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Why Bad Online Customer Reviews Could Be Good For Your Business

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Winning rave online reviews from customers for your products or services is one of the biggest feel good factors of running your own business. But no matter how high their standards of service or quality of products, entrepreneurs soon discover the downside of the online consumer review phenomenon: customers saying bad things about their business.

When you do get a bad review, whether it's from a customer with a legitimate grumble, or a serial nitpicker, you must be prepared to deal with it. Ignoring it isn’t an option - it looks as though you don’t care and it can escalate into a bigger problem - but dealing with negative reviews in a positive way not only minimises the impact of any unflattering comments, it can also help you to win new business.

Seeing the positives in the negatives

It’s natural to feel upset or angry when someone publicly criticises your business, but negative reviews are not necessarily a bad thing. Against a backdrop of a majority of great reviews, a few not so great ones will make prospective customers feel they are seeing a true picture of your business, and that can sway their purchasing decisions in your favour. Nothing but five-star ratings can seem too good to be true. But the best thing about a bad review is that as the owner of the company you have the opportunity to respond in a way that will win customers over.

Get to the bottom of the issue

You might not agree with a customer’s opinion of what you sell and how you sell it, but if you are going to turn the situation around to make it work in your favour, you need to understand why the customer feels the way they do. Most review sites provide members with the option of communicating in private with those posting reviews and that’s a good way of getting more details on what went wrong and why. If the negative comment was made via social media respond quickly by asking the reviewer to contact you privately. And have a chat to any team members who were involved and can shed more light on the situation.

No excuses

So many poor customer reviews have escalated into angry online tirades because instead of empathising with the customer, the business owner has simply made excuses. ‘We were busy/short staffed that night’, ‘We’ve been selling product X for years with no complaints’, ‘Our IT system was being upgraded’ etc., makes a disgruntled customer even more disgruntled; none of your problems are their fault. The first thing that a dissatisfied customer wants to know is that they have been listened to. So if they were unhappy that a product arrived late, damaged or wasn’t what they ordered, start your response with, “We are very sorry that your product arrived late, damaged, etc.’ and we want to make it right.’

Be positive, and be authentic

After restating the customer’s complaint to show that you understand it, adopt a positive tone in a response that disarms a vexed customer and showcase your business at its best. ‘Thank you for getting in touch to let us know how much you enjoy our products.' 'We are sorry to hear that you’ve experienced difficulties with product X.' 'We value all customer feedback, and we are actually looking into the issue to ensure this doesn’t happen again.’ Show your customers just how much you do value them by not only resolving the issue with a full refund, or no-hassle return, but making a goodwill gesture, for example, sending gift vouchers or offering a discount on their next purchase. Thank them for taking the time to inform you of the problem they encountered, and for being a loyal customer to the brand. Resolution will cost you money, but it will also show current and future customers that your business values people, and the business benefits of that can outweigh those of all of the positive reviews you receive.

The power of a loyal customer base

Positive responses to negative reviews go a long way to building a loyal fan base. And those brand aficionados can become valuable allies when a customer reacts unfairly or disproportionately to a bad experience, not just posting a negative review, but compounding the impact by sharing it across multiple social media channels. A loyal fan base will often leap to the defence of a favourite brand online, offering accounts of their own positive experiences, delivering valuable positive PR, and minimising the damage caused by the excessively negative publicity.

Negative feedback builds a better business

It is important to watch for emerging patterns or trends. An increase in poor reviews that focus on the same issue should sound a warning that something needs to be addressed. This is valuable feedback that can be used to save costs and strengthen your business. For example, flagging up a product’s weaknesses enables them to be resolved, and ultimately reduces the number of product returns. Repeated complaints about unhelpful customer service might suggest a need for staff training. 

Bad reviews should be put in perspective; prospective customers are unlikely to be deterred by one or two lacklustre comments, if the vast majority are exceptionally good. In an age where everyone has an online voice, customers are talking, sharing and interacting with others, and business owners can turn this to their advantage. Making things right shows customers that you are a company that genuinely cares about them and wants to keep them.

 

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