Here’s The Skinny On Deleting Negative Reviews

Deleting negative reviews is something we talk about so often with our clients at B Squared Media, that we actually created client education materials around the subject.

Knowing that review counts and scores are factored into Google’s local search ranking, what do you do when your business receives a less-than-stellar review?

We’ve got a few tips and tricks when it comes to negative reviews — including how and where to delete them.

Reviews + Your Reputation

Some business owners are so scared of bad reviews that they want to skip allowing reviews altogether.

This is not a feasible plan.

One of the biggest success factors in marketing is the ability to capture online reviews.

With 58% of consumers saying that the star rating of a business is the most important factor in their search, businesses must focus on both positive and negative reviews.

One of the three factors that Google uses to show your business in a local search is prominence.

Prominence refers to how well-known a business is. In other words, the more high star rankings your business has, the more likely you are to be seen.

Is Deleting Negative Reviews Possible?

Let’s dive into whether or not you should delete negative reviews later in this post. Up first, let’s explore the logistics of deleting reviews.

Facebook

The short answer is NO. Facebook allows you to report a review and if it doesn’t follow their Community Standards it may have a chance of being removed by Facebook.

You can, however, eliminate the ability for reviews to be left on your Facebook Page (not that we recommend that!). Here’s how:

1. Log into Facebook as your business.
2. Go to your page and click “Settings.”
3. On the left-hand menu, click “Page Info.”
4. Beside the “Address” row, click “Edit.”
5. Uncheck the box that says, “Show map, check-ins and star ratings on the Page.”

Google

Google, similar to Facebook, will only remove reviews that violate their Review Policies.

To flag a review for removal:

1. Navigate to Google Maps.
2. Search for your business using its name or address.
3. Select your business from the search results.
4. In the panel on the left, scroll to the “Review Summary” section.
5. Under the average rating, click [number of] reviews.
6. Scroll to the review you’d like to flag and click the flag icon.
7. Complete the form in the window that appears and click Submit.

Yelp

Again, negative reviews on Yelp can be removed in a handful of situations. This infographic has the details.

But Should You Delete Negative Reviews??

It’s our policy not to remove negative reviews unless truly warranted.

Here’s why: reviews, when honest, are a candid look at how customers sincerely view your brand.

5 things all brands need to understand about reviews:

1. Less-than-perfect reviews often show that your product or services weren’t the best fit for that customer. And that’s okay! You can’t please everyone all the time.
2. For every customer who complains, 26 remain silent. A bad review may just be the best gift you’ve ever been given and a chance to dig in, fix things, and make more customers happy.
3. Mistakes happen. But if you really want to get better, a negative review is a way to build a deeper relationship with your customer.
4. If you’re being attacked, step back and try to remove feelings from your response before answering.
5. Sometimes, SOMETIMES, you’ll meet up with a true troll. A real jerk, who is only looking to defame you and your business. When this happens, we feel a-okay deleting the review (if allowed).

There’s no avoiding negative reviews. The most important thing to remember when you receive one is not to take it personally.

Use Logic

I realize this is easier said than done when someone is bashing something you’re obviously passionate about.

But, if you can learn to use negative reviews as research or an educational moment, you’ll have a much easier time understanding why it’s so hard to remove reviews.

What’s your take on negative reviews? Do you delete them? Respond to understand or get crazy mad? We’ve love to know! Share with us in the comments section below.

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Brooke B. Sellas

Brooke B. Sellas is the in-the-trenches Founder & CEO of @HelloBSquared, an award-winning social media, advertising, and social media customer care agency. She's also the author of Conversations That Connect -- a book all about social listening and social media customer care. Brooke's marketing mantra is “Think Conversation, Not Campaign” so be sure to give her a shout on the socials!

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