How to Manage Negative Online Reviews and Protect Your Brand?

Online reviews and feedback are the most powerful forces when it comes to shaping the reputation of a business and the decision of a consumer. No matter which industry you are associated with, managing reviews is not only important but mandatory for growth and survival. Since negative reviews have a significant adverse effect on a business and its overall reputation, you should not ignore them at all. To manage negative online reviews, you will need the right and solution-driven strategies. For more details regarding the same, read this post.

Understanding the Power of Customer Reviews in the Present Era

Before discussing the strategies that will be needed to manage negative customer reviews, you should learn about the landscape that every business is dealing with. In the current scenario, online reviews posted by customers now act as ‘digital’ word-of-mouth. They influence the buying decision as well as the perceptions of potential buyers even before they actually enter the purchase funnel.

In some recent research, it is found that almost 90% of customers go through the reviews before deciding on a business. In addition to this, around 95% of people change their decision after reading negative reviews about a brand or business. All these make it mandatory to know and implement the methods that answer your queries such as How to Remove Negative Google Review.

What Are the Major Misconceptions About Online Negative Reviews?

There are some misconceptions that roam around about customer reviews. Some of them have been mentioned below:

• One of the biggest myths is that 5-star ratings should be your ultimate goal to have a sturdy online reputation. However, this is not true. In reality, smart customers often feel skeptical about a business with glowing reviews only.
• Such businesses with only positive reviews are considered by customers as manipulated and fake. They are tagged as the ones who buy reviews or post self-written reviews to get noticed. Therefore, you should have positive as well as negative reviews if you want to position yourself as a credible source.
• Some businesses think that ignoring or deleting negative reviews will solve all their issues. However, this is just a myth and the biggest mistake if you also follow this approach as it can backfire.
• Rather, you must see negative reviews as an opportunity to fix the damaged reputation. You can learn, improve, and show your commitment to exceptional customer service and support by responding to negative reviews.

How to Manage Negative Online Reviews?

Managing negative reviews online is not a complex task if you know how to do it. Below, we have outlined some of the most effective strategies for the same. Have a look:

Quick and Professional Responses

Perhaps the most important yet first step that you should take to manage negative reviews is to answer them professionally and quickly. When a consumer is spending time to write and share his opinion (though it is a negative comment or review), you should acknowledge the same by answering them. Your quick responses will show that you appreciate their reviews and are committed to resolving their concerns.

While responding, you should keep the following points in mind:

• You should know that the timing for answering the reviews is everything. Answering a comment or review within 1-2 days is considered the best timeframe. This will also display that you are proactive and attentive. Remember that your responses to negative reviews are not just for the customer who has posted but for the potential ones too.
• Quick responses do not mean that you will post anything. Instead, you should craft a response that consists of an empathetic and professional tone. No matter whether it is a negative review or a positive one, you should begin your answer by thanking them. Besides, staying neutral as being too argumentative or defensive will not help.

Negative reviews are more like learning opportunities

We all know that negative reviews and comments are disheartening but you can see the other side of the coin for your benefit. Rather than seeing them as an attack or criticism, you can consider them as market research done by curious buyers for free. You can do the following to utilize them for your benefit:

• You can begin by assessing the issues and their patterns. Check what are the most common issues raised by the customers. Are these issues related to slow customer support or they are having the same issue with your products? Based on the same, you can reevaluate your planning and fix the problems that occurred.
• As mentioned above, you can use the reviews to know the available loopholes. By knowing the issues, you can form better solutions and implement them to fix them. This could include adjusting activities, improving ORM efforts, and more.
• Once you are done with the improvements and necessary adjustments, you can communicate the same via review responses or a common major post across the channels. This will indicate that you take every issue seriously and are always ready to help.

Encourage customers to leave positive reviews

Addressing negative reviews is necessary but encouraging customers to leave positive feedback is the most effective method to manage negative online reviews. Again, you must take the following measures to make it possible:

• First and foremost, you should make it easier for your customers so that they can leave their valuable feedback. For instance, you can send them a direct link wherein they can leave their remarks with a single click.
• There is no point in asking your customers for the review a week or month later. Instead, you should ask them about the same within 2-3 days of the purchase. During this, they will have fresh memories regarding your offerings, it is best to ask them within this timeframe only.
• Following up right after connecting with you is yet another great way to have more positive reviews. When you respond to their concerns and issues, and follow up afterward, they will feel happier to share a positive review.
• You can utilize social media channels to stay active in answering issues and concerns. To have more positive reviews, you can have some weekly challenges or plans to post positive reviews with some rewards. This will also let consumers share their thoughts with you.

Ultimately,

Lastly, you can also implement solid reputation management strategies and make efforts to turn negative reviews into positive ones to manage negative online reviews. The best way to achieve desired outcomes, you can also bank on Value4Brand for the best guidance and result-driven solutions.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)