Instagram has helped to boost many businesses; however, it comes with its pros and cons. If you are running a business on Instagram, then you understand the value of raving reviews about customer satisfaction.
With that in mind, you have no control over the type of comments left under your Instagram posts. While positive comments can significantly boost your business, negative comments, on the other hand, are bad for business.
No business wants bad press. Many business pages on IG actively delete negative comments left under their posts to avoid scaring away potential customers. But, with all the measures in place, these comments may still slip in there without your notice, especially for brands with thousands to millions of followers.
So, how do you manage negative comments on Instagram and leverage them to your advantage?
First:
It would be best if you let go of the notion that all bad press is bad for your brand. Yes, negative comments can be beneficial for your brand if you maximize it.
The success of many businesses has skyrocketed, thanks to Instagram, which means that you cannot afford to miss out on the huge potential this platform has to offer. Instead of trying to get rid of negative comments, learn the benefits these comments and reviews can bring to your brand.
Here are some benefits that negative comments on Instagram can bring for your brand or business.
#1. Negative Instagram Comments Can Build Trust
This seems like a far-fetched idea, but in fact, having some degree of bad reviews can foster trust between new customers and a brand. How do you feel when you tried shopping online, and all you saw were hundreds or thousands of 5-star reviews under that item? I’m almost certain that you began to suspect if those comments have been censored, and the negative reviews removed by the brand. Regardless of how great a product is, there are always bound to be some defects.
This applies to your brand as well, especially since you want to make sure that the brand is not too good to be true. You want to avoid creating a ‘too-good-to-be-true’ feeling for potential customers visiting your brand’s business page.
It’s also impossible to satisfy all your clients 100% of the time, and potential customers understand that. According to research by Reevoo, it was discovered that 95% of customers would not trust your brand if they cannot find negative comments. This makes them trust your business a lot less because they feel that negative reviews or comments have been deleted.
Today, about 65% of customers have been seen to trust businesses more when the reviews on their social media pages have both positive and negative comments.
Customers understand the fact that no business is perfect, and they are more likely to believe the legitimacy of your brand if they find negative comments or reviews on your Instagram page.
#2. Negative Comments Give Customers Provides More Information
Reviews, in general, help customers to compare the benefits and risks of buying products. This is especially useful when shopping or trying to patronize a service online. The first thing we do is scroll through the reviews to get a feel of other people’s genuine opinion of a brand or business.
Nobody expects your brand to be perfect, so users depend on comments and reviews to get specific information about your brand or your products. This enables them to be better prepared for what to expect and make a more informed decision.
Both positive and negative comments on the business pages can help users make informed decisions. While great reviews reassure the user that they are making the right decision on the brand, negative comments help them be more cautious about the potential issues to look out for.
#3. Negative Comments On Instagram Helps Your Brand’s Image
You may or may not have noticed that brands on Instagram rarely respond to negative comments on Instagram to avoid a complaint from escalating. Well, you should not ignore negative comments left on your business page. Instead, you should respond to these “bad” reviews or comments and use them as an opportunity to correct false information about your business.
True that you should not seek to reply to every negative review, but here are a few things that happen when you continuously ignore negative comments:
- It shows that you’re afraid to respond to the comments because they are correct.
- It shows that you’re probably guilty.
- It shows that you do not care.
- It shows that your brand is not sensitive to the challenges your clients are facing.
- It tells users that you are trying to cover up a bad situation that probably occurred.
Keep in mind that other customers will read your response, and they will get the feeling that you take criticism and feedback well.
Even when your response did not save the situation, by merely responding to that negative comment, it tells other customers that your brand acknowledges and values the opinion of its users.
Also, responding to a negative comment, sarcastically makes your brand more relatable and do not take yourself too seriously. It further shows that there is an actual human behind the brand with charisma in resolving a bad situation.
In the long run, negative comments make your brand look good in the eyes of old and new customers based on your response.
#4. Negative Comments Help You Improve On Weak Areas
As you already know, it’s impossible to be on top of your game 100% of the time. This is especially true for online businesses that are exposed to diverse demographics from around the world. Today, brands are expected to satisfy the majority of their customers, which means that you will need all the help you can get. This is where negative comments come in handy.
They help you pay attention to areas lacking in your business, ranging from poor customer services to defective product packaging, and so on.
For instance, if one of your staff is rude to customers or a racist, you want to know this information to avoid hurting your brand. This way, you can address this problem and take necessary action before further damage is done to your brand’s image.
If you are in the habit of censoring your comments, then you may lose potential businesses and revenue because these comments are deleted automatically as they are posted. If a customer is less than satisfied, it is in your best interest to find out what you may have done wrong and to correct this, if need be, before the word gets out.
Word of mouth is critical to brands; hence, the need to know what areas customers are complaining about in order to improve it in time. This is why negative comments on your business page on Instagram can come in handy to help improve your products or services.
#5. Negative Comments Helps You To Manage Your Online Reputation
Your ability to effectively manage your online reputation is critical to your overall brand development. Managing your online image is not a one-off thing, nor is it going to happen overnight. It is a continuous process!
If you’ve not been paying so much attention to your brand’s online image, a negative comment might be the wakeup call you needed.
If you are looking for a great way to manage your Instagram account and your overall online presence, tools like Sotrender can be pretty helpful, especially on major social media platforms.
By merely addressing negative comments on your Instagram page, it only shows how professional and charismatic your brand is. It also makes your brand relatable and human, and that you genuinely care for your users and the products or services you render puts humanity above all.
Negative comments on your Instagram page is a chance to address issues constructively. Apologize when necessary, and try not to be so defensive all the time. It’s okay to have negative reviews, as long as you ensure that they are appropriately managed.
Negative comments on your Instagram account are inevitable. As a business owner or entrepreneur, the way you handle negative comments goes a long way to tell prospective customers about your brand.
Final Thoughts
With that being said, you should also understand that some negative comments might be untrue, baseless, rude, and unnecessary; they may even come from haters who are trying to undermine the efforts you are putting into your business.
But you can filter through these negative comments and know the genuine ones. This would allow you to adequately address their concerns.
When you sort the comments out, you can identify your weak spots and learn ways to improve your brand. Sometimes, by making your brand more multilanguage-friendly, you can bridge this gap between your brand and IG users. Online translation agencies like The Word Point can assist. This way, you don’t miss out on potential leads in a foreign language.
About the author
Tiffany Porter has been working as a Chief Writer at Online Writers Rating reviewing variety of writing services websites. She is a professional writing expert on such topics as digital marketing, blogging, design. She also likes traveling and speaks German and French.
Leave a Reply