Despite striving to consistently deliver the best customer experience, most hospitality business owners will most likely know how it feels to have received a negative review on TripAdvisor. The website boasts over 500 million reviews of dining, drinking and other leisure venues and attractions around the world – so at least you won’t be alone. If you have received a review of this nature, there are some essential tactics when it comes to responding.
YOU WANT TO RESPOND NOW!
It’s natural to want to respond to anything negative immediately, but count to at least 10 – especially if you feel the red mist descending. Anything you type in haste, you’ll likely regret at leisure. Look rationally at the points made and try to put yourself in your guest’s shoes. Talk to staff or colleagues about it, and speak to any individual against whom a complaint has been levelled.
... and prepare to carry on
Once you’ve done all that, you should now be out of the danger zone – you know, the one in which you make matters worse by firing off a knee-jerk response that ends up going viral on social media, and might hurt your business as people steer clear of the rude, unsympathetic owner or manager.
DON'T LEAVE IT TOO LONG, THOUGH
Unless you need to carry out a lengthy investigation into a complaint, don’t leave it too long before replying. Keep it timely, and if you really must look into a matter more closely, consider posting a holding response that thanks the customer for raising the issue and explains you need to investigate it. Casio’s EPOS systems have the advantage that, once you’re up and running, you can access TripAdvisor reviews, along with social media all in one place. Just swipe out the utility panel with your finger, access the site, and swipe it out of the way again. This means you can respond to reviews directly from the terminal. If you’re worried about who has control over this, don’t panic it can be programmed so only certain staff are authorised access.
a measured response
Whatever the nature of the review, your reaction to it must always be careful and measured, no matter how unfair you feel the comments to be. And depending on exactly what is being criticised or commented on, you may want to adopt a sliding scale of responses, from a straight apology to a qualified apology; from an assurance that you’ve changed your practices in response to a complaint; all the way up to an offer of a free meal or vouchers by way of recompense, and which gives you the opportunity to ‘do it right next time’.
REMEMBER: THIS IS HAPPENING IN PUBLIC
Remember that your words are likely to be seen by past and prospective customers – it’s really not just the original reviewer you’re replying to. Those watching events unfold from the side lines are more likely to look sympathetically on a polite, measured response that takes on board a reviewer’s criticism(s), than a rude rant attempting to defend the indefensible. If the review makes serious allegations, you might want to reply online initially – so that you’re seen to be reacting – but suggest to the complainant that you take the discussion offline, and conduct it in private.
A WARM GLOW
A polite, considered response to a bad review will go a considerable way to diffusing a potentially damaging situation, and may even prompt them to feel the warm glow that comes with having had their point of view taken on board, thought about, and addressed. And if you also reply to those guests who post positive comments, thanking them for their kind words, they’ll feel that same warm glow, and will be inclined to return.
not like that, like this
There are of course thousands of examples out there of good and bad, appropriate and inappropriate, polite and rude responses to negative TripAdvisor reviews. Here are two, at opposite ends of the scale.
- Here, a customer claims that a seaside pub ‘trying to be a restaurant’ succeeds only in being a café, and that the service was poor. He gets this broadside from the manager: ..I'm guessing the cafes you have been to are pretty special! So, I had a look to see where the great cafes are that you have visited, only problem was you haven't posted about any.
In another reply, this same manager, clearly lacking in self-awareness, calls another poster a ‘keyboard warrior’.
- In response to a customer complaining that the battered cod he was served at a pub was ‘greasy’, while an 8oz steak arrived ‘soggy’: I'm sorry to hear you didn't enjoy your experience with us…I would like you to come back at a time that is convenient for yourselves. I will show you around my kitchen, how we prepare our food, and [serve] you a complimentary meal of fish and chips (with garden peas) and a fillet steak (rare).
Want to find out more about responding to Trip Advisor reviews directly from a Casio EPOS? Get in contact with us today!
