5 Ways to Deal with a Bad Online Review for your Business

“I feel I was way overcharged for the parts!”
“This is the worst and most dishonest business of any kind that I have ever patronized.”
“If I could give this business lesser than one star, I would give it to this place for sure!”

Your customers will always have an opinion about anything. And unless your business is infallible, you will stumble over a bad review at some point. The Internet has given customers a voice that can be “heard” all over the world, like never before. It also gives your customers a chance to interact with your potential clients. They can write about how happy they are with the service. Or leave a scathing review that can deal serious damage to your business. But how should you face online bad reviews?

When a bad review does come your way, the most natural reaction is wanting to remove it. This urge is especially strong if you feel that your business is not at fault. But this approach is ineffective, because it doesn’t go into the root of the issue. Most of the time, the bad review is not the problem. It’s the result of a problem you had with your customer’s expectations. So to get to the bottom of a bad review means to focus on what caused it.

Respond as a Business Owner

Responding to an online bad review gives you a chance to have your side heard. And when you strongly feel that the bad review is baseless, it’s understandable if you would want to challenge the person and invoke an all-out word war. However, that’s a surefire way to increase the damage to your business. The best response is to put on your business cap, keep a cool head at all times, and be professional.

Responding as a business owner means to not respond defensively, and to not make excuses to pass the blame onto others. And professionalism means not to take the issue personally. This should be evident in the words you use. For example, a customer posted that a computer repair shop lost his power charger. The actual response of the business owner shows a classic case of attacking the customer at a personal level.

“Dishonest customers are the worst… We gave him $$ discount but I guess it wasn’t enough he want us to give him a free charger too…His service invoice was clearly marked no power charger at time of check in.”

And the customer responded with, “Find the security video and prove me wrong.” Which doesn’t really solve anything. And calling your customer dishonest is a personal attack. Wouldn’t it have been more professional if the response only focused on the issue and went something like:

“We are sorry for the loss of your charger. Your service invoice does show ‘no power charger’ is marked. And be assured that we value your feedback. This is why we reviewed our security video and it confirms your laptop did not come with a charger. You are welcome to drop by our shop to see the footage for yourself.”

Yes, there is nothing more frustrating for customers than to realize that no one can help them solve their troubles. In most cases they perceive the problem to have been caused by your business. Don’t leave a negative impression to potential clients reading the review. Show everyone, that as a business owner you are in control of the situation. Apologize, be empathetic, and demonstrate that you are sincere in wanting to make your dissatisfied customer happy.

Offer A Solution

Customers whose expectations were not met are looking for solutions. It can be in the form of a replacement, refurbishment, or a refund. This step is crucial in a bad review, because your response to disappointed customers will say a lot about your business. It doesn’t matter if who is right or wrong anymore. What matters to potential clients is how you resolve the issue while leaving the dignity of your customer intact.

And there are times that your customer can insist on a fault that you did not make. It would be wise to accept it with grace. There is no point in engaging your customer in a verbal duel to the death in front of the whole world. Invite them to contact you through phone or email. Add a gentle reminder if you believe you are not at fault. You are saying in effect, “We are sorry you feel this way, but we are not at fault. However, we will take responsibility because we value each customer.”

Which brings us to the question ⎼ Is it worth to give what the customer wants as a last resort? That’s a tough business decision to make. You can choose to sit smugly and carry on doing business knowing that you are right. But would you rather lose revenues because of a damaging review posted on the web? Or would it be more practical to look the other way, bite your tongue, and appease your customer? This should be a decision made with your company’s best interest in mind.

Get More Positive Reviews

Now after having everything heard and done, dissatisfied customers usually end up going back and taking down their negative online review. Or they take the time to edit their review and include how happy they are with the response. The approach of solving the underlying problem instead of focusing on getting the review removed can bring a positive result. And this opens an interesting opportunity ⎼ the recovery allows you to build a stronger than before relationship with your customer.

But sometimes, customers just leave it at that: a bad review that doesn’t go away. You may feel that your effort to appease your customer was pointless. Don’t fret about it. This is something that is beyond your control as a business owner. But there is something you can do to minimize the blow.

One way is to amend your response to the bad review and include all that has been done to settle the issue. In a way, you are telling everyone who reads it, “Hey, this has been an issue but we went out of our way to settle this.” And with that, the bad review becomes a closed chapter, as far as your business is concerned.

Another wise thing to do is to focus on getting more positive reviews from your customers. A good review becomes an antidote to a negative one that you might have. Three bad reviews out of ten might look bad. But ten bad reviews against 100 positive reviews doesn’t seem so bad. So, encouraging your highly satisfied customers to post an online review for your business can go a long way. And even push negative reviews to less visible locations of the website.

An Opportunity to Shine

When you think of bad reviews as a way to improve your business, you’d realize they aren’t so bad at all. Good customer service is not about running a business perfectly. But using the opportunity created by a mistake to build a deeper relationship with your customer. Take note if there is a trend in bad reviews. If numerous people are commenting about slow service, a policy they find unreasonable, not calling them back, not calling in for update about repairs, not finishing the job on the agreed time frame ⎼ they’re right, and you need to address these issues.

Sometimes, a customer’s need is beyond the scope of your business. But still, you get a bad review about it. The issue may stem from the way the matter was handled. Why not take a moment to think about what could have been done better. An apology might be appropriate. It does not guarantee to fix things, but it’s the first step to show that you care about your customers and would want to make things right.

So treat the bad reviews as a blessing in disguise, learn from it, and take action. Always keep in mind that every chance you get to interact with your customer is an opportunity to show how good you are.

Observe Best Practices

Prevention is way better than any cure. Your business is better off if you have the right practices that will steer you away from bad reviews in the first place. A checklist, or documented standard procedures on how to handle certain matters will most likely resolve dissatisfaction before your customer leaves your shop.

On preventive measures, for example, you may decide to close shop during certain holidays. Leaving this information together with when you will resume your operations in your voicemail, may seem trivial. But it will prevent bad reviews about not returning calls from your clients.

Good documentation will also help you out, especially if the review is untruthful. It allows you to give supporting details to describe what really happened. For example, you can use the Technician’s Notes or Suggestions in your work invoice to refute an accusation that you gave bad advice to your client.

Regarding claims about telephone transactions gone wrong, having a call logbook is a lifesaver. It can give details of what really transpired in your conversation with the customer. This is also true for false reviews posted to deal damage to your business ⎼ your good documentation is your lifeline.

Even in the case of a competitor posting a bad review about your business, do not verbally lash out. Take it to the right platform. In most cases, giving proof to the blog site moderators that the bad review comes from your competition is enough to remove it.

Also, taking a few minutes to call your customer after-sales or repair can help minimize unfavorable reviews. It also provides you a chance to satisfy frustrated customers before they post their bad reviews for the public to read. Yes, it’s also good to keep in mind that online reviews should not be your only method for receiving feedback.

There’s no way around a bad review, it happens. You can do everything right and still receive harsh feedback. But it should not necessarily be a dead-end for your business. Respond to negative reviews in a professional manner. Offer a solution instead of bickering with your customer. Encourage highly satisfied and loyal customers to put a good word for your business on the web.

And treat negative reviews as opportunities for you to show that you run an excellent business. And observe best practices in your daily operations because it will be your safety net against untruthful and fake reviews. And with that, you can turn bad reviews around and have positive results.