The Importance of ORM in Digital Marketing for Brands in Kerala

Online platforms have a major role in building a brand’s reputation in today’s digital world. Through online reviews, customers share their experiences with the business that they have associated with. These reviews help the audience to understand further about the brand. Managing online reputation is vital for businesses in Kerala, especially when the market is so competitive. This is where ORM in digital marketing plays an important role.
What is ORM in Digital Marketing?

Introduction to Online Reputation Management-Image Source: Fastercapital
Before getting into the blog, let’s answer the question and understand what is ORM in digital marketing. ORM stands for Online Reputation Management. It is the process of managing and maintaining the online presence of brands. It helps maintain a positive online image through addressing customer feedback, responding to reviews, and ensuring that your brand is reliable and trustworthy. ORM stands for how your brand is perceived by the audience when searching for your brand online.

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Contact UsWhy ORM Matters for Kerala Brands
Kerala is a competitive marketplace, especially in sectors like tourism, healthcare, and education. A lot of businesses are blooming nowadays. ORM matters for Kerala brands because a negative review about your service can harm your business, as you could lose a lot of potential audience or potential leads through these negative reviews. People usually look at Google reviews before booking a hotel or a consultation with a healthcare practitioner. If the feedbacks are strong, you are going to get a lot of potential leads. Your business is perceived to be trustworthy. Kerala has a high percentage of internet-literate population, so the brands cannot afford to ruin their online image through random negative reviews by the competitors. ORM strategy ensures that the right message reaches the right audience.
Benefits of ORM in Digital Marketing

Strong ORM practices can help businesses in various ways. Here are some of the benefits of ORM in digital marketing.
Builds Trust and Credibility
Customers will always choose brands with positive reviews and brands that maintain transparent communication with their audience. Online reputation management shows that the businesses care for their customers and value their opinions.
Influences Customer Decisions and Brand Perception
Before making a purchase, around 95% people check the online reviews. And around 53% trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. These data shows that how important reviews are for businesses. It can shape the audience perception about a brand and help form their decisions.
Helps Recover from Negative Feedback or Reviews
You cannot always ensure that your business will get positive reviews. Negative reviews are also an inevitable part of business. However, with a timely response, ORM ensures that the criticisms are turned into opportunities for improvement. When the audience sees that a negative review is being identified and recognized, they’ll feel more trust towards your brand.
Improves Local SEO and Visibility in Search Engines
Search engines like Google always prioritizes businesses with updated listings and consistent reviews. Engagement is also valued by search engines. ORM strengthens the brand visibility and credibility.
Also Read: Role of Data Analytics in Digital Marketing
ORM Channels That Matter in Kerala
Certain platforms are important for businesses based in Kerala. Different industries have different platforms, but certain platforms are common to businesses. Google Review is one of such most trusted platforms for businesses, especially local businesses, such as restaurants, clinics, or educational institutions. Customers often make their decisions based on star ratings and reviews left by past customers.
In the tourism sector, TripAdvisor plays an important role. TripAdvisor is a platform for hotels, resorts, and other travel-related services. People rely on the reviews left on TripAdvisor by previous travellers to make decisions. Social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram are also powerful platforms. A review posted on these platforms can influence the customer’s choices. If someone posts a negative review as a video about a business or a positive one, it can spread like fire on these social media platforms.
Additionally, YouTube reviews in the form of vlogs or testimonials are a powerful medium that influences the audience’s decisions. Apart from these, local listings and community groups such as Facebook communities or WhatsApp group also plays an important role in shaping the perception of the public in Kerala.
ORM Strategies for Kerala-Based Businesses
By following the given strategies, Kerala businesses can strengthen ORM in digital marketing. The first step is to monitor brand mentions regularly. You can use special tools like Google Alerts to track conversations about the brand.
The next strategy is responding to reviews. Whether it be positive or negative reviews, responding to them is very important. When customers leave a satisfied, positive review, you should thank them, and if they leave a negative review, you should acknowledge them.
Brands should encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews. Whether it be positive or negative, reviews can help brands to improve and make the necessary changes.
Finally, create positive content like blogs, testimonials, and case studies. When people search for your business online, this content shows up in the search results. This can positively affect the SEO.
Also Read: How to Build Successful Digital Marketing Strategies for Startups
Risks of Ignoring ORM
Ignoring ORM in digital marketing can risk your business reputation. It can lead to loss of customers and trust. This will likely make the customers turn to the competitors. If negative reviews are ignored, they can spread faster on social media. These negative word of mouth affects the long-term growth. This can seriously affect the brand, and customers lose their trust in the brand. It takes time and effort to recover from this loss.
Conclusion
ORM in digital marketing is vital for Kerala businesses to attain growth in a fast-paced digital environment. Whether you are in the tourism field, a healthcare provider, in the educational sector, or an influencer, your online reputation matters a lot. ORM in digital marketing helps how your brand is perceived online. This is crucial for building trust and credibility in the market. This is also crucial for building long-term customer loyalty. If you are a business owner in Kerala and not yet seriously considered about ORM, it’s time to invest in online reputation management so that your digital image can be improved.
dExito Branding is an ROI-focused Digital Marketing Agency in Kerala offering result-driven digital marketing solutions to help businesses grow online. We are also an expert SEO Company in Kerala, providing strategic SEO services to boost your brand visibility and search engine rankings.

Salmanul Faris, Founder of dExito Branding, is a seasoned Performance Marketing Expert with over 8 years of experience in Google Ads and Meta Ads. He specializes in helping businesses across India and the GCC achieve measurable growth through data-driven marketing strategies. Amidst his dynamic role at dExito, he shares insights on the latest trends in digital marketing and performance marketing, helping brands stay ahead in the competitive digital landscape