Today’s digital platform is replete with positive and negative reviews. Even the most established companies are affected by this phenomenon. You’ll find many businesses that are able to take in the good and bad feedback of their past business practices and adjust accordingly. However, there are so many others too who do not know how to handle less than satisfied customers.
When you run your own business, there’s a lot that can go wrong. Not every customer is going to be happy with your services or products, and that’s okay. When a customer isn’t happy, they have the power to let other people know by leaving a negative review.
Many businesses have an aversion to negative feedback, but is it really something that should put you off? Do you really need to worry so much about every single review? Here are some reasons why you should embrace reviews, especially the negative ones, instead of fearing them.
Negative reviews can be a wake-up call
Are you worried that your business isn’t efficient enough to handle service issues? What if you’re understaffed? Are you concerned that you’re not addressing all of your customers’ needs?
Negative reviews can be a wake-up call. They can show you what you may need to do to change your business. A customer’s negative review may be a dealbreaker for other customers, so you can’t ignore it. It can be a wake-up call, but it can also serve as a call to action to deliver a better customer experience.
If you find that a lot of your customers are having similar issues with your business, you may want to consider reevaluating your company’s policies and procedures. With this, you can ensure that you’re addressing all their needs moving forward.
Negative reviews let you know what’s important to customers
Customers are often the ones who have the power to sway your business in the right direction. Negative reviews can be instrumental in helping you identify specific issues that are bothering them. Maybe they have a complaint about your services, or they feel that your products are overpriced or underwhelming.
Negative reviews can be beneficial since they can be an opportunity to address these issues and win back your customers’ trust. You can also use them as an opportunity to learn and evolve. As you read reviews, try to identify recurring themes that can help you improve your business for future customers.
Maybe you need to hire more employees and provide them with better training or reroute customers’ complaints through better channels. You may also want to take a closer look at your pricing structure to ensure that you’re still providing good value for your customers.
Negative reviews are a chance to improve your products or services
Have you been hesitant to try new products? Maybe you’ve been having second thoughts about introducing new services to your customers. Negative reviews can help you identify specific changes that you need to make in your business.
As you read reviews, try to figure out what issues your customers are complaining about. Once you have an idea of what these are, then you can come up with concrete steps on how to better address them.
This can include making adjustments to your policies and procedures or rethinking your business model to make it more customer-friendly. You might also want to take a closer look at your digital marketing strategy to make sure that you’re still targeting your customers’ needs or rethink your advertising strategy if you’re not reaching the right audience.
Bad reviews help build trust in your brand
Most businesses will stray from the beaten path if they receive only one-star reviews. But that doesn’t mean that they’re not getting valuable information from those reviews.
As you read reviews, try to figure out what other customers want from your business. Once you’ve identified what those expectations are, you can address them in your next services or products. When you take these steps because of the negative feedback you got, it will give customers assurance that they are being heard and listened to, which will give them more confidence in your brand.
In certain cases where there is already an established bond between a brand and its customer base, negative reviews might even compel customers to protect the brand. As such, they might take steps to not only scrutinize the source of the bad review but also engage with them to dispute the claims.
How to handle bad reviews
Negative reviews can be an important learning tool. They let you know that something is wrong with your product or service so you can fix it before it can lead to more serious problems.
These reviews can also help you build a stronger brand reputation by showing people that your company cares about their needs. When done right, this can encourage repeat customers. While all reviews are different, here are a few things to keep in mind when handling and responding to them:
- Don’t take them personally
Anyone can write a negative review, but the writer might be a disgruntled customer. It’s important to understand that there are many reasons for negative reviews and it is essential that you get to the bottom of the problem and address it accordingly.
- Don’t dispute the facts
If it says that your product broke after three weeks of use, you have to accept that it did not last long and make sure to improve the product in future iterations.
- Don’t overreact to the review
Avoid making any changes based on the review without actually testing the revised version of the product or service in question first.
- Keep an open mind
Try not to take everything too seriously. Remember that what one person thinks does not mean that everyone else will agree with them on every aspect of your product or service.
Welcome negative reviews and learn from them
Negative reviews can be difficult to take, but they are going to come. You can’t please everyone, and negative feedback are a key part of running a successful business. If businesses can’t handle negative feedback, they won’t be around for long.
Business owners need to remember that the all-too-familiar ‘one-star’ rating is more than just another detractor. Negative reviews give people a chance to explain why they feel a business should not continue offering a certain service or product, or which part of the product they purchased or service they signed up for they were disappointed with. Businesses should use this chance to not only respond accordingly, but also step up their game, improve their products and services, and do better next time.