Reputation managers strive to build and maintain a company’s reputation and restore those that have been damaged. If you’re hiring in-house reputation managers, asking the right interview questions will help yield the information you need to select the most qualified candidate. The right choice will protect your company’s reputation and, ultimately, your bottom line.
Read on to learn about the essential skills for this role and over 20 reputation manager interview questions to ask candidates.
What Do Reputation Managers Do?
Reputation managers monitor and shape how the public views the company— using tools and resources to engage customers and market the company and its brand.
The day-to-day tasks of a reputation manager can include:
- Building and maintaining a positive online presence
- Monitoring and analyzing online content related to the organization
- Developing and implementing strategies to enhance the positive impact of content
- Responding to comments, feedback, and criticisms in a professional and timely manner
- Evaluating and reporting on the performance and impact of online content and reputation management efforts
- Managing and updating the organization’s social media accounts
- Handling crises that may arise
Related: How Does Employer Branding Impact Recruitment?
Reputation management also requires a wide range of skills and abilities like:
- Communication (written and verbal)
- Crisis management
- Influence
- Interpersonal skill
- Leadership
- Marketing
- Problem-solving and decision making
- Research and data analysis
- Software knowledge
- Social media knowledge
One negative comment or review can alter a company’s reputation in a flash, so a large portion of what reputation managers focus on is the company’s social media platforms and customer feedback.
Reputation Manager Interview Questions
The following questions can help to highlight a candidate’s skills and reveal insights that a resume may not show.
Reputation
- Why is reputation important?
- In what way does a good reputation impact a company? What about a negative reputation?
Communication (Written and Verbal)
- What communication methods have you used with your past teams and company leadership?
- What communication methods have you used with customers and other external stakeholders of the company?
- Tell me about a time when you responded to a customers’ negative comments online. What was the outcome?
- What strategies do you use to communicate effectively with people who have different opinions or perspectives than you?
Crisis Management
- How do you identify and assess potential risks? What have you done to reduce or avoid them?
- Tell me about a time when you had to quickly respond to an emerging crisis.
- Tell me about a time when you had to stray from your established strategies or plans to address a crisis.
- What were the outcomes of crises you managed?
Influence
- What have you done to manage a customer’s negative perceptions of a company?
- In the past, how have you managed situations with internal parties involved in negative publicity?
- Tell me about a time you addressed the public to respond to negative publicity.
Related: 20 Social Media Manager Interview Questions
Interpersonal Skills
- How do you build relationships with stakeholders within and outside of the company?
- What have you done to gain customers’ trust and confidence?
Leadership
- How would you describe your team management style?
- How do you build good working relationships within your teams and with other groups involved with your team?
- Tell me about a team problem you had to overcome and how you resolved it.
Marketing
- What kind of content have you developed to reach customers and build a positive reputation?
- Tell me about a marketing campaign you have worked on to repair a company’s reputation.
Problem Solving and Decision-Making
- Tell me about a time when you identified a potential or actual reputation problem.
- How did you analyze a problem and develop a plan?
- How did you decide what steps to take, and what was the outcome?
Research, Data Analysis, Tools
- How have you collected and analyzed customer information?
- What software and other tools have you used, and how did it help you resolve reputation issues?
- How do you use SEO, and what have you done to improve it for previous employers?
- How has managing SEO helped you promote a positive reputation?
Social Media Knowledge
- How have you maintained a company’s reputation on various social media platforms in the past?
- How do you keep up with rapid customer dialogue on social media?
- How do you manage the influx of customer opinions and feedback?
Hiring a Qualified Reputation Manager
By creating and promoting content, addressing negative feedback, and managing crises, a reputation manager can help you build trust, authority, and loyalty among your customers and stakeholders. Don’t let your online reputation be left to chance; hiring a reputation manager can be the right investment for any business that wants to protect and enhance its online image.