1. You need to know. If your products or services are crap, then you need to know about it. It’s better to hear it from your customers–so you can fix it–than never know about it and wonder why your sales suck.
2. Build credibility. Negative reviews add authenticity to your reputation. Consumers are smart–mostly–and they know you cannot please everyone. Take a look at the hotel industry. Just about every hotel has a review that mentions dirty bathrooms, bugs, or rude staff. Yet, we still stay in hotels. We just look for the ones that have the best overall reviews.
3. Fix the problem. Research suggests that a customer will tell ten people about a negative experience with a business. However, if you fix the problem to their satisfaction, they’ll tell twenty people how happy they are! Look for negative reviews and fix the problem!
4. Show you care. Potential customers look at how you handled the situation. If you do find yourself with a negative review or critique, rectifying the situation publicly will demonstrate to potential customers that you care about your reputation–and your customers.
5. Learn from competitors’ mistakes. Don’t simply read your negative reviews, read those of your competitors, too. If you learn where your rivals keep slipping-up, you can fine-tune your offering to make sure you do not fall victim to the same mistake. Some properties have had success reaching out to an unhappy customer of their competitors and fixing their problem–to find they have made a new customer for life!

What can a hotel do if it feels a TripAdvisor review is fraudulent or fictitious?

Hoteliers can either make use of the Review Dispute form in the Owners’ Center or they can report the review via the “Report Inappropriate” link at the bottom of each review. While the dispute process is ongoing, post a management response.

Content integrity is something we take really seriously, and approach in several different ways. First of all, members are asked to check a box when they submit a review in order to certify that the review is their genuine opinion, and that they have no affiliation – business or personal – with the property. By checking the box, they are also confirming that they haven’t been offered an incentive or payment for their review.