How To Respond To Customer Reviews Both Positive & Negative
PeerDive
At the click of a button, customers can share their experiences with the entire world. Getting online reviews on platforms such as Google and Facebook has become one of the most important ways you need to market your business. Over 93% of all customers have said that reviews have impacted their purchasing decisions.
Not only do customers rely on reviews to know if the product and or service is credible, but they rely on these reviews to see ahead of time if your business is worth spending their money at.
At PeerDive, our experts have put together this complete guide on everything you need to know about responding to customer reviews. Even the not-so-good ones!
Why Online Reviews Are Important To Businesses and Customers
Over 86% of customers will read reviews for a local business. In addition, 80% of consumers said they trust reviews just as much as word-of-mouth testimonials. For customers, online reviews and testimonials are about building trust. They provide social proof to your customers, letting them know you are a reputable business. In addition, reviews confirm your brand's authority and expertise. The more reputable brands are, the more trustworthy they appear to consumers.
People assume that online reviews are written by someone who has previously used your product and/or service. However, when you have a large number of positive reviews written by real customers about your business, it shows others that you are an authority in your industry.
Not only do online reviews signify trust signals to your customers, but they help to establish stronger relationships with existing customers and new potential customers. In one study, researchers found that customers would be willing to spend 22% more for some products if the company they were buying from had a good reputation. This means you can charge a premium for your products and or services by building a strong online review system.
How To Respond To Positive Reviews
Once you have nailed down the process of asking for reviews, more information about how to ask customers for reviews can be found here.
You want to make the most out of your positive reviews. The first step when you receive a positive review is to respond to them. All positive reviews should be acknowledged and not taken for granted.
A Harvard Business Research Study examined tens of thousands of hotel reviews and responses from TripAdvisor. Out of all the hotels, those that responded to reviews saw a 12 percent increase in the number of reviews that came in and a marginal increase in their overall rating.
Below are a few examples of how you can respond to positive reviews:
Say Thank You:
When a customer takes the time out of their day to say something nice about your business, the first thing you want to do is thank them to make sure their good deed does not go unnoticed.
The following is an example of what to say:
Thank you so much, John, for leaving such a great review on your server Ken and the entire team! We are all very appreciative of your continued support for all that we do here. We can't wait to see you on your next visit.
Provide A Timely Response:
Reviews are typically left within one day of the client's last visit. Knowing this, you want to respond to your customer with roughly the same expectation. If you let a review sit for a long period of time without responding, it might look like your business does not care about the client experience at all.
By responding as soon as you can, it lets your customers know that you care about what they have to say. Be aware that your clients will typically get a notification on the review platform they posted, letting them know what you have replied to them.
Keep Your Response Short:
No one likes to read a lengthy response. So keep your responses short and sweet. You want your messages to be brief but still impact everyone that reads it.
An example response might look like this:
Thank you so much Katie for leaving such a great review on our staff. We are very appreciative of your continued support for all that we do. We can't wait to see you on your next visit.
Encourage Others To Take Action:
While you are asking for reviews on your channel, you want to maximize your chances that others have the opportunity to see that review as well. You can do this by adding a small call-to-action in your response. For example, it could be asking them to share your business with others in their network, book another appointment, or post the review to your other channels.
An example review might look like this:
Thank you so much Sam for leaving such a great review on the team! Would you mind sharing with your friends who would be interested in an appointment, too? We'd love to continue providing outstanding service to awesome customers like you. Thanks again!
How To Avoid A Negative Review
Avoid the headaches that come from customers leaving negative reviews about your business. At PeerDive, we work to help prevent the likelihood of you getting a negative review from a customer even before it happens. We created this platform to learn more about their customers before they do business with them. Users can search Peer Dive and read real reviews from other business owners who interacted with a potential client. You can find out if this particular client has a history of putting false reviews on a business.
Our mission is to make it a little easier for businesses to work in a fair environment where reviews are not just one-sided as they are mainly portrayed on popular review sites such as Yelp and Google Reviews. With Peer Dive, you can learn all you need to know about a client before doing business with them.
How To Respond To Negative Reviews
It takes 12 positive reviews to make up for one negative review you receive. Therefore, responding to a negative review can be difficult. While getting upset about a negative review is natural, it is important not to let your emotions get in the way of delivering a proper response. You want to keep the interaction simple and to the point when handling criticism. A little will go a long way in any situation.
When responding to negative reviews, you want to keep it professional with specific mentions based on the customer's problem. Your response should include the points below:
Address The Person Leaving The Review:
When addressing the individual, try and use their first name in the response. Avoid generic terms such as "Dear valued client or guest," as this can appear unpersonable.
Thank The Reviewer For Their Input:
Show customers that you value their input and welcome any unsolicited feedback on how you can improve your business. Even if the review is not so favorable, you still want to acknowledge and thank the person for providing feedback to you.
An example response might be, "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We're sorry you had a bad experience with us. We do appreciate you bringing this issue to our attention."
Address The Key Points Of The Review:
Even if what happened to the customer was an unusual experience, you want to make sure that you acknowledge the customer's experience and highlight the key points that they brought up in your response. At the same time, you want to provide reassurance that you are doing everything right to make it up to the customer.
An example response might look like this:
"Thank you for posting a review, and we're sorry to hear that your experience was not up to our usual high standards. We always aim to deliver a great experience which includes having great service. We would like the opportunity to talk and investigate your feedback further."
Take The Issue Offline:
It is always best for your and the customer to talk directly about any bad experiences offline and, if possible, in person. This prevents any outside sources from potentially interfering with the way your responses come across.
An example response might look like this:
"We are sorry that your experience didn't match your expectations. We would love to know more about your experience. A management team member will contact you directly to learn more about your experience and how we can make it right. Thank you again for providing your feedback".
Make It Right:
A little sympathy goes a long way toward defusing a tense situation. You want to avoid providing a cookie-cutter response when responding to negative comments. Instead, you want to address their key point and try and make it right to the customer who left the review. Include details about their experience in your response, as well as try and communicate directly to the customer what you will be doing to handle the situation.
An example response might look like this:
"Thank you (name) for taking the time out of your day to post a review about your most recent experience with us. We're sorry that your experience was not up to standards. We want the opportunity to talk and investigate your feedback further. A management team member will contact you directly to discuss what we can do to make the situation right."
About PeerDive:
Peer Dive is a popular online directory created exclusively for businesses to leave and view reviews on individuals before offering their products and or services. Peer Dive was created to help local businesses and their communities make the most informed decision on who they want to do business with.