How to Manage Bad Reviews
Numbers of complaints are on the up in the UK. As money generally becomes tighter, people scrutinise the products they buy and the services they pay for even more ruthlessly. Dealing with conflict is one aspect of business and reputation management that must be considered proactively. Here is how to reduce the number of negative reviews that your business attracts online.
Manage Expectations
Promise to deliver exactly what you will deliver – don’t allow consumer expectations to be unrealistic. If it’s a 'large coffee' on the menu, make sure it’s large in real life! These tiny differences can be the reason for customers never coming back. Additionally, if a customer feels that value is lacking, even marginally, they will want to tell someone about it. If they choose to do so using Google reviews for example, you'll be in hot water.
Damage Control
The most inflammatory thing an employee can do in return to a complaint, either online or in-person, is simply not care. This will trigger a far more emotional reaction from the customer than was caused by the original problem! Thanks to google maps, people can immediately write a geo-tagged review from where they are at that moment, and have your business name and star rating in the mud within minutes. Training staff in conflict avoidance and having a routine compensation policy (vouchers, apology, flowers, etc) for different levels of upset can be the difference between a clean slate and a positive review, or relentless trolling.
Good news travels fast. Bad news travels faster...
If you or your company have attracted bad press online, Pure Reputation can quickly restore your image. We specialise in various types of content removal, as clearly shown in the
Pure Reputation Slideshare presentation below. If you would like to discuss your issues with a member of the team, note that you can call 02071834227 during regular office hours and also see more about our services on the
Pure Reputation website.
