But if every business gets five stars or 10 out of 10 from every customer on its feedback page, what makes any of them stand out from the crowd?

In most cases, whether you are buying goods or services, you don’t know how good a company is until something goes wrong – and the lengths they will go to in order to put it right.

The online market has created an environment of fierce and instant competition that pits small, independent businesses against global giants.

This can lead to businesses over-promising on what they can deliver, or having to drop prices so low in order to match the competition that it affects how they function.

And when things go wrong, the last thing they want is for the world to know about it.

Don’t pretend to have a global reach – admit you are a small, independent business that puts the needs of its customers first. Even the global giants can’t deliver what they are promising with next-day delivery no longer guaranteed, never mind the same-day option.

I always tell clients honesty is the best policy. Firstly, you have to be honest with yourself and acknowledge your own abilities and the capabilities of your business. Then you have to be honest with customers and suppliers.

After that, do what you do best. Mistakes and accidents do happen, but it’s what you do next that really counts. One of my clients ships their products around the world there was a fault in something they sent to a customer in America. They immediately apologised and sent a replacement as quickly as they could. The customer’s review on their website says how much he loves the product and how great they were about handling the fault and replacement – and also recommended the product to others.

If the feedback page on a business’ website has plenty of top marks and excellent reviews – as well as a few negatives – that is usually a true picture of its service and an accurate gauge of what you can expect. And what I like, is that they are being honest in acknowledging they can’t please everyone all of the time.

For many years, we went to the same holiday park in Cornwall. It was central to exploring the rest of the stunning county and was perfectly placed with shops and restaurants nearby. Over time and under different ownership, things went downhill quickly and the last time we visited, it was in a sorry state. Now, the latest new owners have grand visions for the site.

Things were going wrong, but because a lot of money was being spent on the future, nothing was being done now.

Knowing first-hand how bad it was, the reviews section made interesting reading, especially replies from the company. Every scathing review – and there were hundreds of them – was ignored, but the occasionally positive post was met with a gushing response from the management, saying how much they enjoyed having them and looked forward to their next visit.

Even if I had never been to the site, looking at the reviews would give me one very clear message – you’re welcome if all goes well, but if there are problems, they don’t want to know. And, with staycations becoming the norm for the foreseeable future, that is a horrible way to spend a much-needed and not inexpensive two weeks. 

Whether you go for the top package or no-frills option, businesses need to look after customers and guests and pull out all the stops to make it an enjoyable experience.

And, when things go wrong, admit it, resolve it and move on. Don’t bury your head in the sand and hope everything will work out in the end.

#complaints #feedback #reviews pr #publicrelations #staycation #recommendation