Fake online reviews: Protect your reputation now
Chances are that you’re reading this because someone posted a fake online review about your business. This guide covers exactly how to handle such situations effectively.
Even well-managed businesses can experience occasional negative online reviews. These are a normal part of doing business.
However, false, defamatory reviews can be irritating, infuriating, and damaging to your bottom line. If angry customers, disgruntled ex-employees, or competitors post inaccurate reviews of your business online, you don’t have to just take it. You can fight back without doing any further harm to your reputation.
Pause and process
First things first: Don’t act right away. It’s natural to feel angry and defensive when someone spreads lies about your business, but taking steps while emotional can backfire.
At the same time, you don’t want to let the false review stand for long. You risk customers seeing it and taking it as fact.
Take a few minutes or even an hour to blow off steam. Proceed only once you’re calm.
Identifying fake reviews
Signs of a fake review
Vague details: Lack of specific information about the service or product.
Overly negative or positive language: Extreme language without substantial content.
Timing: Reviews posted in clusters or during specific times (e.g., after a conflict).
Tools and techniques
Review monitoring tools: Use software to analyze patterns and detect anomalies.
Manual review: Check the reviewer’s profile for inconsistencies or patterns that suggest fake activity.
Examples for comparison
Real review: “Visited on June 5th, loved the pasta, and the staff was very friendly.”
Fake review: “This place is horrible. Never go there. Worst experience ever!”
Try getting the review removed
Getting the review removed before anyone can see it is obviously the ideal scenario. Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to get a false review taken down.
It’s your word against the word of the reviewer. Review sites can’t take down every post that a business owner doesn’t like.
However, depending on the site, you may be able to request that the review be assessed.
Facebook will only remove reviews if they don’t comply with Facebook’s Community Standards. These standards prohibit things like sexual harassment, bullying, and threats.
Find the review in question. Click the V-shaped icon in the top right corner of the review.
Click on “Report Post” and follow the instructions.
Yelp
Yelp will remove a review only if the reviewer had a clear conflict of interest. They also act if the reviewer didn’t focus on their own consumer experience or included offensive language/private information in the post.
Log in to your business’s Yelp account. Find the review in question.
Click on the flag icon in the bottom right of the review. Select the reason you’re reporting the post, and write out your explanation.
Google will remove posts if they’re written by someone with a conflict of interest or by someone who’s impersonating someone else. An independent moderator will decide whether there’s enough evidence that the review is false.
Search for your business on Google Maps. Click on the business’s overall star rating. This should take you to a list of reviews.
Hover over the review you want removed. Click on the flag icon that appears.
Follow the prompts. Note that you can’t write out an explanation of why the post should be removed; you can only request that a particular post be reviewed by Google.
Consider responding publicly
Responding to false or inflammatory reviews requires careful consideration. If customers see you respond to one negative post but not to others, they might assume that the other negative posts are accurate.
However, if you receive a ton of online reviews, it can be time-consuming to respond to every one that you feel is wrong. So weigh your options before you decide to write back to a false post.
If you do decide to respond, draft a polite response that addresses the points made in the post. Don’t accuse the reviewer of anything or use insults.
Always leave the door open for the possibility that the review is actually not fake. Invite the reviewer to contact you to resolve the issue. This shows that you care about your real customers.
Tactics for responding
Consider a possible mistake: “We appreciate when our customers take time to review us, but it seems you may have the wrong company as we don’t have any record of you ever having visited us. Maybe you have us confused with another company? If it was definitely us then we’d love the opportunity to make things right.”
Emphasize customer service: “I’m very sorry to hear that you were treated poorly by our staff. We try our best to treat every customer with the utmost respect, but sometimes we don’t meet our own standards. If you would take the time to contact me I’m sure we can resolve this issue.”
Question false claims politely: “I think there’s some confusion here, as you wrote that we closed early on Sunday so you couldn’t get in, but we aren’t open on Sundays. Maybe it was another day (or a different business)? If you wouldn’t mind calling us so we can understand the issue a little more then I’m sure we can figure out what happened.”
Attract more positive reviews
One nasty or false review looks really bad when it’s the only review your business has. However, when you have 100 glowing reviews, that one nasty one looks questionable.
Consistently getting more reviews on a steady basis helps push the negative one by the wayside.
Building a review management strategy
Importance of having a proactive approach
A proactive approach to managing reviews helps in mitigating the impact of negative or fake reviews. It shows customers that you value their feedback and are committed to continuous improvement.
Steps to create a review management policy
Define objectives: Clarify what you want to achieve with your review management strategy (e.g., improving customer satisfaction, increasing positive reviews).
Assign responsibilities: Designate specific team members to monitor and respond to reviews.
Set guidelines: Develop guidelines for responding to both positive and negative reviews.
Implement monitoring tools: Use tools to track and analyze reviews across different platforms.
Training employees
Train your employees on how to handle reviews professionally. This includes understanding the importance of reviews and learning how to respond to different types of reviews.
They should also practice empathy and effective communication.
Expert opinions on fake reviews
Sarah Mitchell, Digital Marketing Specialist at eCommerce Insights “Combating fake reviews requires a multi-layered approach. Businesses should invest in AI-driven monitoring tools that can flag suspicious patterns, such as sudden spikes in reviews or repetitive content. Additionally, training staff to manually review flagged entries ensures that no false positives slip through.”
James O’Connor, Head of Consumer Trust at TrustPilot Solutions “Transparency is key. Encourage your customers to leave reviews on verified platforms and provide them with clear guidelines on what constitutes a helpful review. This not only deters fake reviewers but also educates your genuine customers on how to provide valuable feedback.”
Linda Harper, CEO of Online Reputation Management Inc. “Legal action can be an effective deterrent. Publicizing cases where fake reviewers have been prosecuted can discourage others from attempting to manipulate your reviews. Partnering with legal experts to understand the nuances of digital defamation is crucial in this process.”
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