How to Respond to Criticism on Social Media

More while criticizing brands is nothing new, the internet and social media platforms make the comments made by these trolls even more memorable and impactful.

Additionally, the anonymity that people may find online encourages some people to lose all sense of decency, respect, and good manners because sites like Yelp and Twitter make it simple for users to create bogus profiles.

So what’s the best method to handle the occasionally appearing unfavourable comments? Let’s investigate.

How to Deal with Negative Comments on Social Media

Let’s discuss these strategies in detail.

1. Respond to the comment as soon as possible.

Do not wait. Don’t let unfavourable remarks fester. People will notice that someone has complained and you haven’t responded for a longer period of time the longer you let them go unanswered.

Instead, respond to criticism as soon as you can to stop it from growing and becoming something potentially more harmful. For example, a bad blog post is considerably less of a problem than a tweet at your company’s Twitter account or a comment on your Instagram post, which can have a much longer-lasting impact.

Quickly answering will demonstrate to the doubter that you care and are paying attention. Additionally, it will draw attention to your commitment to the people in your town.

2. Be apologetic.

Say you’re sorry if someone criticises one of your goods, services, or anything else. Whether or not their complaint is justified, you are better off adopting the “customer is always right” stance.

One complaint shouldn’t warrant a public fight, and people will respect you more if you apologise right away. Others will know that the person you’re dealing with is moaning about something foolish and won’t be offended if they are.

3. Discuss the problem privately.

After publicly responding, consider it quietly. Take your contact with someone to a private channel, for instance, if they are being really challenging.

You should first answer publicly, whether through a tweet or a remark on their Facebook wall post, and then send them a private message so you may speak with them by phone or email. In your message, you should clarify that you like to have a more intimate conversation with them.

By doing this, you may offer them the attention they crave without making it known to the world how you engage with them.

4. Appreciate their feedback.

Consider complaints as constructive feedback or criticism. That is all they are at times. People want to know they have been heard as well as to be heard.

So, once you’ve expressed regret for their unpleasant experience, let them know your appreciation for their comments and that you’ll give their suggestions for improvement careful thought.

then actually carry it out. Send your product team or the appropriate employee in your company their comments. Responding to criticism will help you convert irate clients into grateful, devoted advocates.

5. Ask them how you can help, and help.

Tell the commenter you’re sorry they feel the way they do and ask them how you can help make things better if the statement in question is obviously insulting and devoid of context.

Then, either they’ll respond with something you can take action on or they’ll be so shocked that you reacted that they won’t have anything else to say. In either case, you’ll have spoken politely.

6. Don’t delete all negative comments.

Negative comments may be removed in certain circumstances. It’s safe to delete the comments, for instance, if they contain foul language or are off-topic.

However, removing their comments is a grave error if they have legitimate objections. Your censorship may enrage those who have valid complaints, and keep in mind that present and potential clients are also keeping an eye on things. If you remove their comments, it will appear that you are concealing anything, which is bad for your reputation.

7. Pick your battles.

Some folks only make noise for the sake of it. They simply want to create controversy because they are attention seekers.

Making a decision on what warrants a response is crucial. Has anyone heard of this person? Are there any reactions from others to what they’re saying? Although it’s important to keep an eye on them and pay attention to what they have to say, it might not always be beneficial to interact with them.

Examples of negative comments on social media

Here’s what each type means and tips on how to handle them.

1. Customer Complaints

These are the four criticisms that you’ll hear the most frequently, and they’re also the most significant. These remarks are from customers who experience issues using your product or service, as the name suggests.

How to respond to complaints:

You should respond swiftly to all customer complaints. Apologize for any inconvenience, verify the problem, and offer customers a solution.

2. Trolling

Social media is plagued by trolls, particularly on Facebook and Twitter. These individuals—or are they robots?—just want to be noticed and bother you. They frequently make outlandish claims that are incorrect in order to inflame other individuals. This takes attention away from your social media posts and focuses it on them and their absurd remarks. Sadly, they are fake consumers with genuine complaints, and they are quite bothersome.

How to deal with trolls:

Engaging them might be your first reaction, but that’s exactly what they want. So, once trolling has been identified, ignore the comments altogether.

3. Malicious Comments

This group includes remarks that use coarse language and profanity. Malicious remarks are cruel and disrespectful and may target your brand, the morals of your employees, or the leadership of your company. This goes a step farther than trolling. The goal of harmful comments is to cause your team emotional harm.

How to deal with malicious comments:

Establish explicit ground rules for interaction and uphold them. You may, for instance, establish a “no profanity” rule and enforce it by removing any comments that break it. It is possible to report and block repeat offenders.

4. Threatening Comments

These remarks intimidate or endanger your leadership, personnel, or team in charge of social media. They might even target clients and other users who follow you on social media. Threatening remarks frequently involve violence of some kind, whether it be psychological, emotional, or otherwise.

How to deal with threatening comments:

It’s important to resist the urge to respond to threatening comments by outlining your brand’s boundaries or even reminding the commenter of the social media platform’s terms of service. If you can, conceal the statement before taking a screenshot of it and reporting it to the social media site, the relevant authorities, and your legal team.