As a business, your reputation is an essential factor. It does not only cover one aspect of your business but makes up all of your business. Your reputation is what drives your business to grow. If you do not have any reputation, it is as good as you do not exist.
Having a good business reputation is the ultimate aim of each enterprise. When people like you, they paint you the right image that will help you expand your reach, which will make more people trust you.
However, sometimes instances cannot be avoided where you fall deep in the pit of a negative reputation. It may be your first bad feedback or your hundredth, but the effect still feels like a lump in your throat that lingers throughout. And sadly, even if it is only a single review or a dozen, it will still affect how people will perceive your brand.
While it may be impossible to virtually remove it, especially if it appeared on news channels and other information-giving sites, there are several ways to troubleshoot your negative online reputation.
Ways To Troubleshoot Negative Online Reputation
Having a bad review can cause a lot of damage to your reputation, and sometimes, you might just wish to ignore it until it all goes away. Though this is not an ideal solution and can do a lot of damaging effect on your business, you can always turn it around. So here are five ways you can do to rebuild your negative reputation.
- Find The Root Cause
Any negative review will surely have a basis. It might have started somewhere in your checkout process, the delivery of your products, or even the product or service itself. Look for loopholes and analyze where the problem is coming from.
If it is a piece of viral news, try to check who the source is. Investigate every possible motive you can think of. Do not downplay as well the thought if the review was sent on purpose. Can you think of an employee who might leave negative comments on some review sites? Did your competitor purposely create a comparison article putting you in the wrong light?
Whatever the root cause is, finding where it all started will help you create a plan on how to approach the problem.
2. Respond Politely
While it is tempting to simply ignore any negative comment left in your account or posted about your brand, you should always respond.
Ignoring comments might even give you a harder time to troubleshoot it if it has already spread like wildfire. Other people might pick it up, and the more people know or share it, the more chances it can go viral.
Responding to the issue as quickly as possible can help you minimize the effect of the bad review left about your brand. However, there are things you should always keep in mind when responding.
You might feel hurt for every lousy comment you read online about your product or business. Sometimes you feel the urge to fight back. But the rule of thumb in responding to any offensive comment or review is to never argue with the customer. Make them feel that you are listening and that you are taking their side. Validate their feelings.
Offering an apology does not mean that you have already lost the battle. An apology can be your ticket to make things better with your customer. Take responsibility - this might even gain your customer’s trust and respect.
- Offer Something Extra To Make Up
Complaining customers, especially those who have already gone berserk and already posted their rants on social media or review sites, can still be won back. After addressing their complaint, listening to their statements, and offering a sincere apology, you can always go the extra mile by offering a discount on their next purchase. Giving a free item or extending a service that can compensate for their negative experience.
This gesture will make them feel valued and will eventually gain their trust back.
2. Repair From The Source
If it is an unfavorable story that has been published by other websites and news portals, you can attempt to reach out to these sites. Reach out to the author, blogger, or media outlet who published the article and ask politely if they can make amendments to it or if they can take it down completely.
Share your side of the story. However, when reaching out, do not be aggressive and try to be as polite as possible. Do not even attempt to threaten to take legal action as it may also cause more significant problems in the future and may bring more damage to your reputation.
3. Push Down Negative Reviews
When you cannot have your negative reviews or write-ups deleted, try to do some pushing down the drain strategy. Push down negative feedbacks and reviews by encouraging your customers to post their positive experience in dealing with you. Though this may be a bit difficult as you have to reach out to your customers manually, it can help in shedding some light on your company again.
4. Prevent Negative Feedback As Much As Possible
Being online or bringing your business online is the greatest thing you can do in this modern age. Nevertheless, having an online presence means you also expose your business or your brand to any possible negative situation that may arise. While this is part of your risk in building your name on the internet, you can always prevent being tagged negatively.
Make your brand appear approachable. When a customer received a wrong item, experiences a terrible mistake from your end, or had a hard time navigating your site, they are most likely to complain about it. If they find it hard to message you or approach you, they will post it publicly where a lot of people can read it and pick it up enough to make it go viral.
Excellent customer service is essential in making sure that you prevent any bad reviews and improve your online reputation. While some companies, especially big enterprises can afford to invest in call centers and have a wide array of customer service representatives, for a small business owner like you, it will be a bit too much for your budget. Invest your time and effort in customer service tools available in the market today.
Final Thoughts
Fixing a negative online reputation is not an easy feat, but it does not mean the end of your business. As you cannot please everybody, there will always come the point where people will leave you a negative review. However, as long as you offer an excellent service and a quality product, you can always bounce back.
AUTHOR’S BIO
Maricar Morga
Maricar Morga worked as a marketing professional for almost a decade. She became part of the biggest real estate company/mall operator in the Philippines and handled concerts, events and community service-related activities. One of her activities became a nominee in the ICSC Asia-Pacific Shopping Center Awards 2018. Leaving her corporate job for good to pursue her dreams, she has now ventured in the path of content writing and currently writes for
Softvire Australia and
Softvire New Zealand. A Harry Potter fan, she loves to watch animated series and movies during her spare time.
