Reputation Changer: Travel Industry Faces Dire Need for Reputation Services

WEST CHESTER, PA, April 10, 2012

For those who love to travel, the Internet is an increasingly prominent tool. Travelers use the Web, including social networks, to book their hotels and even to buy plane tickets. What is more, many travelers also use the Web to share their thoughts on different travel accommodations, whether they are offering an airline recommendation or a full review of a particular hotel. But as travelers have increasingly embraced the Web, the travel industry has found itself facing an urgent need for online reputation services. In fact, more and more hotels are seeking protection against negative reviews and online defamation; 4Hoteliers, a leading industry publication, recently offered a full crash-course in online reputation management. According to companies like Reputation Changer, hotels are ideal candidates for these Internet-based services.

Reputation Changer's Chief Executive Officer, Justin Singletary, says the hotel industry's increased use of reputation defense services is only natural--and that it is also very smart. "A hotel is uniquely susceptible to nasty online attacks that could ultimately sink its business," Singletary says. "That's because a traveler can post a scathing, one-star online review, which might be based on something completely outside the hotel's control, like noise from the street below the room. Negative reviews can even be planted by a rival hotel, as part of an aggressive smear campaign."

And not only do these negative reviews happen, but they can also prove very influential, Singletary says. "A one-star review, posted on a review site like Yelp, is almost surely going to be one of the first things to show up on a Google search," he notes. And that lone review can have a huge impact on public opinion, Singletary says. "If a one-star rating is what appears beside the hotel's name in an Internet search, then, for all intents and purposes, that hotel has become a one-star hotel in the minds of consumers. What companies like www.ReputationChanger.com does is help restore that hotel as the brand of choice among travelers."

Singletary offers a shocking story as evidence of the importance of a hotel's reputation. "We dealt with a four-star hotel that was slapped with a one-star review. The hotel's business slowed down so much that it had to drop down to one-star rates. It basically became a one-star hotel, solely on the back of an online review."

But reputation defense--and, where needed, reputation repair--is hardly outside the realm of possibility. The 4Hoteliers commentary notes that the process is two-pronged, and includes both reputation monitoring and management. Singletary says this is a helpful distinction. "Even for hotels that are not aware of any defamation or bad reviews, monitoring can be very helpful," he observes. "Then, should some unwanted content appear online, the hotel will know it in time to respond promptly and decisively." Singletary says that his own company provides 24/7 monitoring to its clients, and also prioritizes quick response to negative online listings.

The other side of the coin is reputation management. "This is what hotels with negative publicity or harmful reviews truly need," offers Singletary. A reputation management campaign would not seek to erase or refute those bad reviews, but rather would seek to suppress them. The online reputation defense company would inundate the search engines with positive content, seeking to push the bad reviews off the first page of the search results.

Singletary concludes by saying that the hotel industry's embrace of reputation management is something that other industries might learn from. "Hotels are hardly the only businesses that face bad reviews or unwanted publicity," he comments. Singletary says that some of his past clients have included Fortune 500 companies, home-based start-ups, and everything in between.

"Regardless of the industry, or exactly what the company does, a bad review from a site like Yelp can devastate," Singletary notes. "And even if bad reviews aren't a problem, there is always the chance that a competitor will engage in a smear campaign. That's why companies of all kinds must be prepared to defend their online reputation, something the hotel industry is learning."

ABOUT:

Founded in 2009 by a team of online marketing and sales professionals, Reputation Changer is one of the premier providers of online reputation management. The company works 24/7 to provide comprehensive reputation management strategies to its clients, which have included politicians, public figures, Fortune 500 companies, and more. Reputation Changer owns several media outlets, and is known for its innovation in positive SEO techniques, social media implementation, and more. The company is also unique for the custom, individualized process it takes for every client and every campaign.