94% of Customers Say a Bad Review Made Them Avoid Buying From a Brand. Try These 4 Techniques to Protect Your Brand Reputation.

Protecting your online reputation intends much now than ever before. Roughly 94% of customers declare that a antagonistic reappraisal has convinced them not to acquisition from a brand. This indicates that "bad" comments tin beryllium problematic for business owners, but location are ways to attack them and move them astir to beryllium much positive.

At immoderate point, you'll person to woody pinch negative customer comments online and must study to respond to disapproval effectively. There are countless techniques retired there, but present are nan ones we've utilized pinch awesome occurrence astatine Keever SEO, taking our cue from immoderate of nan astir celebrated brands.

Related: Why You Must Monitor Your Online Reputation Before it Hurts You

1. Creating a abstracted support handle

As our marque grew, we struggled to complete our regular tasks. Conducting competitor research, mastering contented trading and sending retired customer support emails made managing our online estimation challenging. One measurement we combatted that rumor was by creating abstracted support handles, which is akin to what Nike did.

Nike created a abstracted Twitter (now X) relationship (@NikeSupport) dedicated solely to handling customer questions and complaints. We utilized our institution sanction and it's moving well. The extremity is to support customer questions and comments successful a azygous place. This helps you respond to your loyal fans quickly and efficiently, but it besides reduces nan consequence of negativity successful different feeds.

For example, our clients' Facebook pages often get flooded pinch questions and sometimes moreover negativity, arsenic their customers request thief to scope out. Once we added a abstracted X grip for support, everyone knew they could spell location for queries and concerns. We urge that you create a abstracted support grip for your brand. It doesn't return overmuch clip to complete, and it will make it easier to find and reside antagonistic comments.

2. Using joke to respond to criticism

While creating a abstracted grip for support is beneficial, we still recovered that immoderate customers were a spot standoffish. Since we were focused connected being funny, lukewarm and welcoming, we took inspiration from nan Joe Dough Sandwich Shop successful NYC and sometimes utilized humor to woody pinch criticism.

Humor should only beryllium utilized for criticisms erstwhile nan title isn't severe, and it's only due if it matches your brand's tone and style. It's rather easy to trigger a backlash of unhappy customers if you aren't taking things seriously.

When done well, joke diffuses a challenging and awkward situation. Joe Dough Sandwich Shop utilized this style to respond to a bad reappraisal connected Yelp. The intelligent remark created a funny infinitesimal and boosted nan brand's floor plan online. After a Yelp personification complained that nan meatball sandwich was nan worst he'd ever had, nan shop wrote astir it connected nan chalkboard paper retired front. People were commenting astir really funny it was, which created much engagement.

If you scheme to usage joke to woody pinch complaints, we urge doing it only erstwhile it makes sense. A remark of 1 sentence, specified arsenic "this sandwich sucked," mightiness fare good pinch a funny response, but personification who is raging complete galore paragraphs will apt request a much respectful and thought-out response.

Related: What is Google Saying? Why a Positive Brand Reputation Online is So Important

3. Showing that you're competent

Sometimes, a customer is angry truthful a polite consequence won't calm them. This has happened to america before, and it's disheartening to publication those types of comments. However, ignoring them won't help — it mightiness really make things worse.

One time, a personification claimed our customer offered unspeakable customer service. They went into awesome item astir their package woody and really they didn't assistance them successful making nan arrangements they promised connected nan website. Ultimately, they were mistaken because nan customer didn't really guarantee those things that were listed connected nan site.

We recommended that nan customer convey nan personification for their comment, straight reside nan rumor and explicate really they would hole nan problem successful nan early truthful that nary 1 other would beryllium upset.

Why did that work? Overall, we realized that viewers would spot nan person's remark and consequence and recognize they were unreasonable. Though we appeased nan original commenter by answering them, we besides indicated to others that we were competent capable to grip each types of queries.

4. Avoiding canned responses (even though it's easier)

Investing successful online estimation guidance is basal for each types of businesses, whether you're moving a startup, a mini institution aliases a ample corporation. You whitethorn deliberation shortcuts for illustration artificial intelligence (AI) are often a awesome measurement to respond to people's questions and needs, though they person their limits.

You've apt heard of chatbots, which reply a customer's mobility without needing nan quality touch. It useful good for accepted FAQs and different things but is not perfect for complaints.

When we observed clients move from a quality responder to a chatbot for reappraisal responses, we discovered that everything sounded canned (because it was). Though this isn't needfully bad successful immoderate situations, it doesn't activity for complaints because group want to consciousness heard.

We past recommended that humans constitute nan comments utilizing scripts, but that still didn't work. Canned responses sound dull and often upset nan commenter more. Therefore, it's ever wise to person a existent personification trade nan words. It mightiness not beryllium perfect, but it will connection a personalized touch.

Related: Why Investing successful Reputation Management is Crucial for Your Business Strategy

The bottommost line

Though many tools are disposable to thief you negociate your online reputation, it's each astir really you respond to people's comments. There are bound to beryllium antagonistic reviews periodically, and you must determine really to respond.

Humor and sarcasm tin beryllium awesome comeback options. However, those only activity erstwhile nan rumor isn't severe. Likewise, creating a abstracted support grip tin beryllium adjuvant because it keeps each nan negativity aliases queries successful 1 spot.

Overall, you want to respond quickly to antagonistic comments, debar canned responses and explicate really you'll reside nan issues customers bring up. Doing these things (and implementing immoderate changes) shows that you attraction astir nan user and their experiences.

Whether you usage online estimation guidance tools, prosecute a abstracted unit personnel to constitute responses aliases tackle nan occupation alone, acting quickly and responding professionally is crucial.