Why Negative Reviews Are Not Necessarily Negative

There’s a common misconception that negative reviews mean you have an unsuccessful business. However, that’s often not the case. Bad reviews can support both you and the consumer in different ways. A mixture of positive and negative feedback can help you become more credible, figure out your weakest areas and improve your company.

Also, who says negative reviews are always bad?

Some negative reviews may not always be seen as negative to everyone. For instance, let’s say your company sells coffee. You receive a bad review saying that your coffee is too weak, and that’s why they didn’t like it. However, there are some consumers out there who enjoy drinking weak coffee. So, that ‘negative’ review can actually persuade them to buy your product.

At the end of the day, reviews are the subjective opinions of your customers and, what might not work for someone, may for someone else.

Negative reviews are more beneficial than you think, so embrace them!

Reviews Help Your Business Grow

“Your Most Unhappy Customers Are Your Greatest Source of Learning.” — Bill Gates

We are not perfect, none of us are, but we aspire to be the best business out there. The way to reach this goal is through constant improvement, taking in constructive criticisms and acting accordingly.

Negative reviews show some of your business’s problems, but they also offer solutions. Indeed, customers will write their unbiased opinions about their experience with you, helping you understand what needs immediate attention.

If you pay for fake positive reviews or silence negative reviews, consumers will notice. That’s why keeping authentic, user-generated content is essential to build a credible business.

Also, if a customer writes a review on your company stating they were unhappy with something specific, chances are, another customer will have the same experience. The best way to handle the repetition of bad reviews is to solve the problem instead of ignoring it. Because, ultimately, this comment will come back in the future and hurt your reputation.

So, listen to your customers when they offer constructive criticisms. You can ignore them if you wish, but that won’t lead you anywhere. It may work against you as other customers will see that acknowledging and resolving negative reviews are not important to you, which may put them off buying from your company in the future.

However, if you acknowledge them and take action, it will help you improve, grow and exceed your customer’s expectations.

How to Deal with Dissatisfied Customers

Negative reviews won’t affect you as much if you have a strong relationship with your customers. Every business receives negative reviews. There will always be at least one person who isn’t happy with the product or service they purchased. That won’t change, but it’s how you deal with it that matters.

Replying to customer reviews can help increase customer loyalty.

On the one hand, responding to positive feedback will show other consumers that you’ve recognized you’ve done a great job and, you’re delighted to have a happy customer. However, replying to negative reviews is arguably even more important.

Responding to dissatisfied customers shows that you acknowledge their feedback and you’re working to improve on it. The more detailed answers you give, the better because potential consumers will see you care about your customers and thus be more tempted to shop from you.

According to Small Business Trends, 30% of consumers reverse negative reviews once their concern has been answered or solved. So, just because they have left a negative review, it doesn’t necessarily mean these customers won’t come back to you in the future and give your company another chance – it really depends on how you deal with their criticisms.

In marketing, empathy is everything, so use it to your advantage to create customer loyalty and stand out from the brands who decide to ignore constructive feedback.

Improve Customer Trust

A fair counterbalance of good and bad reviews will help you build credibility and trust with your potential and existing customers. Consumers know that every business will have a few bad reviews, it’s normal, so they won’t scare easily and choose not to interact with you just because a few people didn’t give you 5 stars.

Actually, products or services that include one or more negative reviews have higher conversion rates than those that only have positive reviews.

What’s more, having too many good reviews looks suspicious. Consumers will start questioning whether the content is fake or think that you have deleted negative reviews. They know that not every customer will be 100% happy with your service, even if you try your best. This lack of information can decrease your business’s credibility and lower customer trust.

Expectations and Disappointment

Another reason why having too many good reviews is not ideal for your business is because it will lead to disappointment.

Not because your product or service is bad per se, but because it didn’t meet your customer’s expectations. Think about it. If you find that a business only has 5-star reviews, potential customers will expect the best of the best. On the other hand, if there’s a mix of positive and negative reviews, consumers will know what to expect, lower their expectations and probably be happier with their purchase.

Also, consumers don’t only want to read positive reviews, but also negative ones.

On average, 85% of consumers read negative reviews to help them make informed purchasing decisions. And this percentage increases to 91% among potential customers aged from 18 to 29 years-old.

They want to get an immersive insight into what it would be like to shop with you but also imagine a worst-case scenario. So, if potential customers can’t find any negative reviews on your company, that can be seen as a problem.

Embrace Negative Reviews

Scared of joining third-party platforms because you’re afraid of receiving negative feedback? No matter what, you’ll get a negative review once in a while and, chances are, there’s already a platform out there where customers are already talking about you.

Ignoring these reviews won’t make them go away, but taking control of them will.