How to correctly react to reviews

Learn

• Why you should respond to all reviews
• How to formulate your answers
• How to turn negative feedback into something positive

Everyone likes to hear from friends, family or colleagues: “Glad to know you”, “You did a great job” or “Stay as you are”.

What are compliments in private life that encourage and motivate you, perhaps even constructive criticism such as “maybe you are right, but I see it differently” that drive a person which is capable of criticism to reconsider behavioral patterns or ways of thinking, is feedback from customers and guests in the business world.

These are taking place online nowadays and are publicly available for everyone to view. Therefore, they are much more than just feedback: They are todays word-of-mouth in case of positive reviews. But also very harsh criticism and many negative reviews can affect a business.

How do I deal with reviews as a retailer? Do I have to respond to all reviews?

Out of the 87% of consumers who read reviews before choosing a local business, 97% also read the responses from companies. It is therefore important for every retailer, restaurant owner and service provider to react to every rating – whether positive or negative. This reaction shapes the external perception of a company and consequently leads to authenticity, customer loyalty and the acquisition of new customers. Answering reviews is crucial, especially when it comes to long-term customer loyalty. Those customers who take the time to leave a review feel taken seriously and experience the same appreciation online which you give them in-store.

The more time it takes you to answer, the more likely your customer or guest get the impression that your company is not interested in his opinion. This is a pity in case of a positive review and can be devastating if it is negative.

How do I react to reviews correctly?

The answer to every review should be equal to your consultation of every customer in your store: Individually. Standard answers or text modules with “copy + paste” do not show interest and do not trigger a feeling of appreciation by your customer. Other customers may even be discouraged by the same answers over and over again, or at least not motivated to write a review on their own if they did visit your store.

Banish generic answers like “Sorry that you were disappointed.” and be more specific about the problem your customer had: “Sorry that the quality of the jeans does not meet your expectations. Please visit us again so we have the chance of reworking them or to claim them by our supplier.“

You are surely happy if you stop at your favorite café on the way to your shop and the barista calls you by name? Your customers feel the same way. Always answer with a personal salutation such as “Dear John”, if you know the name. Give each review answer a personal note and show yourself and your shop as approachable by stating “Markus from your mPocket team” instead of just “your mPocket team”.

Of course, the correct reaction depends on the review itself. A positive one is much easier to answer than a neutral or negative review.

Positive reviews:

Reacting to something positive is usually not a challenge. Express your gratitude and respond personally to the content of the positive feedback:

“Hi mPocket, we’ve been using mPocket for 2 months and we’re thrilled. We do not forget any pending tasks anymore and receive all customer inquiries or reviews in just one inbox. Keep going!”

“Dear Anna, thank you very much for your positive feedback! We are very pleased that our app makes your daily work easier and saves you some time. We wish you all the best for your future business and are always available if you have any questions. Best regards, Markus from your mPocket team.”

Neutral reviews:

Neutral reviews are already more difficult to answer. You will not receive only praise or only criticism, but you still want to satisfy the customer and keep them long termed. Thank them for the feedback here as well and respond individually to each point. Last but not least, offer your customers some added value which they will only have by you:

“Hello mPocket, a plus is the list of all pending tasks for my salespeople. However, I personally find the common inbox for all social media channels, e-mail and WhatsApp in your app a bit overdone. Our company is too small for this number of accounts and platforms.”

“Dear Tom, thank you for your feedback to our app. We are happy to hear that you and your team save time with our Activity Planner. If you like, we can sit down and talk about the accounts and platforms which might be important for you and how we can support you there. We are happy to help you any time. Please send us an email to hallo@mpocket.io. Kind regards, Markus from your mPocket team.”

If your customer does not mention any specific points, please ask questions. You are in a conversation right away, can get clear feedback and promote customer loyalty.

Negative reviews:

Grumblers are everywhere and it’s only a matter of time before you get a negative review too. Even if these mean zero fun and are not as easy to answer as positive ones, they are usually objectively written, and you can react on an equal level.

Try to keep your negative emotions in check and make your customer feel like their opinion is valued. Admit mistakes, express your regrets and promise honest improvement, i.e. you have to keep what you promise.

“I uninstalled the app after 2 weeks. Our customers complain that we don’t respond to their requests, but how can we respond to something we don’t know about because we don’t get it?!? ”

“Hello Caro, thank you for your feedback. We are very sorry that our app does not meet your expectations right away. The connection of other applications is usually not a problem. If you give us the opportunity to check your profiles and the linking, we can discuss the errors with our development and fix them, so you and other users of our app have no complaints, but a relief of work in the future. Please call us (+49) 8331 96 27 13 7 or write a short email to agree which time suits you best hello@mpocket.io. We look forward to helping you. Kind regards, Markus from your mPocket team.“

Sometimes reviews really hit below the belt or are only containing a little number of points or stars without any justification. Remain confident, ask politely for the reasons and try to show understanding. Even when reviews like this can be annoying, do not justify yourself, but appear self-confident and friendly and offer the angry customer a solution.

“For as they say: Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you – not because they are nice – but because you are.” Markus Demirci, CEO and founder of mPocket

How do I convert negative feedback into my advantage?

Criticism, even if it is sometimes painful, should always be seen as an opportunity for further development. If a customer writes untrue statements or even insults, reviews can be reported. However, the freedom of speech also protects more sharply formulated feedbacks.

Never forget: You are not just answering one customer, but an entire community that is watching you.

Therefore, your answer should be as soon as possible, objective, solution-oriented and empathetic. Accept negative reviews as the opportunity they offer: To improve your service and your offerings and to learn from them. On the other hand, a few not only positive reviews will also make your business more credible. Acquiring new customers or additional sales goes hand in hand with trust. Potential customers gain trust by you proving your behavior in difficult situations, e.g. how do you deal with problems? Do you offer solutions? All of this influences a decision in your favor.

Find out how to collect more reviews and how to manage and answer them clearly and promptly on www.mpocket.io.

With our mPocket app you create a direct connection between your customers and your local business. The app helps you to increase your customer frequency and your sales per customer by sending review requests with just one click or directly in the store. It will be easier for your customers to write reviews about your business, which helps you to achieve a better ranking and more visibility online and thus also offline. On average, our customers receive 40% more reviews with mPocket than before.

👋Great, you made it this far in the text. 👍 Why don’t you leave a review for this text in the comment box below, we would be happy to receive your feedback and should be able now to answer accordingly. Best regards Jasmin from your mPocket team.

* For reasons of better legibility, the simultaneous use of male and female language forms is dispensed with. However, all descriptions apply to all gender types.

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