In order for your business to grow and to generate greater customer traffic, making use of customer reviews is an excellent way for people who’ve had a previous experience with your business to share their opinions. This information also provides you with valuable insight on how to make improvements which will in turn be more beneficial for your business.
Many business owners fear negative public reviews and as result, some opt not to make this a feature of their websites. This may not necessarily be the best call simply out of fear of bad reviews, because remember, even though conducting business online is so convenient, many clients are still looking for the human element. This is where reviews come in, be they good or bad.
Even if you don’t make that feature available to them, they can post reviews about you elsewhere. You can make the best of a negative situation simply by how you respond to it and there are things you can do publicly and behind the scenes to mend fences. The following points give options as to what you can do to smooth things over, while also trying to, maintain good relations with a disgruntled client.
Address Negative Reviews Right Away
While you may seek the intervention of a website moderator to have the negative review removed if you feel that it has been unfairly made, you might not always be successful in having this done speedily if at all. Learning how to address the negativity by making a public response to your disgruntled client should be your first action in the scheme of things. Responding publicly and as soon as possible, lets your client know that you’re interested in addressing their issues, and also lets potential clients know that you’re interested in addressing matters which may have caused conflict.
In making your response, you need not be too detailed in terms of the issues that arose, however you’ll want to let the client know that you’ll make further contact to seek resolution. Be dignified and maintain your respect as well as that of the client.
Pursue Resolution
In reaching out to your client, let them know that you have an understanding of their issue as presented by their complaint, apologize for your company’s role in the unfavourable experience, and offer solutions or foster discussions for resolution of the issues. Your aim is to see if you can retain your customer and also arrive at an amicable agreement. You’ll have to assess the situation to see if any concessions may be necessary based on the circumstances.
Ask Politely For A Positive Review
Don’t be afraid to ask your client for an amendment to their previous review or to write another one which would more accurately reflect the existing situation after resolution. This will prove very helpful to your site visitors who might take note that the matter was addressed.
How Addressing Negative Reviews Affects Your Image and Progress
Your ability to handle a bad review successfully will equip you to deal with any situations which might arise in the future. Being willing to face them head on rather than shying away gives you the prime opportunity make improvements to your processes. You’ll also demonstrate a high level of professionalism and good customer service which may serve to re-instil a measure of credibility to, and confidence in your business.
Your potential clients will be able to see that you’re forthright and serious about delivering quality, regardless of the situation. This will in turn draw traffic toward your business rather than repel it.
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