Why Negative Reviews about Your Company Can Be Good For Business

Question

Negative Reviews Can Be Good for Business!

I just came upon a fantastic article about  Negative Reviews online and thought it appropriate to share with the readers of our Guru Review forum.

This article talks about why negative reviews can be good for business, and I advise anyone whose company has been reviewed (here or anywhere else online) to read the article.

The key is to be proactive and demonstrate your customer service by responding calmly and respectfully to any complaints about you or your company.  Negative responses to criticisms are a fast way to damage your reputation . . .

Here are the highlights that stick out to me:
- Itâ€™s a chance to change the conversation. 
- You get to show off your customer service.
- It gives you street cred.
- You get feedback you can act on.

Check it out and good luck!

Footnote: I've seen several gurus utilize this tactic here on BiggerPockets, and all have turned around some of the negative criticisms about them.  Those who have elected to attack those people critiquing them have always ended up looking worse in the end.

Barry W · Answer

One thing to avoid is carrying on an ongoing diatribe online. Explain how you value feedback and prompt them to contact you directly to resolve the situation without stating what your willing to do.

Erin Lamb · Answer

Well, if negative reviews build a guru's business, than Scott Carson should be the king.

Johnny Groves · Answer

I agree that bad reviews should be handled professionally and promptly, but a lot of people don't hang around past the bad review to know about what type of customer service or end result there was.

True, if you get a bad review you can and should try to work it out for good, but I think it is a more solid practice to go the extra mile for each client and taking the extra time to make sure that they are well taken care of and happy. Also, setting their expectations and making sure that their expectations are congruent with whatever deal your involved with them in is also very important.

Negative reviews can be prevented, so prevention is the best practice in my opinion.

Evan Hunsberger · Answer

Word of mouth is key these days as it will often times be the only thing which will separate you from the good, the bad, and the ugly; to be chosen as the firm/realtor that someone goes with due to your reputation online AND in-person. Beware, If you have bad reviews, you may see more than just your ratings plummet, your sales may not be far behind. Whether you're a Real Estate School, Licensed Real Estate Professional, or Investor, your reputation is everything.

Jack Hoffman · Answer

...an other point is ya sometimes bad service or products (speaking non-Apple) can make a person not go back..but if there is one waiter at a restaurant trying their best or a cook or anyone else trying their best do they deserve a shot?...its difficult to walk on the beach along the waves following an others persons steps exactly... let alone to just put ones self in an others shoes.

Jack Hoffman · Answer

I think this is a really interesting subject considering Apples current situation.

If a person Apple has seen unlikeable in some way they could easily of changed their views of it...if not for the product some ppl could be intrigued that the Company backs its users & be willing to give Apple a try.  So far its been near 50%/50% supporting the security issues...with most people sticking to their guns.What is there to dislike about a company caring about security of their users?  They didn't even sneeze or take a breath to make it clear their main reason is for the users?Like Apple product/direction/history or not who wouldnt like to team/support such clear adherence to their beliefs in giving the people what they want?  Typical Apple from start up till present IMHO.  WINNERS!!

Dennis Marshall · Answer

Your reputation is everything and therefore you should guard it with your life. What i've learned is all attention is good attention; no matter if it's good or bad. You just have to know how to direct it once you're getting it.

I watch rappers and entertainers use negative attention to drive album sales. I've paid attention to marketers who use people calling them a "scam", as a podium to show exactly what they're about.

Just take it in stride... Great point you make though Josh

James Barnhart · Answer

I agree that bad reviews are bad for your business.  If I read one, I read it carefully to understand the complaint.  Sometimes, I can see that the customer just makes a plain negative review with no specifics, and I usually take those with a grain of salt.

And, sometimes, the business owner digs his heels in and makes a poor situation worse, based on their comments.

Barry Warren · Answer

Consumers read your reviews because they want to know if you can be trusted. Online reviews are the digital "word of mouth" providing presold, warm leads. 92% of consumers read online reviews and 40% form an opinion after reading just 1-3 reviews. If there's an issue, I'm likely to take a loss and make the client/customer happy before I'll prove I'm right to win the battle....only to lose the war.

Why Negative Reviews about Your Company Can Be Good For Business

Most Popular Reply