Online reputation management tips for construction contractors

Though I’ve had my fair share of problems with construction, I think contractors get a bad rap. Sure, there are some unscrupulous builders out there who’ll overcharge you for a simple job and then drag it out from two weeks to three months, but for the most part general contractors, and other skilled professionals like plumbers, mechanics and electricians, work hard and offer fair prices. If they didn’t, then they wouldn’t get referrals and their businesses would soon dry up.

Unfortunately, even the best contractor can’t be perfect all of the time. Some projects will inevitably run over cost or schedule or both; it’s just one of those annoying realities of the construction industry. Of course, for the person left with a temporary hole in their roof or nonworking faucets, the temptation to share their righteous anger with the world is often too powerful to resist, leading to the creation of countless angry blog posts, Twitter updates and one-star Yelp reviews.

A contractor with a bad online reputation is like a home with faulty wiring: You don’t see the problem until everything goes up in flames. The four tips in this article will help contractors and other skilled professionals learn some ways to protect their online reputations and use the Internet to help grow their businesses.

1. Get a website (or two or three).

In this age the odds are good that you have at least some kind of basic website for your business. If you don’t, stop reading this right now and go find a Web designer pronto. Having a well-designed and search engine–optimized website for your business is one of the most important tools you can have in preventing and managing negative online publicity. When deciding on a URL for your website, choose one that’s as close to the exact name of your company as possible. For example, if your company’s name is Four Star Builders, LLC, make sure that your URL is FourStarBuilders.com, or something as close as possible to that.

Purchasing additional domain names for similar iterations of your name is also a good idea. Consider how a new client might search for your company online. If someone told them to check out Four Star, maybe they’d look up Four Star Construction. If you buy multiple domains, you increase the chances that searchers will find your company online — and decrease the chances that an angry client or bitter competitor will use those similar domains to hijack your company’s name and reputation on the Web.

2. Start a blog.

Though there are certainly some risks to sharing your thoughts online, the benefits that a well-managed blog can provide to your online reputation are absolutely worth the trouble. If you still have your Web designer on the phone from tip one, ask them if they can build a blog function directly into your website. If you’d rather handle the blog yourself, you can start one for free using Google’s Blogger software. WordPress is another popular option.

The key to successful small-business blogging is knowing your audience. There are a couple of good approaches for contractors. The first is to use your blog to showcase your most recent projects. For example, you could post something like, “Look at the beautiful crown moulding we installed on Saturday,” along with pictures of the project. The second is to use the blog as a place to offer construction tips to customers. For example, you could teach them how to install a ceiling fan without electrocuting themselves. Just like with the website, make sure that the name and URL you choose for your blog are as close as possible to the name of your business.

3. Get help on Yelp.

Yelp, and other consumer review sites, can be tricky for small business owners. Google, for some reason, loves consumer review sites and frequently places them at the top of its search engine results. That means that if your company receives a bad review, it might end up being the first thing that potential new customers see when they search for you online. Luckily, there are ways to manage negative Yelp reviews.

Unless you’re one of those contractors who routinely makes homeowners across the country curse your name, odds are good that the majority of the work you’ve done has been of good quality. If one of your previous clients was particularly happy about a project you completed, contact them to see if they’ll testify on your behalf with a positive review. Enough positive reviews can help to drown out one or two negative ones.

One important warning about positive reviews: Don’t fake them! If you have real satisfied customers, let them do the talking. If people start catching on that your reviews are fabricated (and they will), your online reputation will take an even bigger hit.

And most importantly, don’t ignore negative reviews — they can add up in a hurry and really damage your reputation. Instead, privately contact the posters of negative reviews; don’t engage in a war of words on Yelp, as that tactic can make you come out looking even worse. Find out what got them so upset and investigate it to find out if the complaint is warranted. If it is, see if you can help to resolve it or explain how you’re taking steps to make sure a similar problem doesn’t occur again. Finding ways to engage openly and sincerely can go a long way toward soothing hurt feelings, and might even lead to a positive update on the part of the reviewer.

4. Reach out with social media.

In addition to the blog mentioned in tip two, you can expand your company’s presence online (and your digital real estate) by joining social media websites. If you already use Facebook (and with more than 500 million users, odds are good that you do), you know how useful it can be for networking. By creating a Facebook fan page for your business, you can control the content that appears on your page and take up a positive spot in your Google search results. If you’re worried about getting fans, ask former clients or your current Facebook friends to help out.

By now you’ve probably also heard of Twitter, which is another good way to bolster your brand online. Like your blog, your Twitter account can be a venue where you can share tips and tricks on home repair issues or updates on your work projects. Your Facebook page and Twitter handle should both leverage your business’s full name, as previously discussed.