How to Handle Negative Customer Reviews

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Negative criticism, whether it’s from a coworker or a manager, has the power to demoralize and discourage. The good news is that you can change your perspective on negative criticism and turn it into a tool for personal growth by mastering a few basic communication skills.

Business owners want to see only good feedback about their company, but it’s a fact that we need to accept both with an open heart. We live in an imperfect world, and no matter how much effort you put into pleasing your customers, you will still get bad criticism. Therefore, there are no avoiding poor reviews: they are inevitable.

It may be emotionally and financially draining to get bad press for your company. It is possible to change negative feedback into positive engagement, though. First, let’s look at why accepting negative feedback is essential.

Accepting Criticism (Negative Reviews) Is Crucial, But Why?

As much as it’s nice to get favorable comments, it may be challenging to receive negative reviews criticism. Even though everyone has room for improvement, receiving negative reviews may be difficult. When you learn to take negative comments graciously, it may improve your self-esteem, relationships, and tendency to be pessimistic.

How to Handle Negative Customer Reviews

We know that it is difficult to handle negative reviews, but you can do it & we’re here to help; look at what you can do,

Pay Attention to What’s Being Said

Negative Customer Review is best received by paying attention and hearing what is stated. When receiving negative comments, you can’t go wrong by not interrupting and listening attentively. Differentiate between the accuracy of the feedback and the quality of the feedback’s delivery.

Few individuals can deliver criticism so that the receiver feels confident in receiving it as valuable knowledge and coming away from experience with something new. Therefore, the point is, try to get some meaning out of it instead of being angry or sad.

Distancing Yourself from Your Emotional Self

Make sure you don’t take criticism as a personal insult. Also, avoid taking a defensive stance. When we get a negative customer review, it’s our nature to respond. Distancing yourself from your emotions and listening to the comments as if they were a doctor’s suggestion to consume less salt is the key; you know you can’t bear to live without salt.

Still, you take it as positive feedback, similarly handle your customers with patience, and take their negatives as positives. Be honest and grateful when you get criticism.

Don’t Attempt To Disprove Someone

When we’re trying to prove someone incorrect, we’re more likely to overlook helpful information that may be lurking in the comment. “You’re wrong!” will never be useful if your critic is incorrect. Even if you can prove it, it doesn’t matter. You must practice active listening to get the most out of this technique. To ensure that your opponent has stated everything intended, all you have to do is nod until they have completed speaking.

Asking Questions Is A Great Way to Learn

Asking questions may help people express themselves more clearly, regardless of the fundamental message. When we ask questions, we avoid the impression of defensiveness and avoid rushing in to explain our behavior. Asking the wrong questions can lead to the wrong answers. When phrased correctly, a question frequently leads to an answer of its own. Diagnosis begins with asking questions.

Putting Yourself in Your Customer’s Shoes

Another great way to improve your customer service is to understand your customer even if he’s negative! You can always provide empathy. A customer’s perspective helps you better understand your role as a service provider. Try to get a sense of what your consumer is going through and how the situation is affecting them. Convey a sense of empathy for the customer’s situation. Don’t be afraid to say, “I understand how you feel.”

Apologize

Even if you didn’t do anything wrong, you might still be sincere in your apologies for your customer’s discomfort. Don’t go overboard with your apologies. If required, give an honest and mature apology. Remember that criticism and negative customer reviews are part of everyday life.

Take what you’ve learned and keep moving forward. Resolve the problem immediately and make any necessary changes to the procedure. Without blaming anybody, find out what went wrong and change the process to avoid this again.

Assess Whether The Feedback Is Beneficial Or Detrimental

Don’t get too attached to customer reviews. Always look for whether the review is positive or negative! This means that a few comments might be harsh, but they still have a message in them that is a positive criticism from which you can learn!

However, a few reviews only intend to use insulting words and not offer a basis for their criticism. So, as long as the comment doesn’t appear as if it has some message, don’t allow harsh critiques or customer reviews to influence you in any way!

Margarita Hakobyan
CEO and founder of MoversCorp.com, an online marketplace of local moving companies and storage facilities. Business women, wife and mother of two with bachelor's degree from the University of Utah with a concentration in International Studies and a Masters Degree also from the University of Utah with a degree in International business.

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