Negative reviews can be scary for employers, but they can also be an opportunity to grow and improve.
How you handle negative reviews affects how potential customers view your business.
This article explores the importance of responding to negative reviews, determining why they occurred, and tips for addressing the concerns of dissatisfied customers.
Negative reviews can help your business
Today’s customers rely heavily on review sites to inform their purchasing decisions. Negative reviews can deter potential customers and erode trust in your product or service.
There are many reasons why people might post a negative review online.
In most cases, negative reviews are an emotional response from a customer due to an unsatisfactory experience with a company’s products or services.
Understanding the cause of negative reviews is just as important as responding to negative reviews.
Over the past decade, I’ve analyzed the review profiles of thousands of companies. You can identify some common problems or complaints if your business deals with negative reviews.
Negative reviews are valuable for businesses to identify issues with their products, customer service, pricing, billing, etc.
Each review provides information to improve products, services and customer experiences.
Businesses can identify problem areas by analyzing negative reviews and making meaningful changes to better serve their customers.
dig deeper: A three-phase approach to proactive online reputation management
Tips for responding to negative reviews
Customers appreciate it when they feel heard. They want to know you’re taking their review seriously.
How you respond to a negative review can significantly affect how potential customers perceive your business.
Here are my top tips for responding to negative reviews:
Be professional
It can be easy to lose your cool when you see a negative review that speaks poorly of your business.
However, it is important to maintain a calm, respectful and professional demeanor in all responses to negative reviews.
Avoid any language that could be considered confrontational or defensive.
customize
Responses should be tailored to each specific negative review.
A common mistake is when a company uses the same response for all negative reviews; this can make the answers seem inauthentic.
Respond quickly
The ideal response time to a negative review is 24 hours.
This will show your customers your dedication to fixing any issues while mitigating the damage of the negative review.
Responding quickly will also lead to a greater chance of resolution with the upset customer.
Show empathy
Empathize with the reviewer’s concerns and take responsibility for any errors or problems mentioned.
This helps to validate their experience rather than dismiss it. It’s important to remember that thousands of people will see your review response from your potential customers.
Show empathy even if you think the reviewer is 100% wrong.
Offer solutions
Respond to the reviewer’s concerns by directly addressing their issue.
If no solution is currently available, please provide the reviewer with an email or phone number so they can contact you to resolve the issue.
Highlight the positive
Don’t miss the opportunity to highlight any positive aspect of your business.
You can use your answers as a way to reinforce the quality of your business and the value you provide.
Carry on
Always follow up with the reviewer by phone or email (if possible) to ensure that their concerns have been satisfactorily addressed.
If the concerns have been resolved, it’s also a great opportunity to see if the reviewer is willing to update their review, which often results in a higher star rating.
Dig deeper: a quick guide to managing your online reputation
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Negative review response templates
One of the most important aspects of branding for a company is consistency.
If you have negative reviews posted about your business, you should consider creating review response templates for your customer service team or whoever will be handling responses.
Review response templates ensure that whoever is responsible for responding to the negative review sticks to the script and treats all customers equally.
That said, you should never copy and paste templated responses.
The first step in creating review response templates is to perform a negative review audit of all existing negative reviews.
Once completed, analyze each negative review, identify common trends or complaints you see in negative reviews, and categorize them.
Each category you create should have its own templated review responses.
You must include personalization and details relevant to the reviewer’s concerns each time you respond, and ensure that all responses adhere to the best practices detailed above.
The negative review response template below uses the best practices described in this article.
dear [Reviewer’s Name],
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback about your recent experience with our company. We truly value the opinions of our customers and appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns. We apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced and assure you that we take your feedback seriously.
At [Company Name]about the last one [Years In Business] we strive to provide exceptional service and a positive experience for every customer. We are disappointed to hear that we were unable to meet your expectations. We have taken immediate steps to correct the situation and improve our protocols to prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.
We would like to address your specific concerns and talk to you more about the situation. Please contact our customer service department at [contact information] so we can discuss your concerns in more detail and find a solution.
Once again, thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. We look forward to the opportunity to regain your trust and provide you with a stellar experience in the future.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Title/Position]
[Company Name]
What about fake negative reviews?
Fake negative reviews are one of the most frustrating experiences you can face. A fake negative review can take several forms:
The fake review could be a case of mistaken identity. The fake review can be from a competitor or an adversary. The fake review could be due to review the bombing by a disgruntled customer and others. In the worst situations, fake reviews can be part of it an extortion scheme.
If you suspect a fake negative review has been posted about your business, check your customer database to see if the reviewer’s name matches a current or previous customer.
If you don’t find a match, your business may have been the victim of a fake review.
The first action to take is to try to get the negative review permanently removed. Most review sites allow you to flag any review for violations of their guidelines.
For example, if you have a fake negative review on your Google Business Profile, you can find information on how to flag the review on their profile. help documentation.
If the review site does not take steps to remove the fake review, you can respond to the review by:
[Name of Reviewer],
We appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback with us. However, we were unable to find any record of your visit or interaction with our company. We suspect that this review may not be genuine or may have been published in error.
If you believe there has been a misunderstanding or if there is a specific issue you would like to discuss, please contact our customer service department directly at [contact information]. We are always available to answer any questions or concerns you may have.
Dealing with negative reviews online
Negative reviews are an inevitable part of business today.
Whatever your industry, learning how to respond constructively to negative reviews will go a long way in determining your overall online reputation and ability to attract new customers.
Follow the steps outlined above and you’ll put your business in the best possible position to turn a negative review into a positive opportunity.
The views expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.
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