How To Respond to Negative Reviews

First, own the issue.  Your first objective by responding is to communicate that you are paying attention to the issue, that the issue is important to you, and that you are sorry the reviewer experienced problem.  You can be sure that your futures prospects will be reading your reply with great attention.  Compose your response not so much for the critic, but for your future customers. Let them know that when someone has a problem, your business is sincerely interested in addresses the issue.  Also, it doesn’t matter if the reviewer lied or only told half of the story; the reviewer’s perception is reality, the one you must address.

Second, describe how future customers will not encounter the issue.  A critical component of you response is to letting your prospects know that something has changed and they will not encounter this same issue.  Consider this as an opportunity to market your business.  For instance, starting  ‘we have put a new process in place…’ tells your prospects that your company is better off for the critic’s review.

Third, offer to fix the issue. Your business spends a lot of time and money on sales and marketing.    Although you can’t always fix every issue (and sometimes you don’t want to), your offer to fix a reviewer’s problem is a great marketing investment.   In the response, suggest that they contact you directly so you can try to resolve the issue, and you will do what you can to gain the reviewers renewed satisfaction.

 

Composing Your Response

Write your response with your prospects in mind.  Before writing your response, first consider who your audience is.  Although your response should be addressing the reviewer, the vast majority of the readers of your response are your prospects and new customers. Writing your response with the majority of your readers (a.k.a. your sales prospects) in mind helps you set the right tone.  For example, detail your company’s commitment to customer satisfaction.  Your response should not try to change the reviewer’s mind or dispute the facts as set out in the review.

First, don’t be defensive.   This can be difficult when someone unfairly slams your business, and you’re close to the business.. One suggestion is sending a draft of your response to someone that doesn’t work at your company.  Ask them to point out anything that sounds defensive.

Second, take your time.  Don’t compose in haste or a fit of righteous anger. A negative review most likely makes you angry.  Resist the temptation to reply quickly because, unless you have superhuman emotional control, the reply is likely to sound angry.

Third, keep it brief.  Resist the temptation to “set the record straight.”  The surest way to ensure that your response never gets read is to give your side of the story.  The reality is, nobody cares but you.