One Simple Way to Boost Your Company’s Reputation

The following is adapted from Discernment.

In business, your reputation is everything. Imagine your friend says to you, “I had a great experience with that company!” You’re likely to give them a shot, right?

But what if that same friend said, “They treated me horribly!” There’s no chance that company is earning your business. In this way, a company’s reputation can have consequences that extend far beyond that single business exchange. Your name will travel farther than you ever will, so it’s worth investing in your reputation, especially in your own backyard.

Does your community know who you are? If they do, is the impression favorable? You can strengthen an already strong reputation or rebuild a tarnished one with reputation equity. Doing so requires investing time into your community, but it’s not difficult to do.

If you’ve never made this commitment before—or you find yourself forced to do after a blow to your reputation—here are some pointers for how you can show up, help out, and forge a relationship with people who aren’t yet familiar with your business.  

Step Up, Show Up, and Volunteer

Building your reputation in your business community or industry starts with stepping up, showing up, and volunteering. 

This could look like anything from mentoring others to volunteering to speak or participate on panels. Let your words and actions prove your values in this arena, and your professional reputation will take care of itself. Be kind. Be thoughtful. Be charitable, capable, and effective. And for every conversation, be present. 

Show up in the wider community as well—at your kids’ school, at town events, at fundraisers for local causes or charities, or by coaching a sports team. Successful business leaders and many other people you’d like to meet understand the value of giving back, and contributing to the community can contribute to your professional network as well. 

The 3 Rules of Getting Involved

Once you’ve decided to get involved in your community, how do you maximize the impact of your involvement? In both your professional and local communities, follow these three rules:

1. Show up for every meeting (most people show up once or twice, then ghost).
2. Join a committee.
3. Sponsor an event.

These three rules send a clear message: I’m committed. By showing up, you show consistency. By joining a committee, you demonstrate that you’re willing to invest your time. And by sponsoring an event, you’re putting your money where your mouth is, so to speak.

If community members see you modeling these virtues, they’ll associate those qualities with your business. It’s the same reason celebrity endorsements work: the celebrity is “haloing” their virtuous qualities to the product. These three rules let you tap into that same effect. 

Reputation Influences Your Professional Network

Reputation isn’t all about customers—it’s also about employees and business partners. 

Your ability to attract high-quality people as friends and employees is a direct function of your reputation. Having a reputation as the kind of person great people want to know improves the quality of your friendships and your future. 

The same thing is true of your business. Having a reputation as a great place to work attracts high-performing employees, and no organization is ever going to be any better than its weakest member. Reputation equity is money in the bank of your future success. 

As a business leader, it’s important to keep in mind that the balance of power changes all the time, and someone over whom you have leverage today may have the leverage tomorrow. In other words, building your reputation with people who offer no immediate benefit can pay off in the long run when those people advance in their careers. 

To get the most from your reputation investment, focus on building goodwill with people at all professional levels, not only those at the top. 

What Will People Say About Your Company?

The next time a potential customer needs the service you provide, you want them to see your company in the list of search results and say, “That’s the company that sponsors my kid’s baseball team. They’re great!” 

You want to be known as the company that gets involved in the community, gives back, and consistently shows up. These actions build trust. But be aware that being flaky can have the opposite effect. If you’re going to get involved, commit. 

When you show that you value commitment, punctuality, respect, and honesty through your actions, people, whether potential customers or future business partners, will attribute those qualities to your business, too. 

For more advice on running a business, you can find Discernment on Amazon.

Jeff Dudan is a seasoned business builder, Undercover Boss, and former college football player. He went to Florida to paint in the wake of Hurricane Andrew and two years later launched AdvantaClean, a national restoration franchise that had 240 locations in 37 states when Jeff exited the company in 2019. He’s since joined up with his brother, Mike, to start Dudan Partners, a catalyst for enterprise growth in the franchise industry. Jeff recently retired from coaching his kids’ sports teams—thirty combined seasons in the past twelve years—and is a top Forbes contributor.