If you’re a business owner, chances are you’ve looked up your company online and seen some not-so-flattering reviews. It can be discouraging, but online reviews are an important part of doing business in the digital age.
There are a few simple things you can do to encourage customers to leave positive feedback about their experience with your business. In this blog post, we’ll go over a few tips to help you learn how to improve online reviews.
Customer Service Policy
When it comes to excellent customer service, having a solid policy in place is essential. By outlining what your business will and won’t do for customers, you can set clear expectations and avoid any misunderstandings. In this blog post, we’ll give you some tips on creating a customer service policy that works for your business.
To start, you’ll want to make a list of the things your business is willing to do for customers. This might include things like offering refunds, fixing broken items, or compensating customers for poor service. Next, you’ll need to create a list of the things your business is not willing to do. This could include things like refusing to give refunds, refusing to fix broken items, or not compensating customers for poor service.
Once you have your lists created, it’s important to make sure they are clear and easy to understand. You’ll also want to make sure that employees are familiar with the policy and know how to handle customer inquiries. Having a customer service policy in place can help your business provide excellent customer service and avoid any misunderstandings.
Respond to Negative Reviews Quickly
One of the best ways to improve your customer service is to respond quickly to negative reviews. By responding to negative reviews promptly and politely, you can show customers that you care about their satisfaction. Additionally, you can often resolve any disputes or complaints that may have arisen.
When responding to negative reviews, follow these tips:
- Be polite and respectful
- Do not attack the customer
- Avoid making excuses
- Address the complaint and try to resolve it
- Thank the customer for their feedback
For Example:
Review: I’m very disappointed after having my new couch delivered. It has a huge water stain, and customer service was slow to respond. What’s more, customer service blamed me for the stain!
Response:
Hi Mr. Smith, I’m so sorry to hear that you’re unhappy with your purchase! We take these matters very seriously and want to make sure we resolve any concerns you have as quickly as possible.
I apologize for the delayed response and will be following up with our customer service team about their responsiveness in this case. It sounds like they may not have been aware of the water stain on your couch when they spoke with you. Our furniture is covered by a 1-year warranty against stains or damages from spills, which can be found in our Terms & Conditions here: https://bigjoesfurnitureco.com/terms-and-conditions/.
We’ll also work to ensure that we don’t confuse customers about who’s responsible for stains, as that should never happen! Please let us know if there’s anything else we can do for you at this time, otherwise, I hope that helps clear things up.
By following these tips, you can improve your reputation and show customers that you value their satisfaction.
Improve Communication
One of the best ways to improve your customer service is to improve communication. Poor communication can lead to misunderstandings and frustration for customers. By improving communication, you can ensure that all customers are getting the same information and that any issues are resolved quickly.
To improve communication, follow these tips:
- Make sure team members are familiar with the policy and know how to handle customer inquiries
- Use clear and concise language
- Be attentive and responsive to customer inquiries
For Example:
Customer: Hi, I’m looking for a dresser. Do you have any in stock?
Employee: We have several dressers in stock. What style are you looking for?
Customer: I’m not sure. I’m just looking for something basic.
Employee: We have several basic dressers in stock. Do you want to come to take a look?
Customer: Yes, please.
The employee was able to understand what the customer was looking for and provide them with options that met their needs. This avoided any confusion or frustration on the part of the customer.
Use Technology to Your Advantage
Technology can be a great tool for improving customer service. By using technology, you can provide customers with information quickly and easily. Additionally, you can use technology to resolve disputes or complaints quickly.
There are several different technologies that you can use to improve your customer service. For example, you can use social media to communicate with customers. You can also use online chat software to provide real-time support. Additionally, you can use customer relationship management (CRM) software to track customer interactions and preferences.
Customer Service Technology Tools:
LiveChat: A live chat software that allows you to communicate with customers in real-time.
ZenDesk: A customer service software that allows you to track customer interactions and preferences.
MobileMonkey: A chatbot software that allows you to create chatbots for your website.
Collect Online Surveys
In addition to providing feedback through emails or phone calls, you can also collect customer feedback by asking them to complete surveys. Once again, it’s important to ask permission before collecting customer data.
Collecting feedback through surveys can provide you with insight on where to improve. Furthermore, if the customer provides you with less than perfect feedback via a survey, they are less likely to leave it publically in the form of a bad review.
There are many online survey tools that you can use, and they’re easy to set up.
SurveyMonkey: One popular survey tool is SurveyMonkey.com. You can create surveys for free, and there are also paid options for more robust surveys. SurveyMonkey allows you to collect data from respondents in a variety of ways, including via a web form, email, or even a mobile app.
Qualtrics: Another popular survey tool is Qualtrics.com. Qualtrics allows you to create surveys for free, and also offers paid options with more features. Qualtrics lets you collect data from respondents in a variety of ways, including via a web form, email, or even a mobile app.
Podium: Podium is the quickest and easiest way to get customer feedback. With two automated messages, you can gather real-time feedback from your customers without any links or lengthy surveys. Plus, with Podium’s reach into the customer’s most engaging channels, you’ll get responses in minutes, not months.
Once you’ve collected customer feedback, it’s important to take the time to analyze it and make changes where necessary. Implementing customer feedback into your business can help improve your customer service, products, and even your bottom line.
Make Reviews An Easy Process
People dislike doing things because they’re difficult for one reason or another. When users have to fill out a lot of forms to file their complaints or request assistance, it becomes annoying because the process is too long and cumbersome. Making the process simple removes some of this friction which makes it easier for users to say “no” and go elsewhere. If people like what they see and hear about your company, they won’t be as reluctant to spend money with you. The point here is that making life easy and enjoyable will lead to increased sales.
Monitor Your Reviews
If you monitor the reviews regularly, you will notice when a negative comment comes in. You should respond promptly to this type of review so that you don’t lose out on potential new customers. This will ensure that your reputation remains intact despite the occasional bad experience.
It’s important to note that a lot of people post fake online reviews as a means of damaging another company’s reputation. You need to be vigilant about any reviews posted anonymously. If you see a positive review that appears to come from an anonymous user who doesn’t have an account, check to see if that person has been involved in any other complaints against your company.
Another thing you may want to consider is asking the reviewer to verify their identity. Sometimes, a company may request this information to validate that the person posting the review isn’t affiliated with the brand being reviewed. If the person refuses to do so, then you know that the review is fake.
Embrace All Reviews
Even though some customers may criticize your business negatively, they still value what you offer. You must learn to embrace all types of reviews. They can give you insights regarding areas that you could improve upon, such as pricing or product quality. Learn from each encounter and put your efforts into making the next one better than the last.
Send Review Requests After Service (or Purchase)
You should send requests for reviews after a customer has received your services or purchased from you. In such cases, you’re less likely to receive false positives since you are dealing with legitimate customers. A good example would be a cleaning company providing carpet cleaning services. They might send out several reminders inviting guests to submit their testimonials prior to the job completion date.
Here’s an example of a review request email.
It’s not fancy but it works:
Hi Jane,
Thank you for taking the time to let us know how we did at Joe’sSofas. We appreciate hearing your thoughts!
We love reading comments like yours – please feel free to leave one below.
Regards, ______________________
Using these tips can help you learn how to improve online reviews over time. Keep in mind that it’s not always easy to please everyone, but if you make an effort to listen and respond to customer feedback, your company will be on the right track.
