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How to build buzz and positive 'ORM' for your food truck on the web

Building a food truck reputation requires an ongoing effort to be active on social media, interact with customers and encourage them to post honest reviews of your food.

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October 16, 2019 by Daniela McVicker — Writer, TopWritersReview

How do food truck owners manage to keep their reputation online and increase their number of clients? Here comes the role of online reputation management, which helps food truck owners stay on the spot and win more clients.

What are the benefits of good ORM? Building robust online reputation management will bring various benefits for your food truck business:

It increases trust level. People tend to take others' opinions into consideration. Thus, if your online reputation is good, the clients will automatically come.
It attracts more business. Managing to build a strong online reputation will attract more business and clients interested in your food. Therefore, your profits will increase considerably.
It attracts employees. An excellent online reputation does not only bring more clients, but it also has a positive impact on employees. Positive reviews will attract more employees and keep the existing ones satisfied with working in a trustworthy place.

How do you build buzz and positive ORM for your food truck on the web? One way is to encourage your clients to create buzz around your food truck.

Whenever you have a new customer, you should encourage him or her to share his or her opinions online. It is also essential to not put too much pressure on your clients to leave feedback, but gently urge them to say their opinion. You can even encourage them to talk about your food truck and offer symbolic compensation for each online review.

Also, you should be persistent in asking your clients to share accurate feedback on the review sites where your food truck is present. You should also expect that not all reviews will be positive. However, time will tell if the clients' overall experience was excellent and the reviews will come into a balance in the end. If your food truck is one of the best in your niche, then the reviews will transmit this idea. Finally, you should also consider reviews as a great opportunity to learn from your mistakes and identify improvement ideas.

Don't be afraid of criticism

It is perfectly normal to receive both positive and negative feedback for your food truck. Your online reputation will be influenced by the way you choose to respond to each input. You can easily earn new customers if you are honest in accepting your mistakes and are open to correct what you did wrong. If the reviews website allows it, you shouldn't be afraid to reply online and show the others that you are very aware of what is going on with your food truck business. Coming with clear examples and demonstrations on how you solved the situation will help you earn the trust of your clients.

If you are not allowed to reply online, you shouldn't give up responding to negative feedback. You can make personal contact with the unsatisfied customer and try to find a solution to his or her situation. It is important not to give up until you find a satisfactory resolution for both parties.

Finally, you should also show your client that you understand his or her disappointment. Be professional in your approach and show respect to your customers. Unless your customer is unreasonable, you should put all the efforts to answer any negative feedback.

Reach out to bloggers and influencers

While some food trucks have a website, in general, food truck owners prefer to be present on social media and leverage their presence online in this manner. Some of the most prominent marketers for a food truck business are local bloggers and influencers. Reaching out to some of the most famous influencers and inviting them to taste your food is very beneficial for your ORM. You can also ask them to create a post on Instagram about your food or write on their blog about the dishes they liked the most.

This strategy will increase your business exposure. You will gain an increased audience of people who are big fans of food trucks and trust influencers' opinions. When they read the recommendations coming from a blogger or influencer they admire, your potential customers will become more receptive and reach out to you faster.

Another great tip to improve your online reputation is becoming part of a "top 20" list with the best places to eat a specific type of food.

Keep in touch with customers

Once a customer has visited your food truck, you should convince him or her to come back for more. Therefore, you should engage with your clients from the first time they visit you. In general, the entrepreneurs who decided to open a food truck are open-minded people who love interacting with people. So, you can start a short discussion with your clients and encourage them to talk about your business online. For example, you can encourage your clients to share their location on social media or post a selfie with your food on their Instagram or Facebook account.

You can also contact your customers directly after the sale. This means that you should develop a strategy to collect their contact information during the sale and keep in touch with them on social media or via email. Encourage them to leave a review on your food truck and create limited-time offers to entice them to come back for more.

Recommendations should be also appreciated. So, for any new client recommended, you can offer a special discount or one of your most popular products. In addition, networking is also a great opportunity to stay in contact with your customers and receive feedback.

Stay active on all channels

If you want to have a strong online reputation, you should also make sure that you are present on various channels. For example, Instagram is great for sharing photos with your products. If you are not very talented in taking pictures, you can collaborate with a food designer or photographer and ask him to help you in creating mouth-watering pictures with your dishes. On the other hand, Facebook is an excellent platform where you can keep in touch with your clients. You can also use hashtags to increase your visibility.

Be open to answering your customers' comments and questions, both in public or in private. No one is perfect. So, there is nothing that you should be afraid of when you answer your clients' questions.

You should never forget why you decided to open your food truck. You did it for the love of food and the exciting experience that you wanted to create for your customers. Therefore, whenever you answer to criticism, you should have these ideas in mind. You will see how easy it will become to keep your clients informed and build a strong online reputation.