Managing Your Reputation: 5 Areas to Review Before Selling
A key element in successfully managing early learning programs is developing and maintaining a good reputation. While one negative event, social media post, or bad review can feel like the end of the world, it’s important to remember that most people have reasonable expectations. They understand that unfortunate situations occur, and unfair or inaccurate negative postings happen. However, when there are repeated issues—a pattern of specific negative reviews or an event that triggers negative public relations—it’s best to handle immediately and certainly before listing.
When deciding to sell your school, keep in mind that a good part of what a potential buyer wants is goodwill and an element they don’t want is having to button up loose ends regarding reputation. Consider taking the time to tighten up or correct anything now so there are no surprises when you begin the transaction process. Here are five areas to tackle first to get you started:
1. Social Media & Websites
First things first, do a thorough check of your school’s online presence, or better yet, hire someone to do it for you. This will minimize your frustrations and provide you with honest feedback. Assess all platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, your website, and the school groups you have listings with such as Care.com, Winnie.com, Greatschools.org, and any other organization you’ve advertised or interacted with. Don’t forget the comments for local newspaper and magazine Top School contests or neighborhood apps like Next Door.
If you do discover negative or inaccurate information, you have a few options:
Go directly to the poster to solve the issue. Usually, the person posting the negative remarks has tried to reach out and has received an unsatisfactory response or no response at all. Sincerely apologizing and solving the problem to their satisfaction can certainly go a long way with calming an upset customer.
Post a positive public response. This makes it evident to others reading your reviews that you care and are actively trying to resolve the situation. It also shows that you are customer service oriented.
Contact the platform directly and ask them to remove the negative comment. This works well if you can prove the comment is false or the poster did not follow the required guidelines.
Pro Tip: Resist writing a response in the heat of the moment. Sleep on it or ask a trusted colleague or staff member to do the response.
2. Parent Facebook Groups
If you’re part of a parent group on Facebook, you know that they can take on a life of their own. Oftentimes, a minor issue brings everyone out of the woodwork to happily pile on additional critiques. Depending on the scope and severity of the comments, we recommend having a few, trusted Parent Ambassadors on standby to respectfully offer their insights and input about your program. They can do this by directly messaging the original poster or commenters to stay out of the fray. The goal is to slow down or stop the comments with positive facts about your program.
3. Vendors
Consider reviewing past (and present) vendors to be sure all bills have been paid and you’re in good standing. Simultaneously, you can also review your vendor accounts for any credits you haven’t received. As you near closing, most buyers will maintain the same vendors, so ensuring your reputation as a good customer is important.
Pro Tip: Use your Quickbooks vendor list for ease in completing this task.
4. Indeed and Other Hiring Platforms
Reputation management is vital to the successful recruiting and hiring of staff members. If a hiring platform allows reviews, make sure you know what is being said about your company. Refer to our options listed under item 1. Social Media & Websites for ideas on getting negative reviews handled and removed.
Pro Tip: Many schools have names that are identical to others. Be sure the platform identifies the location (city and state) of reviews and that reviews are correctly attributed to the right program.
5. Licensing
Almost all states post childcare centers’ licensing violations, many times before you have time to respond or appeal. Be proactive when working with your licensing department by speaking up immediately, especially if you feel there is an error. Consider consulting an attorney if you have a serious issue. Transparency with parents and prospective parents regarding any violations is important. Giving honest information without breaking confidentiality will build trust for parents as will your attitude. Parent questions should be welcomed and addressed quickly.
Reputation management is a serious business and maintaining confidentiality is essential to a trusting relationship. At HINGE, we are happy to provide support as you work through PR issues and can certainly make appropriate referrals if necessary. If you want more information on how to handle a specific situation regarding your school, feel free to contact Kathe Petchel from our Client Relations team at kpetchel@hingeadvisors.com.