Negative Reviews --- 139

As a small business, we always want to make sure that we are doing our best to make sure that the customer is happy at all times, there will be cases when we will make some mistakes. Of course, no one is perfect and we are all human so mistakes can happen. However, even when we do our best to make sure that the problem is fixed, it is sadly not good enough for some. And thus, this is where the negative reviews come in. While it is inevitable to receive negative reviews from customers, it is how one handles them that will determine whether a business can be successful or not. Now, for the first step, read the review and identify what seems to be an issue. Sometimes, it could be that the customer was put on hold too long and that they were annoyed with waiting too long, or it could be even more serious that they did not receive the item and that when they contacted us, the problem was never solved. Reading the reviews to the end will be able to allow you to see what is the issue and help provide you with more details on the problem so that you can come up with a solution. 

Next, figuring out how to respond to these reviews. In most cases, this will be your first time reaching out to the customer so first impressions are always important. First, greet the customer and let them know that you apologize for the treatment that they felt. It is always best that you let the customer know that we sympathize with them and that we can understand their frustration. After this, let the reviewer know that we would gladly assist them further and then refer to them with some contact information so that they can respond back to you through a more direct channel, thereby minimizing the customer having to wait for too long and repeating the previous steps from before. 

Next, make sure to see if the review is actually a review on the company’s customer service or the item and not about not getting their way. This is important as if they are complaining about your item and customer service, then it is up to you to figure out a way to fix the situation. However, there will be times where the review is nothing more than a customer not getting their way. In these cases, you have to see and look into the review and in the case that they are complaining that they did not get their way, then as before, offer sympathy and then kindly let them know that you would be able to look up their situation and provide them with the contact information. Once, or if, they respond, then look up their situation and if the situation was handled badly then it would be best to fix the problem. But, if the situation was handled correctly and that you are not at fault, then kindly let the customer know and inform them or your policy. It is important to not let your emotions show during these interactions. If you let your frustration or anger get to you and that spills out into your response, then that can be looked at as harassment. So, make sure to always be professional and courteous to customers, even when the customer is not because you are the first contact for the company.

So to summarize, how you respond to negative feedback will help you as a company be able to show that you care for your customer as well as help identify issues that may have missed the cracks. Here at Linkstyle, we always strive to make sure that our customer’s always have a positive experience shopping from us. And if our customers experienced a not so great experience from us, then we will do all that we can to make sure that the issues are addressed and help them resolve the issue.  


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