Customer reviews on social media can be a valuable resource to both consumers and businesses. Shoppers benefit by getting to research companies and read the recommendations of past customers (including people they know). Businesses benefit by getting public validation from satisfied customers, helping them sell to new prospects.
However, you cannot please all of the people all of the time, so not every review is going to be positive. A bad review has the potential to significantly hurt your business, especially if it comes from a particularly well-connected individual or gains traction through social media sharing.
To protect your online reputation, you need to respond to such comments quickly and effectively. When dealing with negative social media reviews, there are several things you should keep in mind.- Be polite. As bad as an angry review might seem, an angry response from you can be even more damaging. Most people believe that the customer is always right, so when you argue with a customer publicly, it will appear that you first caused the problem and then criticized them for complaining about it. Nobody would want to do business with such a company.
- Apologize. Acknowledge that you have done something to make the customer upset. Even if the complaint doesn't seem justified from your point of view, people will appreciate that you respect the customer's opinion.
- Make it right. And make it right publicly. State what you have done or are doing to correct the problem. You want to show that you not only work to make unsatisfied customers happy, but you are taking concrete steps to make sure that no future customers experience the same problem. If done right, this effectively negates any concerns that potential customers would have about choosing your company.
- Take it outside. Sometimes your polite apology and offer to make things right will just be met by more vitriol from the complaining customer. After all, some people just like to argue. Do not turn the review into a drawn-out battle, with each new reply simply adding to the review's weight in the social media algorithms. Respond once, and if the customer continues to argue the point, post a second response saying you will contact them directly to make sure the problem gets resolved to their satisfaction. Then reach out to them through a private message.
- Consider SEO. It is sometimes possible to make a bad review work in your favor when it comes to SEO. Your response may naturally contain positive keywords, and it may make perfect sense to include a link back to your website to help resolve the situation. The important thing is that it appears natural, and does not look like you are trying to manipulate the situation.
The right response to a bad social media review can literally turn a negative into a positive, demonstrating that even your most unsatisfied customers will eventually end up happy that they chose to do business with you. And that is the kind of online customer service that really gets people talking.
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