I need to share a recent situation that's affecting my small business. We got a 4/5 review, not for the rating itself, BUT BECAUSE THE REVIEWER NEVER GIVES 5 STARS!.She articulated her review with the following; "It's just in general I don't give 5's." (Unfortunately, this subreddit does not allow picture posts, so I cannot share the conversation. You can see the conversation clicking on the link in the comments and here also:https://www.reddit.com/user/FailKindly2456/comments/17swu8j/we_got_45_stars_because_i_dont_give_5_stars/ )
Our journey is one of passion and hard work. We aim for a 5-star experience, but this review, driven by a no-5-stars policy, hurts our efforts. I respect everyone's right to rate, but this impacts our reputation and makes it hard to attract new customers.I'm not seeking pityDid you ever have similar experiences?
@laura1226 It's annoying and not fair but what are you going to do? Move on and strive to get more 5 stars so that one 4 doesn't matter. Honestly I probably trust a company more that gets a 4 once in awhile. 100% 5 star reviews seems too good to be true.
@mom22feb Not only that, but 4 stars is still a good rating! I don't mind seeing that as a customer. And I will read the review and determine if it has any merit.
Once, I read a review about my friend's bookstore where a guy complained that the store was too clean! Like, whaaaat???
So, normal people recognize BS when they see one. Don't worry, keep doing what you are doing, and remember you will never please everyone you interact with, and that's okay!
Studies show that even bad reviews can lead to sales based on the business's reply. Clients can identify BS and even find it amusing when a business gets a bad review and then claps back with facts.
@mom22feb Exactly this. We had a customer do the exact same thing and I realized my 4.9 rating performed better than my 5.0. It isn’t a big deal just keep getting more reviews
@laura1226 People will look for the one review that’s not 5 stars to see how you messed up. When they read it they will see why, and that it should have been a five star. Will work to your favor and drive more business to you.
@tramlaw Yup. I specialize in review management for businesses and before I purchase anything from someone unknown, I go to their reviews. I sort by lowest rating and always read the bad ones first.
@laura1226 Fuck perfectionism. I used to think this way too, now I don't give a damn and I'm much more productive for it.
In my line of work I sometimes get compliments after events for the quality of my work. Sometimes I don't. It is nice, sure. But if not, I'm not one bit bothered. I take my money and move on to the next gig.
@sn3 Some industries it matters, others not so much. My dad has been in nightly rentals for 40+ years and if he gets one review under 3 stars it can cut business in half.
@sn3 That's not necessarily true. Some platforms - home rental websites, for example, severely punish you for 4 star reviews and weigh less than 5 stars more than 5.
I don't mind when my business occasionally gets 4 stars on google or TripAdvisor because It means future clients get a more accurate idea of perfection all the time, but when my home rentals get 4 stars, I get dropped 6 or 8 pages back on airbnb and can lose thousands of dollars in bookings for one review that's often due to something out of my control.
@laura1226 This is a good thing for you - people go to the worst reviews and rarely read the good ones. Your bad review is still perfection. That won’t last forever cause people.. but your in a good spot right now
@joelsmith2226 I only check the 1 & 2 star reviews to determine the level of stupidity. Lots of people buy the wrong product for their use, or don't actually read descriptions or dimensions, etc, then leave bad reviews because they messed up.
But if there's a bunch of negative reviews with actual issues with the product then i'll probably steer clear.
Positive reviews are so easily and commonly faked, their value has diminished.
@animal1 This. Her 4 star review will not hurt you. People will read it and see that she's a moron that was happy with your business. Thank her for her review and say that you're happy she was happy with her purchase, and keep it moving.
Keeping 5 stars forever is not a realistic goal. You can't control what other people do. It's the overall picture that matters.
