We all agree that corporate reputation is important. It has also become evident that the overall image of a company has a strong impact on loyalty of modern consumers and their final decision. We’ve realized that it’s important not only to communicate, but also how and who we communicate with. In addition, we are aware that reputation is often the only thing we can hang on to in crisis situations and unforeseen circumstances.

We all understand that and, naturally, we are ready and willing to work on it. Seriously, strategically, with a plan and, of course, with the best. And then comes a moment when all those nice stories about plans, wishes, opportunities and imperatives turn into figures. That’s where silence sets in. Yes, reputation is important for me. Yes, I want to work systematically on it. Yes, I want a maximum of results. I want everything except to evaluate and pay for it. What follows is a little agony, which turns into a kind of bargaining that depreciates the significance of a topic itself, as well as all those people who have dedicated years of their professional work and development to communications aimed at creating and maintaining corporate reputation.

Reputation is a serious business investment and it can’t be built or maintained without continuous and strategic investment of effort, time, knowledge and money. A “give me a kilo of press releases, 200g of communication plans and a pinch of content” approach, with a mandatory 12-month period for all that to settle in, can only mislead us. Mislead us to believe that we know and appreciate what reputation really is, or even worse, to think that we’ve really built it in the long run by applying that approach. It is unserious, inappropriate, confusing and unfair to both you and those for whom you do all that. And all that just to cost less.

As long as we observe reputation, in general, as an expense rather than an investment, we cannot talk seriously about this segment of the modern business concept. Ultimately, since sooner or later everything comes down to money, the calculation becomes very simple and clear. Just like consumers pay for their loyalty to a brand/company regularly and continuously, the latter should apply the same principle and invest twice as much in order to maintain that same loyalty they earn from. Invest in order to expect returns.