How to respond to negative feedback
When it comes to taking compliments and positive feedback, we’re always thrilled to accept what our customers say. But, it takes us a while to accept any negative feedback wholeheartedly. In today’s digital world, service feedback is just a few clicks away. This makes it unbelievably easy for customers to convey feedback, especially if it’s something they don’t like. At some point on the journey, a business will inevitably encounter negative feedback from its customers. Despite working extremely hard to please customers and deliver exceptional service quality, some kind of negative feedback always finds its way to us. And in such situations, however frustrating it may seem, you have to respond or it may harm your brand’s reputation.
Feedback is not just one’s point of view about your services or product; it’s a key driver that indicates your performance and the effectiveness of the services you provide.
Negative feedback can be valuable as it allows us to monitor our performance and alert us to make important changes. In addition to this, responding to negative feedback can bring a positive impact on your business as well.
Why should you respond to negative feedback?
Here’s why you should pay equal attention to positive as well as negative feedback:
1) It may harm your online reputation: A happy customer shares his experience with three friends; a disgruntled one – at least 20 people. Even worse, if they leave you a one-star rating for everyone to see, it could reach millions of people on the web. Therefore, if you want to maintain rapport, you must handle negative feedback and reviews very carefully. Monitor what image your brand/business holds across the web and optimize your reputation management accordingly.
2) Boosts your business: Giving equal attention to negative feedback boosts your website’s presence on search engines. Effectively replying to bad reviews on the web or social media improves brand visibility and, in turn, helps boost its rank on Google.
3) You care about your customers: Responding to negative feedback shows that you are concerned about the bad experience that your customer had faced, and you’re willing to take action against it, ensuring that it never happens again, which eventually builds trust with your customers.
4) It shows your human side: We all make mistakes, and replying to negative feedback shows the human side of a business, not a robot but a real person responding to the customer’s feedback, which makes your customer feel more comfortable with you in future.
7 Steps to respond to negative feedback like a pro
1. Stay calm, and do not rush to respond
Receiving negative feedback can upset you; it’s normal. It’s just an unhappy customer who didn’t get what he expected. Before you reply, take a step back, ensure you’re taking enough time to understand what is being said, and then engage in any positive conversation. It’s proven that if you take time to explore the bigger picture, you always come up with a better understanding of the scenario.
2. Personalize the response
The most important thing is to mention their name when you reply. They should know that you are not a bot or copy-pasting the response. Make them feel that you’re genuinely dedicated to the problem. If a customer feels bad, acknowledge that. Showing empathy in your response can go a long way, as this acts as a great display of business ethics to potential customers. You can even earn extra brownie points if you add these phrases in your conversion:
– We’re sorry to hear that you had a bad experience with us
– We feel awful about your experience. What can we do to make things right?
– We would love to make it up to you the next time.
3. Thank them for the feedback
It doesn’t matter whether you received positive or negative feedback, always thank your customers for sharing their thoughts. You have to show appreciation to the person who took the time to share their experience so that you can make better and improved decisions in future. Appreciating doesn’t mean you agree with them; it just shows professionalism. If you argue or get defensive with their feedback, they may not be open to sharing negative or even positive feedback with you in the future, which could impact your business.
4. Be genuine, and apologise if necessary
Customers who put up bad reviews or leave negative feedback may be in a bad mood or could be your competitors who want to degrade your brand reputation. Still, you have to say sorry to get their attention. Also, it helps to gain trust in the case of a genuine customer. This signifies that you are taking responsibility and apologising for what happened. Even if it is not your fault (completely), a sincere apology can convert an unhappy customer into a loyal one or brand advocate that may be willing to give positive feedback in the future.
5. Sympathize with Customer’s Problem
If you apologise, it doesn’t mean you agree with your customer. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes, who came expecting an excellent service, but what they got is far below their expectations. And the negative feedback you received is just a way to tell you about their dissatisfaction and frustration. This is why these unhappy customers deserve your sympathy. Tell them you understand their situation to ease up the conversation.
6. Take action and make a positive impact:
Apologies and sympathising are done; it’s time to take action. Now, you have a complete picture of what, where, and why such an issue happened. You have the power to turn a bad review you received, into a learning experience that can be later changed to positive feedback. If the customer concern is small and can be fixed or rectified immediately, make it right at the very moment. If you think it cannot be fixed or may take some time, provide a proper explanation and offer an alternative course of action to fix things. And most importantly, stay on track and remain accountable.
7. Seek additional feedback and follow-up:
Necessary action has been taken to work on the areas of concern raised by the unhappy customer; the last step is to seek input on how it’s going from their perspective, which is again a great way to build trust and rapport. You can ask additional questions or book a follow-up meeting to discuss the next steps.
Final Thoughts
Whether positive or negative, both types of customer feedback are important. Positive feedback boosts your morale and triggers you to do even better, whereas negative feedback helps you make better and improved decisions in the future.
Replying to a negative response in a constructive manner can help you go a long way – apart from impacting your business positively, it also lets you know your customer better, builds trust and loyalty, and increases engagement.
Don’t take a step back! It’s time to slay and leave a long-lasting impact on unhappy customers. You can collect feedback and set up FREE surveys with our online survey software.