One of the presentations at New Orleans Entrepreneur Week was entitled Haters Gotta Hate. It was about how small businesses should handle negative reviews in social media. In a way, the presentation was disappointing; the businesses represented have great reputations!
But they had a few points. First, you may not want to allow reviews on Facebook because there is no good way to respond to them; to do this, you’ll need a non-business page rather than a business one.
On Yelp and Twitter, there are three types of negative reviews. The first is a negative review that’s justified, that a business can learn from. Maybe service is off some nights, maybe the menu is confusing. If it’s appropriate, you can respond and try to fix the problem, and maybe the reviewer will respond with a positive review.
The second is a negative review over a matter of preference. Maybe you don’t want to have a television at your beauty shop. Some customers might not like that; they may want Kardashians with their highlights. Then they will just have to go somewhere else. Haters gotta hate, you know?
The third is a crazy, ad hominem attack. In this case, a business can either ignore it or report it to the social media company.
Some negative reviews are good, the panelists agreed. They have the benefit of making the positive reviews look more legitimate, of showing that a business attracts real people and not just the owner’s family!
In no event should you sue, the panelists agreed. The First Amendment protections are strong. Yelp has successfully countersued people who sue it . Here’s a hint: if you’re representing yourself in an attempt to scare a reviewer, figure that the person you’re suing will hire real lawyers and that you will have to pay for them.
I think it goes a long way when a company will respond to social media complaints. Speedway responds to all complaints except those regarding gas prices on their Facebook page, and I think that’s pretty cool for a company their size. I’ve seen many companies respond to negative Yelp reviews, though when it’s the same response to any complaint, they start to lose points.
Thanks for commenting! I’ve noticed the same thing with TripAdvisor.