Getting a negative review of your business can be a frustrating experience, but it doesn’t have to spell doom for your reputation. Learn how to respond to negative reviews in a way that can repair your relationship with that customer and boost your brand too.

Google Business reviews are a key way homeowners learn more about your business. Take control with CraftJack’s Reputation Manager.

How To Handle Negative Reviews

The most important part of dealing with negative reviews is to stay calm and handle them respectfully. Yes, if you’re someone who takes pride in your work, it can sting to receive negative feedback, especially if you feel it’s unwarranted.

Resist the urge to “fight back” against negative reviews. The most important part of online reputation management for contractors is to be polite and professional at all times.

Respond Promptly To Each Review

Review your social media profiles and comments on review sites regularly. Respond to every review, thanking customers for the positive ones and addressing any complaints you notice. Consumers value responsiveness, and if you’re seen to be answering reviews quickly, that will create a positive first impression.

Thank The Reviewer For Their Feedback

If a customer leaves a mixed review, or even a wholly negative one, it’s important to thank them for their feedback. Take the opportunity to say you’re sorry they didn’t have a good experience with your service.

Remember that valid negative feedback is a gift because it gives you a chance to fix issues. For every customer who has a bad experience and takes the time to complain online, there will be many others who simply hold a grudge and air their grievances to their friends and family without giving you the opportunity to put things right.

Offer To Fix The Problem — And Mean It

If there’s something in the review you’re unsure about, ask the customer to provide more information. If you believe the customer’s version of events is accurate or know something went wrong, such as you arriving late or the job not going as planned, acknowledge the issue, explain how you plan to stop such things from happening again, and work with them to find an amicable solution.

What Not To Do When You Get A Bad Review

A negative review can have a significant impact on your business if it gets shared widely. However, if you’re measured, reasonable, and fair in how you respond, you can come out of the situation positively because your response will show you’re ethical and care about your business. Arguing with customers who leave bad reviews is not a wise move.

Don’t Lose Your Cool

Always stay calm when you’re interacting with customers, even if the customer is being rude or aggressive in their review. It’s only natural to want to defend yourself if you feel a customer is lying, being unreasonable, or maliciously attempting to ruin your business. However, responding aggressively could do more harm to your business than the original review already has.

Don’t Take It Personally

When you’re responding to negative reviews, try not to take them personally. The reviewer could be having a bad day, there could have been a misunderstanding, or they could be in the right and giving you a chance to fix things. Alternatively, they could be exaggerating or making things up in the hopes of getting a refund or discount.

People who leave negative reviews have a variety of different motivations, but those motivations are rarely personal. The reviewer is complaining about an aspect of your business, but it doesn’t mean you’ve done a bad job.

Take a look at the review pages for a brand you love. It’s likely they have mostly positive reviews, but there’ll be some negative ones in the list too. Any business that has a lot of customers will occasionally have someone decide they’re unhappy with the product or service. Taste is subjective, and it’s not possible to please every customer.

How Reputation Management Can Help You Build Your Brand

If you find it difficult to deal with social media or find reading reviews of your business stressful, enlisting help from a third party could make life easier. CraftJack offers a variety of tools to help you manage your online reputation more effectively, saving you time and mental energy.

If you’re dealing with just a small number of reviews, another option is to have a trusted friend or colleague look over any replies you’ve written before you post them. They’re more likely to be able to be objective than you are, since it’s not their business.

Sharing the load of dealing with customer service and managing your social media interactions can make reputation management much easier. So don’t be shy about asking for help. The time you save can be spent focusing on the things that drew you to your business in the first place.