Mistakes happen, and sadly, they can live forever on the internet. For your business to succeed, it's important to put in the hard work necessary to boost your brand's reputation.

Here, we'lllook at the top 10 mistakes businesses make regarding reputation management.

1. Pretending reputation management isn't necessary.
If you have a business that has an online presence, you need online reputation management. It's essential to have an online reputation management plan before there's a problem. Reputation management can work to shed a positive light on your business.

2. Failing to claim your online space.
It's important that you find out where your target market hangs out online and create social media accounts that can reach them. If you're dealing with Gen Z, you may have a better time creating content on TikTok than Facebook. Working with an online reputation management team like Status Labs can help take some of the guesswork out of where your business should be focused on social media.

3. Ignoring negative comments.
If you get a negative comment from a customer, respond. Invite the customer back to your business for an on-the-house experience, or ask them to contact you privately so you can work together to find a way to solve the problem.

4. Failing to respond to messages in a timely manner.
Many people use social media messaging the same way people used to pick up the telephone and call a business. It's critical to respond to messages right away to help customers keep a positive image of your business.

5. Going all out with social media — then going silent.
Consistency is important. To build a trustworthy reputation, it's important that you post consistently on social media. Planning posts out weeks in advance can make it easier to regularly stay on top of getting your content in front of your audience.

6. Expecting a team member to take on reputation management as a side project.
Reputation management is a full-time job and will only become more time-consuming as your business grows. It's not fair or feasible for a team member with already existing responsibilities to take on online reputation management as a part of their job.

7. Posting fake reviews.
It can be tempting to post fake reviews to boost the way people see your business, but doing so is inauthentic and often surprisingly obvious. Instead, encourage customers to leave positive reviews. Be sure to respond to positive reviews with heartfelt, original messages to encourage others to leave positive notes.

8. Using canned responses for comments and messages.
Copy and pasting saves time, but it doesn't do much to boost business. Customers want to feel heard, and it's important to take the time to craft an original message in response to each review.

9. Letting your personal opinion of a situation get in the way of an appropriate response.When you don't care for a person or their opinion, it can be easy to let your personal feelings get in the way of your professionalism. Discuss your frustrations with trusted co-workers privately, but be sure to present yourself professionally online.

10. Failing to call in the pros when necessary.
If you have an online presence, you need to work with a solid online reputation management company like Status Labs that can help you avoid mistakes, correct past missteps, and build a positive reputation for your brand.