Take 3 quick minutes to learn how to do the one thing your business NEEDS to do on social media: respond to all reviews, positive and negative. Do it quickly, on all platforms, and do it well. Here’s how.
4 Reasons Why It’s Important to Respond
1. Boost Your Google Rankings
Google likes to see businesses and customers talking. So when a business is regularly responding, Google’s algorithm is more inclined to filter that business to the top of a consumer’s Google search, while businesses that don’t respond may not rank as high.
2. Change Perceptions
Customers tell their friends, family, co-workers, and more about negative experiences. To put a stop to the negativity, respond as quickly as possible. According to a WebPunch study 33% of online reviewers just want some sort of resolution. 12% want a response from an owner or manager, while 9% just want acknowledgment. Do it well and instead of complaining, they’ll be happily telling everyone how your business resolved their problem.
3. Build Trust
Consumers trust online reviews as much as they trust personal recommendations—and the way you respond to these reviews will greatly impact the way these consumers perceive your business.
4. Nurture Relationships
As important as it is to address negative reviews, it’s equally as important to celebrate the positive ones. Expressing your gratitude for a kind review on a public platform will make customers that much more likely to continue doing business with you.
As part of your bigger customer service strategy, it’s important that you create a strategy for responding to online reviews. That’s where your customers are and that’s where they’re researching and talking about you. Following are some tips to help make responding as easy and effective as possible.
Showing gratitude will help grow your community and deepen its loyalty, and you’ll attract new customers with your thoughtful, engaged responses.
Get personal.
Using your customer’s name in your greeting will help assure them that a real person is taking the time to respond to them and will ensure your response feels genuine. Also, mention some of the specific details they used in their review. This shows them they have been listened to.
Be grateful.
Thank your customer for their review, their kind words, and for taking the time to reach out. Your appreciation will not go unnoticed. Be sure you take the time to vary your approach to your responses so it doesn’t start to look like a boilerplate reply.
Add value.
Create an equal exchange and give your customer a little something in return. It can be as easy as telling them where they can get something, a heads-up about a related product launch, relevant advice— something that makes them feel a little special, like an insider or a VIP.
Give a thoughtful sign-off.
End on a warm, genuine note. Refer to the positive statements they made and give another nod to their experience. This helps build a relationship and keeps them looking forward to their next positive experience with you.
People understand that companies make mistakes. By responding appropriately and thoughtfully to negative reviews, you may actually attract new customers to your business.
Get personal.
Using your customer’s name in your greeting will help assure them that a real person is taking time to respond to them, and will ensure your response feels genuine. Also, mention some of the specific details they used in their review. This shows them they have been listened to.
Apologize & sympathize.
Thank your customer for taking the time to reach out, then acknowledge their concerns and express your regret that they had a negative experience. Whether you agree or not, you can’t deny their feelings. Others who read your response will appreciate your willingness to sympathize.
Keep it simple, short & solution-focused.
Don’t get into details, and don’t get defensive. You can explain what you believe your customers normally experience or what you are known for, state your regrets, then offer a solution that works for both of you.
Continue off-line.
Respond one time online, offering your contact information so your customer can continue the conversation with you OFF-LINE. It’s never a good idea to create a potentially negative dialogue online. Instead, move forward off-line, displaying a willingness to make things right.
Bottom Line
Whether it’s a positive or negative review, respond and do it quickly so the reviewer (and everyone else who’s checking in) knows you’re there and that you care.
Bonus tips:
DO mention your business name and location when responding to a POSITIVE review. This will help the positive review appear in search results.
DO NOT mention your business name or location in your reply to a NEGATIVE review. This helps keep the review out of search engine results as much as possible.
