Complaint handling – how to deal with negative online reviews
How to handle online complaints
One of our first steps when running an SEO campaign for a client is to ensure that the company or brand is listed on public review sites and has a social presence. However, this is a double edged sword, and if you are running any kind of business it is only a matter of time before one of these websites is showing something you don’t feel reflects well on you or your brand. Reputation is key to a lot of things in business, and a complaint or gripe that is publically visible can really detract from your offering.
The thing to remember though, is that these complaints or negative comments already exist. Its just you may have been blissfully unaware or were dealing with it privately – so surely these comments being public is bad for your business, right? Actually, no – they are the perfect opportunity for you to demonstrate to clients what you will do when things go wrong. Consumers aren’t silly, and they know that even the best organisations in the world sometimes get it wrong. You now have an opportunity to prove that you are both human and dedicated to customer service.
Complaint resolution tips
We have put together a short list of how to help your reputation management and how to handle negative comments about you on the internet:
- Accept that complaints WILL happen. People are programmed to complain, its in our genetic makeup. Whether its about the temperature, the government or “What Aunt Shirley said about our Tracey last year”, humans have an amazing capacity to grumble. The fact that these complaints are now online means that you can deal with them.
- Be willing to listen. As well as liking to gripe, people also love to be heard. By engaging with the person who is upset, you are recognizing that there is an issue and validating them. Always respond in the place where the complaint was originally voiced (where possible, which it usually is) and if you need to then take it into a private discussion via email or telephone. When the issue is resolved, update the initial complaint and where practical ask the customer to also add their view of your actions.
- The hardest word…? This is the bit that can stick in your throat, but the part which will go the furthest to dealing with the vast majority of complaints. SAY SORRY! Recognising that the customer did not get the first class service they expected and apologising can really take the sting out of their anger. We have dealt with so many clients who are upset with their suppliers and are involved in long standing arguments. The vast majority of them tell us that if their supplier simply said sorry, they would be happy. If a valid point has been raised, also thank the customer for bringing it to your attention.
- Clarity of thought, clarity of message. Stay very clear about what you are doing, what the issue is and how you are dealing with it. This will reflect in the messages you respond with, and also allow other customers viewing the complaint to see that you are being reasonable (which you always must be!) and that you are being fair. If the complaint is about a misunderstanding on the customers part (i.e. your returns policy says items may be returned within 7 days and the customer took 20) then apologise for the misunderstanding, where possible take pro-active measures (such as clarifying your returns policy), and thank them for letting you know it wasn’t clear enough (even if in your opinion it was).
- Don’t get dragged into an argument. Always remember that if the complaint is public, so is your response. Whatever you do, do NOT get sucked into an argument. If things are heading this way, either enter into private discussions or walk away. Your other customers will see that you have tried to resolve the situation and that the complainant is being unreasonable. Just ensure that you have done what you can to put the fire out first.
- Do NOT ignore the issue. During the summer in Suffolk, a restaurant had a situation arise which involved some very upset customers and a stroppy waiter. This resulted in a raft of comments on the restaurant’s FaceBook page which needless to say were not very favourable. The next day, the FaceBook page had been deleted. This is a prime example of how NOT to deal with this kind of case. A lot of users had taken screenshots of the conversation and these then got posted all over the internet – on channels and profiles the restaurant had no control over. If they had kept the page open, responded to the complaints and pacified these customers then they could have restored the situation and actually ddragged something positive out of the experience. Offering some vouchers, explaining the discipinary procedures put in place and apologising would have made this storm in a teacup disappear much quicker than the actions that were actually taken.
- Choose your battles. There are occassions when a customer is being unreasonable – or perhaps they aren’t even a customer, but a competitor trying to discredit you. If it is a competitor (and you are sure of this) then you have two choices – engage and be reasonable, or remove the comment. It is VERY rare we advise removal of a complaint, but if you are being sucked into an argument that you don’t want in public and this is not a customer, then sometimes it is better to not engage at all. If you do engage, treat it as any other complaint – be reasonable, be clear and try to resolve the issues. If things are not progressing, then step out of the discussion.
Effective handling of EVERY complaint
Customers are canny enough to recognise unreasonable behaviour, and if you have shown that you have tried to sort things out and the other party has kept returning with the same demands or not listened, then you can be sure they will see that you have tried and view it positively.
ANY business will have complaints and negative comments about it – if you don’t yet then I promise you, its only a matter of time. Whether they exist is not the issue, its how you deal with them that will affect how your brand is viewed by potential customers.
If you are still struggling with how your brand is seen online, please get in touch with us – we can offer advice, undertake reputation management on your behalf and in extreme cases we can help to revitalise your online reputation and start putting some serious positivity into the way people view your company online.
Tony is the Managing Director of Flosee, and also our lead developer. He has been building, modifying and beautifying websites since 2001 and is almost always glued to a keyboard in one way or another.
