This week we’re talking about how to deal with negative word of mouth using tips from the new chapter in the revised edition of Andy Sernovitz’ best-seller, Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking.
Sooner or later, you’ll run into someone who hates your guts
They attack, you offer to fix it, and the person keeps ripping you apart. Sometimes you’ll find a competitor who is using fake identities to attack you. And some people are just angry, mean, dishonest, or completely nuts.
That’s OK. The important thing is that you’re not.
Remember, people are smart. When future readers see those unfair posts that are making you upset, they’ll understand. They’ll see the same ridiculousness that you do.
How to handle them
- Post a single, rational response — and move on. This is really, really, really hard. But it’s the right thing to do. Learn to have a thick skin and a sense of humor.
- Ask for blatantly inappropriate or inaccurate stuff to be removed. If the attack is posted on a third-party website, the site owners might help you. It’s in their interest to have clean, fair reviews and discussions.
- Remember that blogs are upside down. Blogs are displayed in reverse chronological order. How you end the story is what people see first on the permanent record, and newer posts show up first in search results.
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