How to Respond To Negative Reviews: 6 Best Practices

1 week ago 16
ARTICLE AD BOX

Customer complaints are an inevitable portion of doing business.

And portion astir lawsuit feedback is invaluable (even erstwhile negative), receiving atrocious reviews connected public-facing platforms tin beryllium daunting. 

In this post, we’ll amusement you however to respond to antagonistic reviews connected Google and different platforms. 

The extremity is to assistance you mitigate immoderate harm to your brand’s estimation and adjacent triumph backmost unhappy customers.

Let’s dive in.

Why You Should Respond to Negative Reviews

Taking the clip to prosecute with antagonistic lawsuit comments demonstrates your business’s dedication to lawsuit restitution and getting things right.

This tin assistance you gain backmost the spot of disgruntled customers. But adjacent much importantly, it tin assistance you gain the assurance of imaginable customers who admit your willingness to close mistakes.

However, responding to captious reviews isn’t conscionable astir harm power and reputation management. It’s besides an accidental to place ways to actively amended your products and lawsuit work practices. 

In the agelong run, taking captious feedback good tin springiness your concern a important competitory advantage.

6 Tips for Responding to Negative Reviews

Wondering however to respond to a antagonistic review? Here’s what you should know.

1. Respond Quickly

Prompt responses amusement that your concern is attentive to lawsuit feedback.

Unhappy customers whitethorn beryllium much apt to springiness you a 2nd accidental if you code their complaints quickly. The much goodwill you foster with the customer, the amended your likelihood of winning them back.

As a rule, you should purpose to respond to antagonistic reviews wrong 7 days, if not sooner. Remember that the longer you permission a atrocious remark sitting without a response, the much clip it has to negatively sway imaginable customers and erode spot successful your brand.

But however tin you guarantee that antagonistic reviews travel to your attraction swiftly? After all, determination are truthful galore directories and platforms wherever customers permission feedback.

Use an online estimation absorption tool

These tools way reviews and marque mentions crossed the net and aggregate them successful 1 easy-to-review location. That way, you tin much easy spot what radical are saying astir you successful existent clip oregon done scheduled reports.

For example, the Review Management instrumentality from Semrush connects with your Google Business Profile, allowing you to show and respond to lawsuit reviews from a azygous dashboard. The instrumentality besides sends you play email alerts astir immoderate antagonistic reviews you’ve received implicit the erstwhile week.

“Review Management” tab successful  the "Listing Management" tool.

To usage the Review Management tool, archetypal you request to subscribe to Semrush Local

This volition springiness you afloat entree to a suite of tools and resources (including Review Management) designed to assistance your section concern summation and clasp customers with little effort. The premium program starts astatine $40 per period per location. 

To bash this, click “Review Management” successful the left-hand menu.

Navigating to “Review Management” successful  Semrush menu.

Here, participate your concern sanction successful the hunt bar. Then prime your concern from the pre populated drop-down menu.

Searching for the business, "Joe's Pizza Broadway" successful  the Review Management tool.

Next, you volition get a summary of your online presence. It includes the fig of listings you request to hole and the mean prima rating.

Online beingness  summary of "Joe's Pizza Broadway" business.

You volition get a pop-up asking you to subscribe to Semrush Local. Click “Proceed to payment.” You volition beryllium directed to a leafage to insert your recognition paper information.

Pop-up showing the Semrush Local statement  and pricing plan. "Proceed to payment" fastener  is highlighted.

Once you’re each acceptable up, you tin commencement utilizing the Review Management tool.

To filter betwixt affirmative and antagonistic reviews, prime the corresponding presumption successful the top-right country of the “Reviews” section.

Reviews conception  of the "Review Management" instrumentality   highlighting the standing  filter options.

The Review Management instrumentality besides provides AI-generated suggested responses for your archetypal 5 unanswered reviews. 

Click the “Improve” fastener to unfastened a menu. You’ll spot options to translate, simplify, oregon alteration the code of your reply.

Reviews conception  of the "Review Management" instrumentality   highlighting the "Improve" fastener  paper   options.

2. Stay Professional

Maintaining a nonrecreational code successful your responses is essential, nary substance however rude oregon unfair you deliberation a peculiar remark whitethorn be.

Remember that different radical speechmaking the enactment volition scope their ain conclusions astir whether a fixed disapproval is reasonable. As agelong arsenic you respond with courtesy and respect and absorption connected the substance of the complaint, you’ll contiguous your concern successful the champion airy possible.

Uses phrases similar these to convey your professionalism:

  • “Thank you for bringing this to our attention”
  • “We recognize your concerns and are taking them seriously”
  • “We admit your feedback and are committed to making this right”

For example, here’s a nonrecreational effect to a somewhat scathing lawsuit reappraisal by the New York Comedy Club owner. 

1-start scathing reappraisal  of a sojourn  to a drama  nine  with a gracious effect   from the nine  owner.

3. Acknowledge the Problem

The adjacent measurement is letting the lawsuit cognize you’ve acknowledged their complaint.

This means thanking them for taking the clip to permission a review, straight addressing the contented they’ve raised, and validating their feelings. 

It’s imaginable to bash this without needfully admitting blasted if it’s not yet wide who’s responsible.

A simple, empathetic connection tin spell a agelong mode toward showing the lawsuit (and anyone other reading) that you instrumentality their feedback seriously. Like this: “We recognize your vexation and we regret that your acquisition did not conscionable your expectations.” 

4. Take Responsibility

Taking work is important for handling a antagonistic review.

This doesn’t mean accepting blasted for things beyond your control. Rather, it means being accountable for immoderate mistakes made connected your portion oregon opportunities to forestall akin difficulties down the line. And showing a willingness to marque amends.

For example, you mightiness accidental thing like, “We spot wherever we fell abbreviated successful this lawsuit and are taking contiguous steps to forestall it from happening again.” This attack lets the lawsuit and the nationalist cognize that you are not lone alert of the contented but besides proactively addressing it.

To reenforce that you genuinely instrumentality what your customers accidental to heart, it’s a bully thought to outline the circumstantial actions your concern is taking to rectify the problem. Whether it’s further unit training, revising definite policies, oregon changing your merchandise oregon service, transparency astir however you program to amended tin boost people’s assurance successful your brand.

5. Apologize

The adjacent measurement is to widen your sincere apologies to the lawsuit for immoderate inconvenience oregon disappointment they’ve experienced.

For instance, you mightiness say, “We’re genuinely atrocious that your acquisition did not unrecorded up to the precocious standards we acceptable for ourselves. We admit however disappointing this indispensable person been for you. Your feedback has highlighted areas wherever we request to improve, and we’re grateful for the accidental to marque things right.”

It’s important that your apology comes crossed arsenic authentic and circumstantial to the customer’s stated issue. Using generic responses risks exacerbating the customer’s frustration.

Additionally, debar making excuses oregon deflecting blasted successful your apology. Most customers admit erstwhile a concern owns up to its mistakes and shows a willingness to close them.

Here’s an illustration of a sincere and personalized apology from The Phoenician Resort successful Scottsdale.

A polite but antagonistic  reappraisal  of work  received astatine  a venue, on  with an apology from the venue manager.

6. Offer a Solution

The last measurement is offering the lawsuit a applicable and satisfying solution to the contented astatine hand.

An apology isn’t worthy overmuch if the lawsuit is near empty-handed. Offering a factual solution oregon compensation for their troubles gives you a overmuch amended accidental of turning a antagonistic acquisition into a affirmative one. Moreover, it proves to others speechmaking the reappraisal that you mean what you accidental erstwhile you assertion to worth lawsuit satisfaction.

The solution could impact providing a refund, replacement, discount, oregon complimentary service—whatever is astir due fixed the context.

For example, you mightiness say, “To marque it up to you, we’d similar to connection you a refund for your acquisition and a 20% discount connected your adjacent order. Please interaction america astatine [email address] oregon telephone america astatine [phone number] truthful we tin put this for you.”

Turn Negative Reviews into Positive Testimonials

It takes galore bully deeds to physique a bully estimation and lone 1 atrocious 1 to suffer it.”

This quote, attributed to Benjamin Franklin, accurately sums up the fears businesses person astir antagonistic reviews of their products oregon services.

However, we’ve seen that online disapproval of your marque tin beryllium an accidental to publically showcase your committedness to lawsuit attraction and satisfaction. 

By monitoring what radical accidental astir your marque utilizing tools similar Review Management and responding to antagonistic feedback successful a nonrecreational and conciliatory manner, you tin crook imaginable setbacks into affirmative demonstrations of your brand’s values.