If you are in any business at all, chances are that you have either had a dissatisfied customer or a bad online review. This happens to every business I know of including past businesses of mine. However, what if the bad experience is your fault and you know the customer was unhappy, then they post a scathing review of your business on Google for all to see and back it up with some proof which at least begs the question of “what happened”?

This situation has happened to a potential client of ours and they are a potential because we know how to fix it. We hope these answers to their issue help you to realize the value of improving your reputation and addressing any issues with direct communication and meaningful solutions versus doing nothing at all hoping it goes away. In this case, a customer feels they did not get the monitary value, or the quality of service, they were promised. The business did not follow up with timely updates about the situation and began avoiding calls or generally being unresponsive letting the situation drag out over a year. Since this happened the business in question seems to be getting it together yet has this situation hanging over their heads with a terrible review posted on Google complete with e-mails sent and a willingness to share with anyone who asks.

Three takeaways here which might help your business. First, have a set process which is repeatable for everything you do. This makes training easier for employees and reduces the chances for errors. Second, always be responsive even if you don’t have an answer yet. If you don’t answer the customer will make up the answer for you. Third, when you get bad reviews always put the ball in their court. Make some counter-offer or solution to the issue and post it as a reply to the review. In this way, others who read the review also see your response and that’s important. If the customer is in the wrong then your offer to resolve the issue and a posted solution (if appropriate) tends to verify their true intentions.

Using these techniques and a few others, I am confident that I can turn things around for this business as they seem to do good work otherwise and have a great service to offer. At JKL Works, our clients are our passion, and many times this means help outside of bringing customers. We have failed too and we have learned so that you may benefit. Click here, or reply on Social Media, to see how we can help your business.