Responding to Negative Reviews: Basic Instructions for Small Businesses on Negative Review Management
You have served your customers to the best of your knowledge, only to receive negative reviews later. You wonder where you went wrong even after smiling all the way. Once you have too many negative reviews, your online reputation is ruined, and convincing people about your good products or services becomes even harder. Your online reputation is crucial. That is why you should take care of the reviews you get online.
A negative review does not mean you were wrong. After all, it is impossible to please everyone. What matters is how you respond to such reviews. No matter how good you think you were to the customer who left a negative review, try your best to keep it professional and find a solution to keep a good online reputation. Getting that 5 star review is possible, but not everyone will give you that. So, once you get a negative review, you can ignore it, call the customers and tell them they are crazy, or wait until your emotions settle so you can solve the issue like a professional. If you choose to wait and handle it professionally, here are the basic things you should do.
Thank them for the Feedback
A small business depends on word-of-mouth and opinions from others to grow its customer base. Therefore, a negative review can put a huge dent in your reputation. At this point, the last thing you want to do is to thank the person who left the negative review. However, this is what you need to do. A negative review can be a blessing in disguise. So, thank them for taking the time to review and write about how they feel.
Acknowledge Their Concern
The next thing is to acknowledge their sentiment. Let them know you are happy they came to your business and bring the aspects of their experience to attention. When addressing their review, break it down into two parts. Apologize for the bad experience and explain what you will do to solve it. Remember to stick to your promise and use the feedback to improve your services. If the customer has an issue with the product, you can offer to replace it with a better one. If the issue concerns service quality, apologize and promise them something better the next time they visit you. The point is not to admit you were terrible. It is about making them feel valued and showing them you can do better.
Invite Them Back
Inviting them back to your business once you have rectified the issue is also good. Invite them to try out again and give positive feedback about the experience. For example, if you have a new product, ask them to come and see what you have for them.
Keep it Professional
Whenever you are responding to negative reviews, always keep it professional. Remain calm and refrain from responding to negative reviews when angry. The more professional you are, the more confident other customers will be that you will do anything to give them the best experience.
Conclusion
Negative reviews can ruin your online reputation. That is why it is vital to handle them the right way. Ignoring a negative review doesn’t make it disappear. Instead, it will continue to affect your reputation, and your business will lose more customers. So, respond professionally and use them to better your products or services.
