How to respond to online reviews

Online review are an important part of what consumers want to see when they search for you,  says Brittany Belt, business marketing manager at Yelp. This means you need to be armed with the ammunition to really make your responses count. We’ve put together a quick guide to help you nurture your responses to positive, neutral and negative reviews: ranging from a glowing 5 star to a not so thrill-making 1 star. First, a few basic pointers. You can respond to both your negative and positive reviews on Yelp for free either on your desktop or using the business owner app. You’re also able to respond to each review either privately or publicly. A private message is rather like a personal email and is only visible to that individual reviewer and you. The other option is a public message which is visible to everyone and shows other users that you take feedback seriously. 5 star This is the golden chalice of the review world; this customer couldn’t ask for better and your hairdressers really delivered when it mattered. A private or public response is appropriate so choose whichever avenue works best for you. Keep your response straightforward and simple and be sure to thank them for taking the time out to write about your business. Tip! Don’t be generic - pick something out of their review to comment on. For example, if they just love their new colour you could say, “We’re glad you’re rocking your new colour, our staff train for months on the perfect colour matching.” 4 star A 4-star review is a fantastic achievement - so never forget it! Use the same techniques as per the 5 star reviews. Keep it short and sweet, friendly and diplomatic and you’ll be on a journey to review responding perfection. Tip! Resist the urge to draw attention to any nit-picking, as you don’t want customers to focus on the negatives, just the amazing positives! If a customer says, “I got a great cut but I’d like the place to be open longer on a Friday,” it’s fine to leave this unanswered and just focus on all the other great stuff they had to say about your salon. 3 star First things first. Don’t ever feel like a 3 star review is a negative one. It is not. It means your customer had a good or neutral experience. Thank the customer for their business and their feedback and mention any changes you might have made based on their review. Tip! Add a useful piece of information to your review, like this, “Thanks for coming to check us out and for the feedback. We listened to your review and we now have new controls in place to make sure the water isn’t too hot for washing your hair.” Providing this fact will alert that consumer, and others visiting your page, to any updates. 2 star Almost every business will receive negative feedback at some point down the line, and it’s very important to be OK with the fact that it’s just part of business life. That said, if you do find yourself with a negative review - always be the bigger person. Thank the customer for their business and feedback. Be detailed about a customer’s experience and mention any changes you’ve applied as a result of the review. Tip! If you’re upset - log out and come back 24 hours later. You don’t have to reply immediately. 1 star Exercise extreme caution when responding to a less than positive review. If this customer had a bad experience at your salon - you need to respond very, very carefully. As you very well know, someone’s hair is extremely personal to them so make sure you are respectful of their opinion. We recommend contacting your customer with a private message first to resolve any issues. Ask for more information and see if you can take it offline - perhaps with a phone call if the customer is willing.  If you still feel a public comment is necessary, keep it short, pleasant, and as specific as possible. Tip! Get a friend, family member or colleague to read over your response and tone it down if necessary. Remember that consumers tend to look at your response as much as the review - so tread carefully! Brittany Belt is business marketing manager at Yelp, one of the largest local consumer review sites in the world. Brittany is responsible for generating business owner interest in Yelp.