Cofounder and CEO of PissedConsumer, a review platform that helps consumers be heard and brands improve their customer service processes.
It’s indisputable that online reviews have become one of the most useful tools available to the consumer. My company’s recent survey indicates that 84% of consumers check online reviews prior to committing to a purchase, seeking social proof before making the final decision.
For businesses, review management can seem burdensome and beyond our control; however, the impact of smart policy and excellent customer service is significant and is more often than not the decisive factor in how a business is perceived online.
Сomplaints And Their Influence
Online reviews give the consumer a resource of lived-experienced testimonials from their peers. They give unparalleled insight into what it’s like to use and live with a company’s product, whether it does what it says on the tin, and firsthand impressions of dealing with their customer service.
Online reviews are so widespread that almost every product will have some customer feedback. In fact, unless a product is fresh on the market, the absence of any customer testimonials will very likely work against it, as a savvy consumer will avoid taking a leap of faith in an unknown quantity.
Consistent negative feedback, particularly that which has a common complaint, will significantly impact sales and brand reputation. Our research showed that 85.3% of consumers stated that their purchasing decisions are swayed by poor reviews all or some of the time, so the impact of complaints is indeed a strong determinant of business success.
With that being said, we found 33.1% of consumers do say that they would consider giving a company a second go if they felt that they did make a sincere effort to resolve the issue. BrightLocal found that 57% of consumers in their survey “say they would be ‘not very’ or ‘not at all’ likely to use a business that doesn’t respond to reviews at all.” These statistics clearly indicate that businesses should not write off customers who have had a poor experience. In fact, many loyal customers are made from excellent customer service.
Online Feedback Sources
While publishing reviews on the company website shows an attempt at transparency, research also reveals that such testimonials are treated with the most suspicion and likely have the least influence of all online reviews, with only a third (35.4%) having faith in the accuracy of reviews on a company’s own website according to my company’s research.
Amazon and Google reviews, on the other hand, are often seen as less biased, along with online review platforms and social media. Review Trackers found that 63.6% of consumers check Google before visiting a business. The reasoning behind this is rather self-evident, given that independent online review platforms collate independent reviews and complaints with minimal moderation and curation, allowing a truer representation of public sentiment.
From Bad Experiences To Brand Ambassadors
A scathing complaint can be quite a punch in the gut, and the urge to avoid them, much less engage with them, is understandable. However, this is a fear that needs conquering as it stands as an obstacle to the highly valuable opportunities for growth that engaging with and listening to your customers offers.
Many customers first try to reach out to the company before taking their grievances online. This makes space for a positive, constructive and proactive way of treating dissatisfied customers that can often nip any potential complaints in the bud before they are made public.
Clearly, the key advantage here is with companies that have a well-trained customer service team that is alert to the online discourse surrounding the company, is sufficiently knowledgeable to address and resolve complaints quickly, and, crucially, easily accessible to all across many channels.
When a grievance does find its way out into the open, prompt engagement is the first step to guiding it in a positive direction. Respond quickly, show understanding and empathy, apologize if appropriate and with a positive attitude, work toward a solution. I often emphasize that a customer who feels heard will almost always forgive minor hiccups, and a pleasant, successful customer service experience will usually dispel any negative feelings associated with the initial complaint.
A customer brought around by an excellent customer service experience is a fantastic victory for your online reputation. How you respond to and resolve online complaints is a trusted impression of what a consumer can expect if they put their faith in you.
Best Practices For Dealing With Negative Reviews
A starting point in training all my customer service employees is that they acknowledge that many complaints emerge from frustration and negative emotional impacts, hence, before tackling the issue, it’s important to always make the customer feel heard, understood and sympathized with. Upon this foundation, we then build along the following touchpoints:
• Good customer service means consistency.
• Always think before you open your mouth. Ask yourself, “Would I speak to my mother like this?”
• Keenly monitor review platforms to keep up to date on customer sentiment.
• Always take ownership if in error. Never shift blame.
• Show gratitude for feedback and invite the customer to express any suggestions for how you can do better.
• Try to provide faster resolution times for customers for whom you sense there is a possible issue. If a customer does want something solved quickly, ask them how quickly, because for them, quickly could be a month, not necessarily right this minute.
• Always follow up on an interaction to ensure the resolution was satisfactory to the customer.
• Never fail to deliver on your promises.
Patience And Empathy Reap Rewards
While racking up positive five-star reviews is a great way to promote your business, arguably, the way you respond to less-satisfied customers online has a greater impact on the customer experience and your reputation.
With a top customer service team and a positive review and reputation management strategy, your business can build an exemplary brand reputation that drives up customer satisfaction, sets an example to others and raises the bar for customer service across your industry.
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