Welcome to the Wiki, business owner! Because you're part of the Corvallis community, we'd love to have you become a part of the wiki community. Here's a brief introduction that might help get you started on the right track. You also might want to read the general welcome.
A few things to keep in mind:
-
Please read the page on the Importance of using your RealName. You should not edit as BusinessName, or FakeName. Using your RealName adds credibility to your edits and your business.
-
You can use the wiki to engage your customers in a productive dialog that will demonstrate your customer service to everyone who reads the page about your business.
-
You can add plenty of useful content to your business' page, but it is edited by the entire wiki community. That includes, but is not limited to, you.
-
People will leave negative reviews. Don't worry too much about this; look at the pages for other businesses. Take a deep breath— customers sometimes forget that business owners have feelings, and write things that are much harsher than they would be willing to say in person. One thing that can be done is to include the following code right before the [[Comments]] macro: [[Include(AboutReviews)]]. Another macro that has been developed is the HIPAA Restrictions macro that is placed on any business listing for a medical professional that explains why HIPAA restricts how a doctor or medical professional can comment on who their patients are.
-
The wiki is a great place to explain policies that customers may not be familiar with. For example, the restaurant guide and tipping pages illustrate a few policies from an industry standpoint. Several businesses have taken the opportunity to respond to comments and in doing so have cleared up misconceptions about standard business practices. They educated not only those who left the comment, but all who read their response.
-
Both you and your customers have important things to say, so don't remove their comments. The customs are being established now for archiving old comments from business pages so that past performance will not outweigh recent changes. The wiki isn't anti-business, but we are pro-consumer and need your input to help us achieve a good balance. Also, all edits remain in the page history, so simply removing them will appear to be an attempt to cover up problems. Try addressing the problem directly - it looks good when you leave a (friendly) reply explaining or offering to resolve any problems that patrons have noted on your page.
-
Sometimes people will add untrue stories or facts. This has nothing to do with the wiki... these people walk through Corvallis all day long and are saying the same things about your business: you just never had a chance to hear them. Instead of these stories being whispered behind your back, you now have an opportunity to address any rumors, bizarre anecdotes or out and out lies floating around Philomath. Keep in mind that simply trying to delete the stories from the wiki won't remove them the casual sidewalk and workplace conversations that spread such rumors, and sometimes makes it look like they may be true and you are trying to "hide" things. While it can be frustrating to read incorrect information, patiently addressing your customer's comment or clarifying what happened in a misrepresented incident gives you an opportunity to respond to the things people are saying about your business on the streets of Corvallis.
That being said, use the wiki! The traffic generated by the wiki makes it the ideal place to get the word out about what you offer. Do you sell a unique product? Do you offer hard to find services? Let people know! Also, if you need to update prices, contact info, or store hours, doing it on the wiki is by far the most efficient way to inform customers. Above all else, don't shy away from adding to the content of your page because you feel obligated to first respond to specific user comments. Your role on the wiki is whatever you want it to be, so do whatever you feel best serves your business interests.
