Guide to Responding to Online Reviews

As a business owner, you must create an online presence for potential customers to find. A website and social media pages are essential to help your company get noticed. The only problem with advertising yourself online is the amount of negative feedback from unhappy customers that can be found on review sites. 

However, there are steps you shall take to respond to these negative reviews and improve your business.

#1: Respond as Soon as Possible

One of the most important things you can do when responding to an online review is reply as soon as possible. Some websites allow you to comment on a site within minutes or hours of it being posted, while others require that your response not be more than 24 hours old before it shows up on the website. 

When responding, explain what happened from your point of view and apologize for any inconvenience caused. As long as you offer a legitimate explanation and make an effort at reconciliation, this will go a long way in helping your business recover.

#2: Keep Your Response Professional

Efficient online reputation management is crucial when it comes to Marketing for Dental services. That said, when responding to an online review, you will want to make sure that you keep your response professional. You can let the customer know that you are sorry for any inconvenience caused by the event in question but refrain from making any personal attacks on them or their character. There is no need to get into a verbal altercation with someone who left negative feedback on your website. 

Be respectful and remember that each customer has their perspective of how an event went down, despite what may have happened originally. Responding professionally shows that you care about your customers and value them as people rather than just another sale.

#3: Don’t Respond Publicly If Possible

If the online review is not on a site where you can respond within 24 hours, one option to consider is not responding at all. This might seem like the opposite of the first point, but sometimes it’s best to let things cool off before you reply. The customer may have been in a bad mood when they left the review and will be more likely to do some research on your company after receiving a professional reply from you. 

The second point suggests that you should keep your response professional, but if the tone of their original review was particularly heated, this could make things worse by showing them how upset they made you with their feedback. 

#4: Respond Privately If That’s What They Want

In some cases, a customer will give you a negative review that is meant to be private, but for some reason, shows up on your company’s website anyway. This could be due to another person leaving their name and email address as the one who commented or by accident if they posted it under their business website’s user account. 

In this case, if they reply with their personal information, you should consider responding privately through email or over the phone instead of publically commenting on their feedback. By doing this, you are protecting your customer’s privacy while letting them know that you care because you understand what they are saying even though it is difficult to find online.

#5: Explain How You Plan to Fix Their Issues

Finally, when responding to an online review, it is important to let the reviewer know that you understand what they are saying and how you plan on fixing those issues. Let them know that their feedback is important to your company and share with other people who might also face similar problems, as well as letting them know specifically what steps you’re taking to fix the problem, whether it be hiring a new employee or having another team member take over for someone no longer employed by your business. 

It’s natural to want other people to see just how hard we try when we fall short of expectations. This will help show your customers that you have taken their concerns very seriously and professionally acted upon them.

In conclusion, making a response to an online review can be difficult. You want to make sure that you address the problems within your company, but you don’t need to do it defensively. Keep your responses professional, and remember that every customer has their own opinion, even when they aren’t asked for it. By following these steps, you will ensure that your business recovers from negative online reviews in a timely and effective manner.