How to view negative feedback as a tool to improve your business
By: Emanuela Elias
Getting negative feedback with no chance to remedy the situation can be frustrating. The truth is, trolls exist, adults throw tantrums and Amazon won’t always remove unfair feedback. Some people love to leave negative feedback and are unresponsive to you when you reach out to resolve the issue. To add more salt to the wound, Amazon does not recognize your effort to make things right. As frustrating as some of these situations are, here are some ways to combat the impact of negative feedback.
Focus on the Positives
Don’t allow negative feedback to steal your joy. Keep your sights on the brand you are building and the company you are running (i.e. the bigger picture).The more you grow and continue to do things right, the negative feedback will be drowned out by the positive feedback. When consumers look to reviews to determine their purchases, one negative comment in a sea of positives holds little to no weight.
Is it me?
It’s tempting to gravitate away from a “customer is always right” mentality, especially when you have been burned by customers. But if you notice a trend in your feedback, then an adjustment in your process and business may be necessary. It’s always a good idea to check in with things on your end first.
Build it into your Budget
Part of focusing on the bigger picture includes building into your budget a fund for returns, lost or damaged items, or those items that cannot be re sold once they are returned. There are too many possibilities where you will not be able to recover your money in these instances. If you do not build this into your budget, every time this situation pops up, it will feel like a loss more so than just a part of your business. This negative energy can come through to your customer if you try to nickel and dime them for any mishaps on their order. It is also super important to diversify your offerings. Your listings should include as many high margin products as possible to increase the overall profitability of your company which helps to create a budget for the uh-ohs.
The Golden Rule
Avoid negative feedback by taking care of your customers the same way you would want to be treated. Make sure you are staffed enough to keep up with customer messages throughout the day. There are plenty of virtual assistant services (ours included!) that can help with the burden of keeping up with customer messages.
Remember, if you receive negative feedback, always message the customer right away to see if you can remedy the situation. You are absolutely NOT allowed to incentivize a customer to remove the feedback, but you are always welcome to ask them if they would consider removing it. When you respond to a customer, regardless to who is at fault, always remain positive, apologetic for their experience or inconvenience, and be ready to help in any way you can.
If you have questions or concerns about your Account Health, give Riverbend Consulting a call. 877-289-1017
Emanuela Elias, Monthly Account Manager
Emanuela leads the monthly services team. She stays on top of critical performance metrics and ensures we secure every owed reimbursement, to keep our clients ahead of game. Emanuela’s background in e-commerce includes leading and empowering teams to work more efficiently. She loves to see a team take off on its own, become independent thinkers and problem solve together.