The Ultimate Guide on How To Respond To Online Reviews

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What Are Online Reviews?

When a customer purchases a business’s product or service, they might express their opinion about it online.

The result is an online review that can make or break your business.

There are review sites like Yelp, where customers post reviews for local businesses. Some eCommerce platforms, like Amazon, will allow their sellers to ask their customers to review products.

Why Are Online Customer Reviews Important?

Nearly every internet user on the face of the earth (97%, to be exact) considers online reviews before making a purchase. That’s because online customer reviews are this century’s word-of-mouth. They carry as much weight as a recommendation from a trusted friend.

But having online business reviews isn’t enough. You need positive reviews. Reviews influence 93% of consumers’ decisions, and those consumers are taking the advice of total strangers. They all agree: any business with a rating of fewer than 3.3 stars is not getting their business.

Studies have consistently shown that online reviews influence purchasing decisions.

A recent BrightLocal survey showed that 84% of people trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation, and 54% will visit a company website after reading positive reviews. In other words, online reviews are not just feedback about your business but an advertisement for your business – or a warning to stay far away.

More than ever, consumers are turning to online reviews to make purchasing choices for restaurants, hotels, and even doctors and lawyers. Yelp, TripAdvisor, Google My Business, BBB, and other business listing sites offer a chance for consumers to rate their experiences.

In addition, just about every major retailer offers people the opportunity to comment on products and read unbiased reviews from other consumers — social marketing is a significant factor in purchasing choices today.

The BrightLocal survey asked consumers how often they have used online reviews to find a local business.

37% of consumers used the internet to find local businesses at least once a month, and only 5% said they do not search for a local business online.

In addition to locating the right business, consumers read online reviews to find a reputable business, product, or service.

85% of the survey participants say that they read online reviews for local businesses, and only 15% of consumers say that they don’t read online reviews.

An interesting question posed by BrightLocal was how many online reviews people generally read before deciding to make a purchase or select a service provider.

The BrightLocal survey found that 67% of consumers read six reviews or less.

These online reviews carry significant weight, as 79% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. In addition, 73% of consumers say positive customer reviews make them trust a business more, and 65% are more likely to use a business with positive online reviews.

For a newer business or a business marketing online for the first time, it is essential to make online reviews an immediate priority. Not only does this support your branding and strengthen your overall messaging, but it makes it more difficult for the inevitable negative review to damage the brand if several positive reviews are already in place.

Are Online Reviews Trustworthy?

Not all online reviews are authentic. Competitors or disgruntled customers create some negative reviews—and positive ones can also be fictitious. But here’s what matters: real or fake. The people who read those reviews are likely to believe them.

Short reviews with generic superlatives or negatives are more likely fake or malicious (for example, “Great company! Or “What a scam!”.

Fake reviews can be positive and negative, driven by unethical competitors and disgruntled former employees.

Long-form reviews with specific details regarding products/services, highlighting specific employees by name or position, sharing actual dates of service, or posting images are more likely real.

Certain Websites are more susceptible to fake reviews than others. Anonymous review sites are more easily manipulated. Among popular review sites, Google requires only an active Gmail account to leave a review, which is easy to obtain and not tied to any identity verification. Yelp’s algorithm favors long-form, negative reviews but allows anonymous reviews and has a weak process for contesting fake reviews.

Among review sites that are harder to “game,” the Better Business Bureau (BBB) does not allow anonymous reviews. TrustPilot has a “Verified Order” tag, and Amazon has a “Verified Purchase” tag applied to specific reviews that can help distinguish paid or incentive-based fake reviews.

How to Manage Online Reviews

We recommend companies Monitor all relevant reviews on all the most relevant business reviews and complaint sites daily.

If you don’t know the most relevant review sites, Google your business name and location – if it shows up on Page 1, it matters.

Companies should follow the popular review and customer complaint sites:

Facebook, Google My Business, Citysearch, TrustPilot, Yahoo! Local, Yelp, Foursquare, and Yellow Pages (YP.com).

Also, other niche-specific sites are relevant to a specific business (like Cars.com and DealerRater for car dealers or RateMDs.com and HealthGrades.com for doctors).

Business owners should know who reviews their company, when, what they say, and where they post their reviews to identify and respond to trends and allocate advertising and marketing resources accordingly.

A wide variety of social listening tools and online review tracking tools are available for monitoring reviews, from ReviewTrackers to Birdeye. This will allow a business to track new reviews online in real time.

Review Outreach is how you can target those individuals who have had a positive experience with you or your company and direct these customers to leave reviews on the most visible online review sites so they can have maximum impact.

We believe it is important to provide a Response to all relevant reviews. Customers and clients do not expect perfection, but a company needs to be engaged and involved in its customers’ experiences. Rapid response allows a business to acknowledge and recognize positive reviews and escalate and resolve problems posted online to convert negative customer reviews to positive reviews.

How to Respond to Online Reviews

In general, it’s best to respond to every review that’s posted about you or your business. This demonstrates engagement and the desire to serve your customers.

Negative reviews should always be met with gratitude and a spirit of helpfulness.

Thank the reviewer for their feedback, ask them how you can improve your product or service, and be sure to carry through.
For positive reviews, again, thank them for the feedback, express your gratitude, and tell them you look forward to doing business with them in the future.

Do not underestimate the power of a phone call. When addressing a complaint, a phone call from a senior executive to a disgruntled customer can have a tremendous impact in turning around a customer service debacle into a triumph.

We are all inundated with e-mails; a phone call or handwritten note can stand out.

“Know when to respond immediately and when to remain silent. What you say online can and will be used against you.”

There are often two extremes when responding to negative online reviews.

Some business owners respond very defensively to online complaints, attacking the customer personally or making excuses.

The other extreme is acting too deferentially, publicly accepting full responsibility when it is best shared or accepting the blame for something that is an aberration or a rare occurrence, like a hair that might fall into a bowl of soup or an order mix-up, with an over-the-top apology that is best suited for international diplomacy rather than a Google review forum.

Generally, the best approach for a business is to have a conversation offline to discuss the issue. The best response is when the owner or manager reaches out to the individual who posted the complaint in near real-time, expresses an interest in resolving the issue, and provides contact information so this resolution can occur.

Here are a few examples of review responses that work for one of our restaurant clients:

FOR A POSITIVE RESTAURANT REVIEW

Dear [CUSTOMER NAME],

Thank you for your excellent review! We are thrilled you enjoyed your order from [NAME OF RESTAURANT]. I am delighted you like the [NAME OF DISH], which we are also very proud of. We‘ll pass along your compliments to our chef and culinary team. Thanks again for taking the time to write this review. We look forward to welcoming you back again soon!

FOR A NEGATIVE RESTAURANT REVIEW

Dear [CUSTOMER NAME],

We are sorry to hear you were disappointed by the food. Your feedback is valuable; we have already shared it with our chef and culinary team.

We will try anything to improve and ensure you will have a wonderful experience next time. Please contact me at [EMAIL AND PHONE #] so we can find a convenient time to invite to invite you back as our guest.

Good Reviews vs. Bad Reviews

We understand that people are far more likely to share a negative experience than a positive experience.

This is human nature and applies to both the “real” and online worlds.

However, when someone with a positive experience is asked to share that experience with others online, they are more than willing to do so. Just ask!

Almost every business with an online presence will receive good and bad reviews.

Good reviews often need to be solicited since human nature dictates that people are far more likely to lodge complaints than compliments.

But are bad reviews always bad for business? No.

A bad review that’s resolved (and that teaches the business something about its customers) can be more beneficial than a simple, positive review without further engagement.

So make sure you do a great job responding to the bad reviews as fast as you'd do with a good one!

How to get Positive Reviews Online

Most businesses will receive negative reviews—that’s a fact. Rather than focusing on those bad reviews, most brands will increase their positive reviews to bury the negative ones.

The most effective way to get more positive reviews is to…

Target people who need your product the most because they’ll be the most satisfied.

Ask satisfied customers to write a review.

Under-promise and over-deliver to increase customer satisfaction.

Convert negative reviews to positive ones with engagement and problem-solving. If you’re a B2B business, provide a positive review for their product or service first.

How to Deal with Negative Reviews Online

When you feel certain that a review has been posted by someone who has purchased or used your product or service, thank them for sharing their experience.

Then, work with them to come to a mutual resolution. Demonstrate your willingness to work with them publicly, but then take the conversation offline if it becomes more complicated.

How to Remove Bad Online Reviews:

Reviews from dissatisfied customers can be difficult or impossible to remove. It’s best to open dialogue with those reviewers, seek resolution, and pursue more positive reviews.

If you determine that a review qualifies as libel or defamation, involves a false statement, or was posted by someone who has not used your product or service, you may have legal recourse. In such cases, an online review management professional can assist you.

How to Deal with Negative Reviews Online

Reviews from dissatisfied customers can be difficult or impossible to remove. It’s best to open dialogue with those reviewers, seek resolution, and pursue more positive reviews.

If you determine that a review qualifies as libel or defamation, involves a false statement, or was posted by someone who has not used your product or service, you may have legal recourse. In such cases, an online review management professional can assist you.

How to get Customers to Write Online Reviews

Focus your efforts on customers and clients who have had a positive experience with you and your company.

As an educated consumer, I always question any business with a 5-star rating or 100% satisfaction.

No company is perfect. When working with a small business, our goal is usually 4.5 stars or better.

What distinguishes the good from the great companies is how they deal with negative reviews and complaints.

When managing a business's reputation, we make sure all reviews are responded to, the good, the bad, and the ugly, take actionable steps to resolve issues, and convert negative reviews to positive, wherever possible.

Consumers who write negative reviews are motivated by several factors, but your customers may need a little persuading when it comes to positive reviews.

Most of them will be happy to sing your praises—if you make it easy and beneficial for them.

If you’ve gone out of your way to help a customer and they feel indebted to you, suggest they show their gratitude by posting an online review. Use an automated system that asks customers for reviews. You can even offer incentives (like discounts) to anyone who reviews your product or service.

Here is an example of a recent email outreach effort we did on behalf of a client in the healthcare space:

Dear [Name of Patient],

One of our New Year’s resolutions is to reach out to past and present patients and listen to what we are doing right and what we can do better.

Please take a moment today to share your positive experience with [NAME OF COMPANY] on our Google My Business page (if you have Gmail) or any of the health sites listed below (if you don’t have Gmail).

Your positive feedback helps motivate and inspire our hardworking team and helps potential patients discover [NAME OF COMPANY].

Today, more than ever before, people look to friends, family, and Google before choosing a doctor.

Simply click the link below to go to the review site and leave a review.

Thank you very much in advance!

P.S. If we have fallen short of your expectations in any way, please let us know by replying to this email first, and we will follow up with you directly to learn how we can improve.

How Reputation Rhino Can Help with
Online Review Management


Online reviews—and in particular, the tone of those reviews—will shape your business’s online reputation. 

If you have too many negative reviews, you may never know just how many potential clients are walking away from your business.

If your online reviews are overwhelmingly positive, you can rest assured that those reviews are contributing to your growth and sustainability.

Reputation Rhino is the world’s leading online reputation management company. We have the reputation management tools, the experience, and the know-how to make online reviews work for you.

Learn more about our reputation management solutions today.

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