6 Online Reputation Management Business Success Stories [2024]
An online reputation management business involves helping individuals and companies improve their digital footprints by curating positive web content.
As an online reputation consultant, you pursue search engine optimization and public relations strategies to mitigate damaging commentary.
With services ranging from blog outreach to social media cleanup, building an ORM firm lets you reclaim web narratives.
For PR-savvy founders seeking an accessible startup model, an online reputation venture allows you to monetize internet influence from anywhere while fueling a billion-dollar industry-spanning business and personal brands.
In this list, you'll find real-world online reputation management business success stories and very profitable examples of starting a online reputation management business that makes money.
1. Qnary ($6.6M/year)
Bant Breen, the Founder of Qnary, came up with the idea for his business while working as the CEO of a paid search and social media agency. He noticed that there were no tools available to help individual executives optimize their online presence, so he set out to create a platform specifically tailored to their needs. Since its launch in 2012, Qnary has grown to have thousands of clients and offices in New York, Barcelona, and Sydney.
How much money it makes: $6.6M/year
How much did it cost to start: $1.2M
How many people on the team: 25
Qnary founder Bant Breen built and grew the executive reputation management and talent branding solutions company, now with thousands of clients globally, with a monthly revenue of $550k by developing a tech-enabled solution that optimizes an executive’s online presence, generates thought-leadership content, and grows followers and engagement.
2. ReputationStacker ($3.6M/year)
Ian, the founder of ReputationStacker, came up with the idea for his business while working in advertising and marketing for retail healthcare businesses. He realized that online reviews were becoming increasingly important, but the manual process of requesting reviews from customers was time-consuming and often neglected. Inspired by the success of his email outreach strategy for getting reviews, Ian quit his job and built a software solution that automates the process, helping businesses consistently generate positive reviews and manage their online reputation.
How much money it makes: $3.6M/year
How much did it cost to start: $30K
How many people on the team: 5
ReputationStacker is a subscription software that simplifies and automates the process of getting more online reviews, helping businesses to manage their online reputation and grow their customer base; currently generating over $300k monthly revenue with low churn rates and a strong customer support team.
3. White Bullet ($1.2M/year)
Peter Szyszko, a former intellectual property lawyer, founded White Bullet after realizing the need for efficient processes to differentiate between legal and illegal online content. By using AI and machine learning, White Bullet has developed an IP Infringement Analytics Platform that identifies infringing websites and tracks the advertising funding them. The company has experienced significant growth, attracting clients from the media industry, government, and law enforcement sectors.
How much money it makes: $1.2M/year
How many people on the team: 16
White Bullet CEO and founder, Peter Szyszko, discusses how he identified and began targeting IP-infringing websites and apps with his IPI Analytics Platform, which has seen the company grow and expand into new areas such as social media antipiracy and connected TV.
4. ReviewsOnMyWebsite ($492K/year)
Motuz came up with the idea when he was looking for a widget to embed Google reviews into his friend's website. He realized that many business owners would find such a widget useful, and so he decided to invest his resources into building a profitable solution.
How much money it makes: $492K/year
How much did it cost to start: $2.5K
How many people on the team: 0
ReviewsOnMyWebsite is an online reputation management software helping small businesses collect, monitor, and display online reviews to establish trust and improve brand reputation, which has helped over 35,000 businesses convert more leads by simplifying the process of collecting feedback and displaying customer reviews.
5. SocialBu ($144K/year)
Usama, the CEO and co-founder of SocialBu, came up with the idea for his social media management platform while freelancing as a developer and managing social media accounts. He saw a need for a more powerful and affordable solution, so he built a simple tool that gained traction and eventually led him to create SocialBu. Since its launch, the bootstrapped company has made $300K in revenue and has plans for future improvements and features.
How much money it makes: $144K/year
How much did it cost to start: $2K
How many people on the team: 6
Social media management platform SocialBu is 100% bootstrapped and has made about $300K since its launch, and CEO Usama shares his process of building a social media management tool that solved a real problem and attracted users through online communities and organic traffic.
6. reviewflowz ($8.52K/year)
After working in the email marketing and marketing automation space, co-founder Axel realized the importance of review management for business growth. He pitched the idea of creating a platform that democratizes the review management playbook to his co-founder Gaurav, and reviewflowz was born. The team built and launched the Slack bot in just three weeks, and they are now working towards achieving product-market fit and becoming the go-to review management tool for SaaS businesses.
How much money it makes: $8.52K/year
How much did it cost to start: $97
How many people on the team: 1
Reviewflowz, a nascent SaaS review management tool, discusses their bootstrap MVP process and their struggles with finding product-market fit.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
