As you keep the above in mind, here are some tips on how to address and respond to these reviews:

• Always respond. Staying silent leaves people wondering why the company didn’t address the issue. Ignoring complaints can harm your business and its reputation. Make sure to acknowledge every review.
• While responding to the customer, remember the public is watching too. How you handle the complaint will shape their perception of your business, and it can influence whether they choose to work with you.
• Call your customer first. I have had a couple of bad reviews where I was not aware of my customer’s dissatisfaction, and first found out online. I immediately called my customer to speak to them about it. Once we spoke and the issue was resolved, they changed and updated their review. Many times people are not willing to vent their frustration directly to you, and they will go online.
• Take full responsibility. If your business made a mistake, own up to it and correct it. Be transparent in your response, showing others how you’ve resolved the issue, and go the extra mile to make things right.
• Don’t shy away from negative reviews. If you have 100 reviews and two are negative, people will focus on those to see how you handled them. Did you take ownership? Did you resolve the issue? Most likely, they’ll then check out your positive reviews. Use both positive and negative feedback to benefit your business.
• Don’t hide from negative reviews or try to bury them. I was recently in a meeting with a potential client. I know he found us on Google, and I know my company has some negative reviews on Google. When I was sharing with him why he should work with us, I pulled up these reviews and pointed them out. I shared what happened in each scenario, and what we did to correct things. He was impressed that I owned our imperfections and let him know how we showed our best even when the worst happened. He ended up hiring us.
  • By the way, when this customer hired us he also let us know that he knew one of the negative reviews was from a person who was always unhappy. He actually began to laugh about how unreasonable, unkind and unable to be pleased this customer was. He had looked into other reviews she had written about other companies, all of them had been 1-star. In each review, the company had responded very kindly yet directly that they did all they could to serve her and she would never be happy.
• Many times, the way a trolling and “never going to be happy” kind of customer writes their review speaks for itself. Their tone, approach, and explanation of their complaint is obviously a perfect representation of the fact that no one can ever do right in their eyes. Remember that the people reading this will see it! Your positive, kind, and direct response will only reconfirm to others the great company you are.
• Address false reviews head-on. If someone writes something untrue, professionally call them out. It’s essential to stand up for your business and let the public see you defending your company.

Remember as you venture into business, you will face negative reviews. Use them to show people who you are, what you stand for,  and how you handle situations when you screw up. Let your company’s values and personality shine through.

Remember three things:

I love you.

I believe in you.

You got this.

Now, go get it!

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