Michael Sultan considers how to react when receiving negative feedback.
In the modern day, online reviews are incredibly important. After all, reviews can completely change a person’s perception of a product or service and this will inevitably influence how likely they are to buy a certain item or visit a business.
In dentistry, where competition is already fierce, an online review can quickly become the difference between a patient choosing your services or heading to a competitor’s practice. In fact, research suggests that 91 per cent of 18-34 year olds trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations from friends and family, and 93 per cent of consumers say that that these reviews influence their purchase decisions. In dentistry in particular, one source suggests that 86 per cent of patients choose a dental practice to visit based off online reviews alone.
But what happens if you do get a bad review? What if this bad review is unfair or fake? Not all bad reviews are equal, so it’s definitely worth looking at continuity plans in order to help minimise damage and keep your reputation untarnished.
In many cases, addressing a bad review head on is the best way forward. This means responding directly and publicly to the review on whatever platform it has been left on and offering to resolve the issue (and offering apologies!) This way, other people will be able to see that you have taken action – silence is far more damaging to your reputation than an apology and an offer to help correct any mistakes. It also proves your commitment to customer service and your passion to provide a great patient experience, even in the face of adversity. After responding to the review, it is also worth following up with the patient personally via telephone to see if there is anything you can do to help. This, if managed properly, may even encourage them to rescind their bad review, especially if you go above and beyond to rectify whatever problems led to it in the first place.
Unfortunately, sometimes our hands are tied when it comes to an adverse criticism of clinical care as there are issues of confidentiality and these complaints have to be acknowledged in public and sorted out in private.
On the other hand, if a bad review is fake, it’s likely that you won’t even be aware of who posted it, let alone be able to apologise for something that never happened! There have been occasions where professionals have been left multiple, fake bad reviews as a bid to destroy their reputation. In fact, a recent case explored in the media detailed how an Australian dentist was left four fake bad reviews by the same patient, causing a significant downturn in business and a negative impact on her mental health. On the bright side, the dentist was found to be in the right, and was awarded £125k in damages after she filed action against the patient.
Of course, this is pretty drastic action, and a typical fake review isn’t best handled in court. What you can do, however, is flag the review on whatever platform it has been left on. This won’t automatically remove it, but it does mean that there is the potential for it to be recognised as spam and removed in due course. Another option is to respond to the review along the lines of “I don’t think we have treated you at this practice, but why don’t you book an appointment to see what we can do for you?” or “It’s unfortunate you’ve left bad feedback without visiting us, but why don’t you come and try our services to see what they are truly like?” This approach not only calls out the validity of the review, but it remains polite and courteous. Plus, it gives anyone else reading reviews a chance to call into the question the validity of the original review, and will hopefully lead them to disregard it as the spam that it is.
At the end of the day, bad reviews are likely to happen – no one is perfect. As long as you take the time to respect the honest bad reviews you receive and visibly set out to correct them, you can keep your reputation intact and potentially encourage the person who posted the review to remove it. For fake reviews, flagging them as spam and encouraging whoever posted them to come and actually try your services is a really good way to move forward. It’s also important to bear in mind that for every bad review there are likely to be lots of good ones! Our services are appreciated by our patients, so as long as we keep providing an exceptional level of service, bad reviews will be kept at bay.