online reviews responding trade talk feature

Alexandra Lomas NRS HealthcareWhen it comes to the world of online reviews, knowing the best way to react and respond as a business can be somewhat of a minefield, particularly if the company in question feels the complaint is unfair and unwarranted. With reviews being in the public domain, responding can feel like an impossible tightrope to walk, carefully trying to balance the needs of empathy and sympathy whilst also trying to get across the other side of the story without coming across obtuse or belligerent.

Having recently reviewed the best way to handle negative reviews, THIIS caught up with NRS Healthcare’s Alexandra Lomas as she discussed in more detail about the importance of language.

NRS Healthcare’s Customer Engagement Manager, Alexandra has spent years handling and responding to the reviews that the community equipment provider and mobility retailer receives on popular review platform TrustPilot and has picked up some invaluable insights and tips along the way about how best to address complaints.

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Negative reviews: Language is everything!

By Alexandra Lomas

“Offering an apology to your customer is always going to be fundamental when responding to a bad review, but be careful when choosing your words. Remember, when you apologise to someone, you are taking responsibility for what has happened.

“In some situations, this may be very valid e.g. if a customer has received a different product to the one they ordered, the responsibility for this clearly lies with the company. However, if, for example, you’re working with an external courier and your customer has left a bad review about where their package was left or delivered, this may an issue out of your control.

“In situations such as the latter, it’s still important to apologise to your customer, but you also need to make them aware that the responsibility for the delivery remains with the external courier.

“An appropriate response may look something like this:

Good morning Mr Walton,

We’re really sorry to hear how disappointed you are regarding the delivery of your parcel. We understand how frustrating this must be. All our deliveries are made by an external courier, so once the products have left our warehouse, responsibility and control of the delivery is handed over to the courier.

We do, however, appreciate you taking the time to make us aware of this issue as we take all complaints from our customers seriously and will be sure to take this feedback into consideration when the time comes to renewing or changing our courier contract.

Thank you again for getting in touch and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Best regards,

Marie

“As you can see, it is also important to thank your customer for taking the time to leave you feedback – even if it is not the feedback you were hoping for. After all, if you are not made aware of a problem in the first place, you do not have the opportunity to improve as a company and understand how to serve your customers in the best way.”

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