The Power of Responding to Your Online Reviews

Do you need to respond to online reviews? Experts respond with a resounding “yes.”

Ignoring them may seem harmless, but disregarding reviews, both positive and negative, can come back to bite you in the you-know-what. Why? Because it shows your audience that you don’t care about customer satisfaction.

You spent a lot of time and effort building up a strong online presence, and it would be a shame to flush it away by neglecting something so simple.

Here’s what you need to know:

Positive reviews

You may think that it’s not necessary to respond to positive reviews – after all, that client is already singing your praises! But a speedy and thoughtful response can go a long way.

• A simple “thank you” lets your audience know that you appreciate their effort and enjoy their feedback
• Responding promptly demonstrates that you’re concerned about quality and that your customers are a top priority
• A few words from you shows that you’re listening, and may encourage others to add to the conversation

Negative reviews

Many business owners are tempted to just ignore negative reviews and hope they go away. But the thing about online reviews is, they are there FOREVER. No matter how many glowing reviews you get after the fact, that negative one will still be sitting there for everyone to see.

The best way to do damage control is to respond quickly and kindly.

• Customers don’t forget negative experiences – and when you don’t respond, the wound just festers and grows
• Many negative reviewers say they don’t expect resolution, they just want some sort of acknowledgement
• When you respond to a negative review, you have the opportunity to turn a detractor into a promotor through your prompt attention to their problem

Bottom line? Responding to reviews, of any variety, is just plain good for business. And, as an added bonus, it’s good for SEO, too. The more you respond to reviews, the higher Google will rank you. Win/win!