Why you shouldn’t be afraid of negative reviews and how to deal with them!
Online reviews are vital for a business’s success. However, traditional logic dictates that good reviews equal more business, while bad ones’ drive customers away.
Yet, when considering yourself as a consumer you may identify that bad reviews are actually beneficial for building integrity and credibility. Imagine that you are searching for a certain product and you find only good reviews. Wouldn’t you be skeptical? Wouldn’t you think that some of them are fake or that the business is most probably deleting the bad ones? Would you doubt the authenticity of the business?
There are 2 kinds of businesses in today’s world. Those you have received a negative review and those that will. At some point everyone will get a bad review. Therefore, it is not the end of the world if your business gets a bad review. In fact, they might be beneficial as they can help you see the consumer’s viewpoint.
Furthermore, a negative review provides an opportunity for optimization and further discussion with an unhappy customer. This discussion is vital to your business as you have one more chance with an unhappy customer, before he/she leaves your business for good, to try and turn him into a happy one.
How to deal with negative reviews:
- Respond promptly and don’t get into an argument.
- Be real and admit your mistakes.
- Correct inaccuracies.
- Write like a person, not a corporation. Empathize with the customer.
- Take it offline.
- Offer to make thing right.
- Be consistent.
- Follow up to check if the issue has been resolved and whether the customer is now happy.
Doing business in the digital world ideally leads to digital engagement. You shouldn’t be afraid of online reviews because they mean you have connected to a consumer. Therefore, each review, positive or negative, provides an opportunity – a chance to pat your team on the back for a job well done or to refine your strategies.
Your customers are online every day. They are looking for solutions to their problems and reviews help them with their buying decisions. Make it easy for them and in turn, they will reward you with their loyalty.
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Also published on Medium.