Customers doing surveyImproving positive online reviews starts internally. To most, this may sound like a principle of common sense but many would be surprised to know just how much positive experiences impact good reviews and how a negative experience drastically impacts negative reviews. For example, according to Zendesk, 95% of customers share bad experiences with others, and 45% of customers share negative reviews on social media. These figures are astronomical! In turn, companies cannot afford to provide poor customer service if they intend to increase positive reviews online.

 

Nearly a quarter of customers who had a positive experience told 10 or more people.

According to the Harvard Business Review, 23% of customers who had a positive experience told 10 or more people about it. This tells us that when a customer has a great experience they tell family, friends and whoever will listen. So do you really think they’ll mind leaving a short review about their great stay online? Probably not. These are the customers you want to leave a review.

 

30% of Customers share positive reviews on social media.

According to Zendesk, 30% of customers share positive reviews on social media sites. What makes this fact so important is that social media posts can be viewed and shared by thousands of people online depending on who posts the review and where it’s posted. Now that makes a significant impact!

 

87% of customers share good experiences with others.

According to Zendesk, an astonishing 87% of customers share good experiences with others. This large percentage is an excellent indication that happy customers won’t mind writing a positive review online. When they have a really great experience they want to share it. You just have to ask.

 

An unhappy customer who gets their issue resolved will tell about 4-6 people about their experience.

No company can give outstanding service to every single customer who walks through the door. Sometimes things just go wrong. However, it’s the way companies handle mishaps that matter. According to the White House Office of Consumer Affairs, unhappy customers who get their issue resolved tell about 4-6 people about their experience. Take responsibility and then go above on beyond to fix it. You’ll be surprised at how many of these customers will leave a positive review.

 

Bad Reviews can cost millions

In todays world of Facebook, Twitter, TripAdvisor etc. an unresolved bad experience can reach hundreds if not thousands of people. A great example of this was the case of a musician who witnessed an airline employee throwing his guitar (worth $3,500 USD) onto the tarmac and breaking it in the process. After months of getting nowhere with the airline he wrote a song, made a music video and posted it on YouTube. To date he has over 14 million views. Within 4 weeks the airlines stock had fallen 10%, costing the company approx. $180 million.

This is an extreme case but in today’s world, user generated content and reviews often speak louder then corporate marketing messages. It takes approximately 10-12 positive reviews to counteract one negative one and given that 80% of people wont buy from a business that has negative reviews looking after your customers has never been more important.