Ratings & Reviews Overview

Users are already talking about your products, services, and brand online whether you’re involved in the conversation or not, so you might as well join the discussion. Burying your head in the sand and ignoring rating sites will do you no good; every local business should have a presence on local review sites. Users of other types of social media are typically more into socializing—they’re simply having fun. But no one searches for a dentist in Boston to amuse herself; review-site visitors are in the midst of making a purchasing decision, and you should be there for them. Compared to other forms of online advertising, and even many other types of social media marketing, engaging review sites requires a much lower investment of time and money, making it one of the most cost-effective things you can do.

Responding to a Negative Review

Review sites generally have a mechanism that allows you, as a business owner or employee, to respond to reviews. Yelp, TripAdvisor, Citysearch, and Superpages all support this functionality. When responding to a review, keep a cool head. If a poster gets you upset, don’t respond right away; step away from the computer for a while to calm down. A user’s review is her perception of a business, and a subjective opinion can’t be wrong. If a user has posted incorrect or grossly misleading information, you can correct her, but your responses shouldn’t consist entirely of "You’re Wrong!”"

Ask the reviewer if there is anything specific you can do to make the situation right, try to fx her problem if you can, and offer a discount to entice her back to your business, after which she’ll hopefully post a positive follow-up review. Your response will be there for the entire Web to read, likely for a very long time, so be sure it casts you and your business in a helpful, if sometimes imperfect, light rather than making you look rude and arrogant.

Most negative reviews are the result of poor communication between a customer and an owner, so the solution is to talk it out. Some sites make it possible for you to contact a reviewer directly for a private response. This may be the advisable first step if you can easily solve someone’s gripe. Try to work out the issue with the user and make her so happy that she edits her review without you needing to respond in public.