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You’ve poured your heart and soul into a business that you love. You’ve set up your Facebook page in hopes of better connecting with your clients and customers and you couldn’t be more excited. Yet, someone has a bad experience and suddenly that 5.0 stars drop or you’re reading a bad review that slams your company. You try reporting it or deleting it and nothing happens. It just sits there. How are you supposed to handle it? Here are a few practical tips and helpful reminders to help keep your cool while handing a bad review on Facebook.
One of the worst mistakes you can make is not taking a moment to try to empathize with the reviewer. Yes, there are some instances in which the review is off-hand or not true, but it is a benefit to you as a business owner to take a moment to think about how you could have avoided the situation altogether. Is there a broken system or process that needs to be addressed? How can you use it as a learning experience?
While taking a step back to think, use as a moment to calm down. Whether you think so or not, chances are that you may be itching to tell your side of the story or defend one of your employees. You want to respond back strategically and calmly, especially if the review isn’t the full story. Although it’s important to respond promptly, better to take 5 minutes to calm down, rather than respond too quickly and regret it.
Write no more than three simple lines of text. Don’t screenshot your email correspondence or match their word count. Here’s an example you are free to use and modify as you need to! Make sure to change your standard response to fit the situation and not sound like an auto-response.
Thank you for your feedback and we apologize for the inconvenience/misunderstanding/ interruption. Please reach out to me, the business owner, personally so I can better understand how we can do better next time - *your business phone or personal number*
Don’t share it with an employee or a coworker. Share it with someone who doesn’t know the inner workings of your business or is willing to tell you the truth about the response. Ask them how they would feel if they saw your response on a review and if they would still be willing to work or buy from your company.
Try to post within at least 48 hours of the review. That sounds like a long time, but you should always aim to post sooner rather than later. Once you respond, close the ticket they had for your attention. Remember, perception is everything. Responding to the post isn’t about the person, it’s about the other people who may see the review. If they respond back, there isn’t a need to respond back anymore. You’ve provided options on how you’re willing to help and it’s up to them to try. Now, you can turn your attention to solving the problems that brought on the review in the first place.
Giving yourself time and space to reflect and respond is so important. As a creative company, we know how much client feedback means to a business. But we also know how it can feel helpless when it comes to managing an online presence. If you’re interested in learning more ways to help your social presence succeed, feel free to check out our digital marketing services and set up a free consultation with us to discuss your goals to grow your business.
