How to Manage Customer Ratings & Reviews [Tips & Guide]

Why customer reviews are a real opportunity for your business success

Customer ratings are not only sales-promoting, but they are also always an opportunity for the company and its employees to develop professionally and personally.

Ratings: important for customers and search engines

Why are customer reviews so important? To answer this question, you only have to reflect on your own purchasing behavior. What is the first thing you do when you are interested in a product or a company? Right! First of all, they rely on the experiences of other customers and look at how the company is rated online. In doing so, you not only pay attention to the comments of other customers, but you may also look at whether and how the company reacts to reviews. Bad reviews? It’s not the end of the world if you react correctly!

The customer’s rating is bad, but the company has responded charmingly and is trying to find a quick solution. Then maybe it’s not so tragic that a few negative reviews have crept in among the positive ones.

Because: Customer reviews and authentic reactions from the company generate trust and thus make the purchase decision much easier. But not only customers are influenced by ratings – Google also reacts to so-called positive user signals and takes them into account when ranking the corresponding company in the search results.

Customer reviews: How to react?

If you have received a customer review for your business, the first thing to realize is that your reaction to this not only affects this one customer but is visible to all other potential customers on the Internet. Therefore, you should heed our tips for the correct handling of customer reviews.

Responding unfriendly: Did you receive a bad review in which a customer left out about your company and maybe even attacked you personally? No matter how much you feel like formulating a snotty answer, you should beware of it! If you now react in the same unfriendly way, it reflects badly on your company and is simply unprofessional.

Use different responses: For reasons of time, do you always respond to customer reviews with the exact same texts, “Thank you for your review and best regards!”? Not a good idea! This may be efficient, but it is neither effective nor appreciative by the way: Customers notice when they are not treated personally, but as one in a hundred.

Justify or deny: Your last reaction to a customer review started with the words “Yes, but we didn’t even…”? We strongly advise against this as well. Any criticism, whether appropriate or not, should first be accepted and, above all, taken seriously. Anything else creates an endless ping-pong between you and the possibly disgruntled customer. This can be amusing for all other readers, but at least as damaging to your company’s reputation!

Rather like this:

Take criticism seriously: For any criticism, whether positive or negative, long or short, appropriate or out of thin air, you should take them seriously. Because every feedback is valuable for your company if you draw the right lessons from it. You should also make it clear to this and all other potential customers that you treat them with respect and that you care about the needs of your customers.

Stay friendly and charming: Lead by example and always adopt a polite, courteous tone. Avoid getting personal and instead approach your customers on a factual, constructive level. With this, you take the wind out of the sails of even angry customers.

Be personal and authentic: As already mentioned, you should avoid repetitive phrases. Approach each customer individually and convey the feeling that you have dealt with the customer personally. Authentic communication creates trust in finding a solution together.

Always respond (and promptly):  Do you really have to respond to every single review? In the best case: yes! In particular, you should react promptly to negative reviews, i.e. within a few hours, but at least on the same day. Unanswered reviews are not only a bad sign for the customer concerned, but also for all other readers.

Show empathy: Negative reviews in particular require a certain degree of empathy. Put yourself in the shoes of your customer and try to understand where the impulse for the rating came from. Thank you for the feedback and emphasize that you regret the customer’s situation. But avoid drifting off into a submissive tone and rather lead on to the next point: the solution!

Offer to find a solution: Your customer raised a problem or question and expressed dissatisfaction. Be solution-oriented and offer your customers a way out! If no simple solution is in sight or if a precise explanation is required, you should always offer the possibility of a personal conversation in order to work together on a solution.

Admit mistakes: If a customer legitimately complains about wrongdoing on your part, you should also admit the error. If the criticism is unjustified, you don’t have to take responsibility for the mistake! However, you should avoid taking a defensive stance or dismissing the allegations.

Instead, express your regret that you didn’t meet the customer’s expectations or made them feel like they weren’t important.

Sometimes it makes sense to combine this regret with a little self-promotion: “We have already successfully carried out over X campaigns, it is a great pity and for us, it is extremely regrettable that we have not been able to meet your expectations so far.” At this point, it makes sense to move on to finding a solution together.

Enter contact person: In the end, you should always give your customer the opportunity to personally contact a responsible person to clarify any problems in a conversation. In this way, you make it clear that you do not duck the criticism, but take responsibility and are ready to find a constructive solution.

Use criticism as a stepping stone

Customer reviews are important for every business – from a local corner shop to a large corporation. Take every evaluation seriously and try to derive personal and professional learnings for your company.

See reviews as an opportunity to constantly improve and tailor your services and products even more closely to the needs of your customers.