How to Deal with Negative Reviews

Handling negative reviews well can turn them into opportunities for growth.

Negative reviews can be a challenge to manage for any business, but with effective tools and thoughtful strategies, it is possible to turn a negative review into an opportunity for growth. As businesses are increasingly held accountable for their customer service quality and product reliability, negative feedback provides the valuable insight needed in order to make improvements. So how can you handle damaging reviews without doing further harm? In this blog post, we’ll discuss key strategies that will help your organization effectively manage and respond to criticism from customers.

Negative Reviews

As a business owner, you are bound to get a few negative reviews. However, you shouldn’t get defensive, ignore them (or delete them), or get into an online battle with the person who left you a bad review. Instead, use these tactics:

Respond promptly to negative reviews

People expect a quick response. It is important to deal with negative reviews promptly before they escalate and more potential customers read the review.

Be polite and professional

Don’t take it personally. Respond in a polite, professional manner, and don’t blame other people for the problem or create excuses.

Acknowledge the issue and apologize

Most customers who complain on the Internet simply want to be heard. It’s essential to empathize with them and apologize without blaming them. Show that you genuinely regret that a customer didn’t have a positive experience with your business. Approximately 33% of negative reviews on Yelp turn positive when you take the time to apologize to the upset customer.

Promote a positive image of your business

Convey why his or her experience is rare in heartfelt and non-condescending language. If appropriate, include in your reply some of your business’s strengths that are relative to the customer’s experience. Your response can flip the script to frame your business in a positive light while still making the customer feel heard.

Use negative reviews as a learning experience

Some reviews can be hard to hear, but once you’ve dealt with the situation appropriately, use any negative reviews as a learning experience. Consistent negative reviews mean that it’s time to make a change. Show your customers you are listening to them by making those changes.

Set Yourself Up for Success

While it can be difficult to respond the right way to negative reviews, it is important that you take the situation into your own hands and set yourself up for success. By establishing an appropriate protocol for handling negative reviews and interactions on social media, as well as creating a culture of feedback and two-way communication with your audience, you can help reduce the effects of such feedback. Remember that any response must accurately represent your business and brand voice, provide valuable insight and information to customers, and contain polite wording that adheres to the rules of online etiquette. With the right actions in place, you’ll be poised to build a lasting online presence and solid customer relationships even in difficult situations.