According to Reputation.com a one-star difference in your rating can result in a nine percent difference in revenue. This means that an average three-star rating can bring forth an 18 percent difference in revenue than a five-star restaurant.
These reviews have a very significant impact on your business, so what do you do when your business has been criticized by a customer?
First thing, take a deep breath. Your first reaction will be to get angry. Realize that regardless of how hard you and your employees work to create a positive experience for customers, somehow someone will find something to bash your business about. Staying professional is key.
The most important thing to do is to dig deeper into the issue. If the negative comment is about a certain employee, the service provided or the overall ambiance not being up to par, ask questions!
Asking the person who wrote the review to provide more information will allow you to get more insight on the issue and find out the details of what they didn’t like. In addition, it will demonstrate that you value their business and opinion.
Having worked in the hospitality industry for more than five years, I know just as well as anyone that the customer is always right. Regardless of the fact that they may be 100 percent, without a doubt wrong, you must work with them to make them happy because that one negative experience can drive them away for years to come. This is why you must apologize for whatever is upsetting them.
Since it is your business, you have the power to offer the customer a free drink, a free dinner or a gift certificate to help remedy the situation. Bringing the customer back to your establishment and providing them with a positive experience will negate the feelings they had when they wrote the negative post.
If they do not accept your offer, which in some cases they won't, don’t sweat it. Your apology and comment is on the Internet, below their negative comment for other potential customers to see. This will show them that you care about each and every customer.
Even if you respond to the reviews and work to make the customer happy, those poor ratings and comments may still be there. The trick is to have the positive reviews outweigh the negative in order to invalidate them. This is why flawless customer service and extensive employee training is vital.
We are all human and make mistakes, but it’s how we react to the situations that make us unique. Be sure to work to make a personal connection with your customers so that they see you differently than all of your competitors. By doing this, loyal customers can provide positive insight when they hear someone talking negatively about your business.
On the bottom-right corner of each review there is a little red flag to have the website review the comment, and if the website believes it is suitable to be deleted, they will have it removed. But don’t abuse this option! If you flag too often, your business will be flagged for always deleting the negative reviews making your company look bad to potential customers.
Many of the review sites do not delete reviews unless they are extremely disrespectful, such as if there is a false accusation against your business. Relating back to what I said earlier, making up excuses is not acceptable; don't pull this card unless you are sure that it is false.
Another way to keep in contact with customers? Social media. I once Tweeted at an airline company about a negative experience I had, and they responded with an apology and also gave me a $50 credit! This made me feel as if my input was actually important and that the company cared about what I had to say. Building and maintaining an online social media presence is a great way to ensure that your business has a positive perception among customers.
In order to watch out for bad reviews, you should go over the reviews of your business daily on websites like Yelp, Google, YellowPages and Angie’s List. By paying attention to the negative reviews, you are reducing the harm to your reputation and monitoring the ratio of positive to negative reviews. One negative review that you do not know about could cause you to lose many customers.
It is important to remember that not only in terms of reviews, but also in our everyday lives, people tend to point out the negatives, not the positives. Customers look for changes to be made, not excuses! So always work toward providing a memorable customer experience and your business will flourish.