While developing your brand, you may have performed a brand audit. But what should you do if you see any negative comments published online?
Negative comments can be detrimental to your brand. However, if you appropriately respond to them, you can leverage criticism into a valuable branding opportunity.
You can demonstrate to your audience that you are authentic and genuinely care about your customers. You can also show that you want to learn and improve.
Ideally, you will craft a strategy for dealing with negative reviews before they surface.
A key objective should be to respond to negative comments right away. Don’t let them fester in the public sphere without any response.
If you don’t respond promptly, you risk appearing like you don’t care or ignoring the comment.
When you respond to any comment, your fundamental goal should be to make the person happy. Remember that whoever left negative feedback about your business must feel that you have somehow done them wrong.
As the comment and your response are both public, positively responding demonstrates that you take customer satisfaction seriously and wish to learn from the experience.
Sometimes, negative comments can arise due to a fundamental misunderstanding. For instance, the customer may have assumed you offer a service you don’t or may have misinterpreted your messaging. Take the time to clarify the situation and clear up any uncertainty.
It can be difficult not to take negative customer feedback to heart. However, you should remain calm. Adopt a positive and professional tone. After all, your response will reflect on your brand.
If you have made a mistake, admit it and apologize. You are human. You will appear more authentic, and it will earn people’s trust.
If you are not at fault, try to keep your customer satisfied. Sometimes, being the bigger person can help you translate negative feedback into an opportunity for your brand to shine. Use these instances as a learning experience to refine your message.
