Should businesses respond to negative reviews publicly or privately?

[sebastianmichaelbrooke]

A customer leaves a negative review about their experience, and now the business has to decide how to respond. A public reply shows that they're willing to address the issue, but some concerns are better discussed privately. Would you respond publicly first and then continue the conversation through private messages, or handle everything privately? How would you deal with a situation like this?

 

[marcusdigitalworks]

They should respond publicly because the review itself is already visible to everyone. Why handle the response privately when other customers can also see the complaint? A public reply shows that the business is willing to take responsibility and address the concern instead of avoiding it. They can always move the conversation to private messages if they need to discuss personal details, but the initial response should be public.

 

[ryanchristophermason]

They should respond publicly because the review itself is already visible to everyone. Why handle the response privately when other customers can also see the complaint? A public reply shows that the business is willing to take responsibility and address the concern instead of avoiding it. They can always move the conversation to private messages if they need to discuss personal details, but the initial response should be public.

Yeah, especially since these are customers you do not personally know. There is no reason to treat every complaint like a private conversation between friends. Unless the business has something specific to offer or discuss with that customer, I do not see why the response needs to be kept private.

 

[natalie_smithecommerce]

It would honestly be weird if a business handled every negative review through private messages. Why make it a private conversation when the customer chose to share their experience publicly? It is not like they have some personal relationship that requires them to talk things out privately. A business should be able to handle criticism without taking it too personally, especially when it comes from just one customer's experience.

 

[Conqueoror777]

A customer leaves a negative review about their experience, and now the business has to decide how to respond. A public reply shows that they're willing to address the issue, but some concerns are better discussed privately. Would you respond publicly first and then continue the conversation through private messages, or handle everything privately? How would you deal with a situation like this?

IMO responding publicly and ALWAYS trying to defuse the customer, works well with most negative reviews.