to follow non-discriminatory practices, use price tracking, and choose sustainable ingredients as much as possible. They are trying to send a message, and it’s this message that customers will remember about them.
Your company name should not be just a vehicle for goods and profit. It should stand for something meaningful to customers so that even if they are faced with several choices, they will still choose you.
Protect Your Reputation
You don’t want to be known for questionable practices. You may have a good name and you might have been able to protect your products from unauthorized distributors, but if you don’t manage the reviews you get from customers, your online reputation could suffer. Paying for fake reviews will not be enough to save your name either.
Customers are wise enough to know when reviews are fake, and if they can’t trust what they read online about you, they won’t trust you. Your best bet is to take negative reviews as a learning material, respond to customer concerns, and do better. It’s better to start with a neutral reputation and gradually improve it than to start with a stellar reputation that is quickly degrading.
The quality of products you offer customers also plays a big role in your reputation. You want to be associated with beautiful, high-quality products instead of substandard goods.
Protect Your Legacy
What you do with your company now will determine its position in the market in the future. Yes, there are unbelievable tales of companies turning their image around, but there are also brands that fell off everyone’s favors.
Protect your company’s future by hiring only employees who can help reach your goals. If the company has a high employee turnover, you’re spending money on onboarding and offboarding. That money could have been spent in improving other areas of the business to manufacture better products in a cost-effective manner.
Don’t be afraid to spend on aspects that will have a long-term impact on your company. Those employee training measures you put in place may not seem beneficial right now, but if they can reduce turnover, you’ll see better returns in the future.
Your company is yours to build or break. No wise entrepreneur would work hard on something they just want to break, though. If you’re serious about keeping the business afloat, protect your name, reputation, and legacy.
