Handling Haters: How to Turn That Social Media Frown Upside Down
Tips to take the potency out of pessimism and put positive in its place.
“An optimist may see a light where there is none, but why must the pessimist always run to blow it out?” - Rene Descartes
In today’s social media-powered, “the customer is always right” world of commerce, it can be difficult for small business owners to navigate the hazardous waters of social media customer complaints. But thank goodness there are ways to deal gracefully with those that are unhappy with the service or product they received.
And no, firing back a nasty message or calling all-out toilet paper warfare on their house isn’t the way you want to handle the situation. There are much better ways to …show more content…
The internet branded “Streisand Effect”, named after Barbra Streisand, became a phenomenon when she sued a photographer in an unsuccessful attempt to remove an aerial photograph of her mansion from the California Coastal Records Project. As a result of Streisand’s aggressive reaction, public knowledge of the picture increased substantially; more than 420,000 people visited the site over the following month and spawned nationwide fame. Obviously, Newton’s Third Law of Motion wasn’t what she was going …show more content…
That is totally insulting, and difficult to accept. So, what do you do? I know what you would like to do, but that isn’t an option if you want your business to be successful. At this point you will want to take a few moments to calm down and then you will need to prepare a response that is professional, considerate and positive. A positive and considerate response in a situation like this is uncommon, specifically because it’s so difficult for someone who has just been insulted to assemble a thoughtful, positive response.
But that uncommon positivity makes it potent: A considerate, positive reply can come as such a shock to an online reviewer that it can help to convert that critic into your advocate. At the least, it will reduce your losses instead of amplifying the situation.
Communicating with a social media critic to ask for an offline discussion is digitally comparable to escorting an angry, loud customer into your office for a discreet conversation. You move the discussion out of a public location and into a more personal and private situation, where you can focus on your customer without hundreds of eyes scrutinizing your every move while trying to figure out the problem. After a positive solution has been reached, respectfully request that the complainer amend or withdraw the unpleasant
Tips to take the potency out of pessimism and put positive in its place.
“An optimist may see a light where there is none, but why must the pessimist always run to blow it out?” - Rene Descartes
In today’s social media-powered, “the customer is always right” world of commerce, it can be difficult for small business owners to navigate the hazardous waters of social media customer complaints. But thank goodness there are ways to deal gracefully with those that are unhappy with the service or product they received.
And no, firing back a nasty message or calling all-out toilet paper warfare on their house isn’t the way you want to handle the situation. There are much better ways to …show more content…
The internet branded “Streisand Effect”, named after Barbra Streisand, became a phenomenon when she sued a photographer in an unsuccessful attempt to remove an aerial photograph of her mansion from the California Coastal Records Project. As a result of Streisand’s aggressive reaction, public knowledge of the picture increased substantially; more than 420,000 people visited the site over the following month and spawned nationwide fame. Obviously, Newton’s Third Law of Motion wasn’t what she was going …show more content…
That is totally insulting, and difficult to accept. So, what do you do? I know what you would like to do, but that isn’t an option if you want your business to be successful. At this point you will want to take a few moments to calm down and then you will need to prepare a response that is professional, considerate and positive. A positive and considerate response in a situation like this is uncommon, specifically because it’s so difficult for someone who has just been insulted to assemble a thoughtful, positive response.
But that uncommon positivity makes it potent: A considerate, positive reply can come as such a shock to an online reviewer that it can help to convert that critic into your advocate. At the least, it will reduce your losses instead of amplifying the situation.
Communicating with a social media critic to ask for an offline discussion is digitally comparable to escorting an angry, loud customer into your office for a discreet conversation. You move the discussion out of a public location and into a more personal and private situation, where you can focus on your customer without hundreds of eyes scrutinizing your every move while trying to figure out the problem. After a positive solution has been reached, respectfully request that the complainer amend or withdraw the unpleasant