Every business knows them – no matter how good your products are there are always some clients you cannot satisfy. Consequently, they are leaving their frustration on their website, by working out a negative one-star review and leaving a bad comment additionally.
Many businesses try to eliminate those negative reviews, because of their fear that those create a negative reputation of their brand.
If you confront yourself with this normal situation, do not panic, it is time to learn how to handle negative reviews on your website elegantly.
1. Relax and re-interpret the situation:
A bad review does not mean that you have to stop doing your business, because your products are horrible. No, bad reviews can have many causes:
- Mismatch of the product presentation with the customer`s expectation
- The customer had a bad day
- It is the customer`s personality to be critical
- It is one’s opinion and you have to accept it
2. Do not delete negative reviews:
Negative reviews on a website show its trustworthiness – no one believes that a brand can be perfect, so when people read all your reviews – the negative and the positive ones – they obtain a balanced perception of your brand. You show that you have nothing to hide and that your reviews are real.
Furthermore, people are guided by positive but also by negative reviews when they decide to buy because they want to be informed by the pros and cons of your products. And they are pretty wise to filter which reviews the matter and which ones are simply crap. So do not worry!
Consequently do not forget that negative ads are also ads that attract attention to your brand, making people curious about what you want to sell and what your brand is about.
3. Face reviews publicly:
Once you discover a bad review see its content and ask yourself if it is a real issue. What can you take out of it to improve your business? Put this immediately into practice and respond publicly to the critical review. If necessary say sorry, explain the issue and try to come over as someone helpful. In some cases, people change their minds and improve their bad reviews.
Very important: Make a follow-up and see if the customer is indeed happy with the improvement.
4. Encourage customers to leave more reviews on your Website:
For making your review percentage more positive, one strategy is to try to obtain more positive reviews.
It should be easy for people to leave a review for you, by making your reviews mobile-friendly, giving something in exchange for the review (e.g. discount coupons), or taking care of have many reviews for your pricy products to increase credibility.
Which are your strategies for handling negative reviews? Leave a comment below and share this article with a friend you may think has a benefit from it.