How should my business manage and respond to online customer reviews?

Online reviews can make or break a business. Customers will pay 31 percent more if you have excellent reviews. And 94 percent said they will avoid a business after reading a negative review. However, fake reviews can severely damage a brand and its reputation. Get the right number of reviews and the right kind of reviews, and you’ll have the social proof you need to build trust with your customers. But get it wrong, and you risk losing all credibility in the eyes of potential customers. This guide will show you how to not only deal with positive, negative and fake reviews, but how to get more of the good kind.

Reviews come in three kinds: the good, the bad, and the ugly, a.k.a. the fake. No business wants to see that they have one-star review, but there’s a right way to handle them. Always know where you’re being reviewed - Google, Yelp, Facebook - and respond quickly.

Have Someone Managing Them

Reviews on Yelp, Facebook and Google could all be damaging your business, so it’s important to have someone managing them. Make sure your staff never replies from their personal accounts, especially if it’s a negative review about them. Most sites only let management respond once to a review, so make sure that whatever reply you post is not only high quality, but also stays within their guidelines.

The wrong person responding to a negative review can make things worse, so hire or train for these traits:

• A positive attitude about customer service
• An ability to write friendly, effective responses
• Objectivity and not taking criticism personally
• Empowerment to fix problems and resolve situations
• Knowing when to escalate a complaint to a higher-level manager

Public Responses to Reviews

Does it seem a bit unnecessary to respond to positive reviews? Don’t worry, it’s a best practice that shows you appreciate your customers and listen to them. Public responses to reviews can encourage more customers to post positive ones.

Tempting as it may be to use positive reviews for marketing, keeping the public responses short and sweet makes you look more personable and real. Appreciate their review by thanking them and inviting them back. Don’t offer coupons or gift cards to positive reviewers - it looks like you’re bribing for more good reviews. Refraining from using the review as an opportunity to upsell or gain followers is important too. Comments that read like advertisements - including those that promote your other social accounts - will seem spammy, even on your own page. You want to be sincere, not sleazy.

When a customer leaves you a glowing review, don’t hesitate to respond. Here’s a sample:

”Hi Thomas, thank you so much for visiting us and for this kind review! Our customers are the most important thing to us, so we’re happy to hear that you had a great experience. We look forward to serving you again!”

As for the bad kind, someone will eventually write you a bad review - it’s inevitable. Many businesses take a bad review and, with some outreach and some damage control, turn it into a good experience.

When a bad review feels like a personal attack, it’s tempting to shoot back. But that’s why your response should come from an objective, neutral person. They should reply by apologizing, showing empathy, then taking the conversation offline.

Take a look at how this goes:

”Hi Missy, so sorry to hear about your experience! We’re striving for perfection every day, so feedback like yours is critical to helping us improve. We’d love to try to make this right. Give me a call at 555-5555 or email me at info@yourbiz.com and I’ll do my best to make it up to you.”

Some owners try to boost their ratings with fake reviews. But it’s unethical for anyone who isn’t a customer to post them, including owners, staff, family or friends. Slamming competitors or praising yourself may break platform rules.

A fake review can be tough to catch because you don’t know the reviewer’s identity. If you believe it’s fake, flag it to the site right away to ask for removal. In some states, businesses have filed SLAPP lawsuits against people who post slanderous reviews.

It’s not necessary to respond to fake reviews, but try to keep it consistent - answering every other review except for this one gives a tacit admission that the others are truthful. If you do reply, thank them for their time, apologize that they had a bad experience, then offer to chat privately. Remaining polite and not accusing the reviewer keeps your company looking as professional as possible.

The More Positive Reviews You Have

The more positive reviews you have, the bigger the benefits. A Harvard Business School study found that a one-star increase on Yelp could mean a 5 to 9 percent increase in revenue. Unfortunately, a bad experience inspires most of the reviews that get posted.

Google, Yelp and your social media pages are among the first places customers leave feedback. Set up accounts on each so you know what they see, and keep your contact details up-to-date.

Once you’re listing with a consumer reviews site, keep replying. Studies have shown that 53 percent of customers expect a response within seven days, and ignoring them can raise churn by as much as 15 percent.

Don’t worry about asking your customers to leave a review. Ask customers in-store, or include a link in an email, but choose your timing carefully. BrightLocal reports that 68 percent have left a review when asked.

Asking for a review too early can backfire. Say a customer orders shoes online. Sending a customer to Yelp before the shoes even arrive can cause a review about poor delivery. Wait a few weeks until they’ve worn the shoes, and your review will reflect their satisfaction with the whole product. Once they’ve used the product and have strong feelings about it, their reviews are more compelling.

The way to earn the most positive reviews is an exceptional customer experience, from the first contact through the whole sales process, and after it.