As a service provider, your business thrives on reviews ― whether good or bad, and how you choose to interpret them can make or break you. Positive reviews draw other customers to you, and negative reviews should help you improve. So irrespective of your ratings, you should strive to build on your customers’ reviews to satisfy them better and grow your business.
Every business has received negative customer reviews at some point. You can build a review management strategy, but we are human, and no matter how well we prepare for bad news, they still hurt. So if you have been getting a lot of flack from customers recently, this guide is for you. By the end, you will learn to handle criticism from your customers and even use it to your advantage.
Identifying and Handling Negative Customer Reviews
Before handling negative reviews, you should first know how to identify and track them. Essaypro reviews uses built-in review tools to track its performance. Likewise, mobile app developers use the review feature in online stores to measure how well the public adopts their apps.
So to know if your customers like your service, set up a feedback mechanism like a rating system, writing service reviews, feedback forms, etc. Afterward, look at the 1 – 3 star ratings and note the users’ pain points. Some four and five-star reviews also have tips on how you can improve, so don’t gloss over them. Finally, after identifying the negative reviews, react in the following ways:
1. Create a review management strategy
A review management strategy is a chart showing how you get your reviews and how you handle them. Without a quality review management strategy, you would respond to customers based on whims. But as a professional, you must check your tone and language irrespective of the customer’s words, which is why you should have a tactic.
An effective approach should involve asking users for feedback and making the process easy. This method shows that you are confident in your service while still being willing to improve. When negative reviews come in, your review management plan will help you see it as it is (but not worse) and guide you on ranking and implementing users’ requests.
2. Don’t take it personally
Reviews are not a personal attack; instead, they are an expression of a customer’s dissatisfaction. Part of succeeding in business involves ensuring customers’ value for their money. However, they don’t always feel satisfied at the end of the day, and although some resort to personal attacks, most are just venting their frustrations at your service ― not at you. If you take their reviews personally, you may let your emotions get the best of you, often leading to disastrous outcomes. So, instead, detach sentiments from negative reviews and only see them as appeals to correct your mistakes.
3. Respond immediately
Don’t leave bad reviews unanswered; the moment you see them, respond to them. But if you aren’t in the right frame of mind to answer, let your review management plan guide you, or at least stall them long enough for you to find a solution to their problems. When you leave negative reviews unanswered, it only shows every other person that you are a poor service provider.
Understand that even if your service is excellent, no one will care about it if your customer service is lacking. On the other hand, 78% of people will stick with a business with good customer service irrespective of their mistakes. So, the first step to soothing an angry client is by responding to their complaint swiftly.
4. Maintain politeness
Not everyone who drops a review will be civil and reasonable; however, that is not an excuse for you to go off the rails. Remain as calm and polite as possible when handling negative reviews and address the customer by their name. Most customers won’t be mad at you if you are polite to them, so ensure that no tinge of contempt, whether direct or cloaked in sarcasm, lingers in your replies.
5. Apologize, promise to fix mistakes, and do so
Your customers are dissatisfied with a service, and they are well within their rights to be irrespective of how much work you put into serving them. So if you receive a negative review, your response should start with an apology to the customer. Afterward, reassure them that you would do all that is in your power to fix their problem; then go about trying to fix it. With a listening ear and the zeal to improve, you can turn even the most irate customer into a lifelong brand advocate.
Final thoughts
No one likes negative reviews, but we need them for business growth. A negative review could show you all the areas you need to improve. Besides, handling these negative customer remarks appropriately can set you apart from your competition as a superior service provider. So use the tips listed above to deal with negative reviews like a pro.
BIO
Diane Lee is an English professor at Stanford University, where she got her Ph.D. in 2001. She is also an editor of scientific journals, thanks to her meticulousness and interest in research. Currently, she works as the chief editor at EssaysRescue, where she provides help for students seeking information on essay writing services.
