How-To Cope with Negative Feedback

A few weeks ago, I offered some tips on soliciting customer testimonials. That post was based on the premise that your customers want to say nice things about you. But what happens when your customers think your pretzels are stale or your prices are too high? This week's "How-To Tuesday" addresses the other edge of the customer feedback sword--the bad review. How do you cope when faced with discontent?

Stay calm.

Bad reviews happen. People are going to disagree with the way you run your business. As long as you offer a quality product backed by quality service, your good reviews and positive feedback are bound to outweigh the bad. If negative feedback is the norm, it should give you a swift kick in the pants to turn things around.

Decide the appropriate time and place to respond.

According to Janet Thaeler at "Open Forum", there are different types of negative feedback: the genuine kind and the malicious kind. While Janet's piece focuses mainly on malicious competitors, customers are also capable of spewing some unwarranted venom. Constructive criticism deserves a constructive response. Nastiness, in my opinion, deserves to be ignored. Trust your potential customers to know the difference between someone with a legitimate complaint and someone who is just flying off the handle.

If you feel a response is warranted, consider the appropriate forum for doing so. Customers may feel betrayed if they think they're feedback is anonymous (e.g.--a comment card) and are then asked to justify their opinions publicly. While many experts recommend responding to bad reviews online, some small business owners question the utility of the tactic. Determine whether your response will clarify or frustrate before diving into the fray.

When addressing critics, be polite and open-minded.

Much like the nasty customer, the boorish businessperson allows his or her attitude to overshadow the disagreement. If you don't take the higher ground, your customers will only remember that pig-headed owner and completely forget the content of the dispute. If most of your attacks occur online, check out this post for a list of sites that permit owner responses.

Even if you don't respond to the customer directly, respond to the criticism.

Bad reviews, particularly reviews that harp on the same thing, give you an opportunity to recognize the gaps in your operation. More importantly, bad reviews give you the opportunity to fix the gaps in your operation. Not only will you better serve future customers, but you may regain previously dissatisfied ones.

But remember, you can't please everyone.


For more information on the reputation management more generally, check out these comprehensive articles:
"Why Reputation Management Matters for Small Businesses"
"Basics of Online Reputation Management"