To run a profitable business, you must maintain a stellar online reputation. Most of the people today are on the Internet and do their research before purchasing the products and services they are looking for.
This makes it essential to have excellent online reviews and superb customer ratings since it will provide you better chances of getting more business. However, there will be instances where you will get negative reviews.
It will be times like these that will require you to take immediate action. Business owners can make mistakes if they are not prepared to reply. Therefore, we are here with a list of methods you can use to respond to a negative review. Let's get started!
6 Ways to Manage Negative Online Reviews
1. Take a Step Back and Examine
You don't start writing a response without doing your research. You must first take a step back and relax. Panicking at this moment will only make your response seem desperate. So, take a few minutes to assess the review. Is the negative review baseless? Is the review content plagiarized? Is material promotional? Is there a conflict of interest? Is the review written to take an act of revenge? Make sure you ask all the right questions to figure what's going on there. Then move forward.
2. Keep Responses Professional
Negative reviews should not be taken personally. These are customer sentiments, so you need to be extra conscious while responding. Be professional and objective, even if it is hard for you to keep your emotions in check. Or make someone else make the response.
3. Time is of the Essence
Time is ticking. The negative review is there, and people are looking at it. If they don't find your response to it, they'll think you don't care. Negative reviews with no response can lower or slow down the opportunity to gain new business. Respond quickly, but take your time to compose one.
4. Be Direct
You don't want to include unnecessary details in the response. You must figure out the pain point of the customer and then frame a response that directly attacks the pain point. You might even win the client back. Be direct; don't be argumentative.
5. Give a Public Response
Always try to make a public response. This will show how professional your company is and how transparent you are in how you function. It also shows you care about your customers. People want to see that you are honest and trustworthy.
6. Direct Message the Reviewer Privately
Lastly, make sure you DM the reviewer privately and try resolving the issue. Introduce yourself to the reviewer and explain to him your side of the story. Make the reviewer feel you care about the customers and show that you are willing to help.
Final Thoughts
Being a property manager and a business owner, you will have to deal with the negative reviews some or the other time. Therefore, you should be ready to tackle such situations and save your business's reputation. There you have it. We have mentioned some of the ways that you can use to mitigate the effects of negative reviews.
