Handling Negative Online Reviews
As your business grows and becomes more popular you may receive online reviews. As you have already heard from me, reviews are great traffic building tools for your website, so it’s worth encouraging them. Many online customers say that online reviews influenced their purchasing decision.
A problem that I can guarantee you will eventually experience is some people will be negative and will tell you this by leaving a bad review. Don’t simply ignore negative reviews, use it as an opportunity to retain a customer and build loyalty. However, keep your response positive and honest.
- If someone is leaving negative reviews about your company, respond.
- Be thankful and polite. Nothing escalates a negative review into a full-blown hurricane faster than an ‘Oh yeah?!?’ reply from the company.
- If reviewers are jumping to the wrong conclusion about your company, kindly correct them with the proper information.
- Thank them for their feedback, and encourage them to provide more. Leave your email address and phone number so they can contact you offline, if they choose.
Managing your company’s online reputation is important to business of all sizes. The feedback of previous customers is seen to be as reliable as a referral from a friend or family member. Keep in mind, that what you consider a bad review can even be a selling point for another customer.
