Four Tips For Protecting Your Brand Reputation In 2020

ChicExecs Co-Founder and Co-President, Nikki Carlson, shares her advice on how to protect your brand amidst the uncertainties created by this pandemic on Forbes blog.

Use these four tips to create an approachable, helpful brand in 2020 and beyond.

1. Be Transparent

Customers are more sensitive to your business’s behavior right now. Your reputation is no longer just about what you say; it’s also about what you don’t say.

Silence can hurt your reputation during a crisis. You need to be vocal, proactive, and fast to survive. Be transparent about how your brand is handling the situation.

2. Give Back

Not every business is able to give back right now, and that’s OK. But consider how your brand could give back, whether it’s a monetary donation, free services or something else entirely. This can sting, especially if you’re hurting financially, but your customers will remember how you responded to the crisis.

3. Serve Your Customers

Customer service is the name of the game in 2020 and beyond. Aside from being communicative and transparent, though, your customer service policies also need some flexibility.

Now really isn’t the time to be a stickler about return policies or cancellations. Make compassion a part of your brand in 2020.

4. Meet People Where They Are

In the past, your PR probably relied on live events or in-person gatherings. Today, however, your brand needs to connect with customers where they are: at home.

The trick in 2020 is to become a personable, trusted brand that delivers incredible value to your followers. Maybe that means sharing home fitness exercises or at-home beauty tips.

Acknowledge your audience’s reality while delivering more value. Whether that means hosting cooking classes via Facebook Live or throwing a virtual benefit concert, pivot your PR to reach people where they are.

Read Nikki Carlson’s full blog on protecting your brand reputation in 2020.