Tread carefully when you have Ripoff reports or negative blog. A stellar online reputation is vital for a plastic surgeon. After all, personal appearance is paramount for almost everyone. However, be mindful of “for profit” websites that encourage negative reviews at your expense. They don’t deserve your response.
Be wary of a Ripoff Reports and Targeted Websites
Check Better Business Bureau (BBB) rating: Let’s face facts. You don’t knowingly conduct business with a company that has an “F” rating. Websites are a business, so the same holds true. Ripoff is a good example of a review site to ignore. There is no fact checking for Ripoff reports. This is a “for profit” website. Why add to SEO of a negative review by responding? Its BBB rating is an “F”. In addition, you can pay repeatedly to place content ahead of your good reviews. In fact, this site generates millions a year. Forbes highlights how much it can cost targeted businesses. We concur and don’t recommend interacting with this site.
Put Your Reputation into Perspective: A negative review is normal. Sometimes, expectations are not reasonable. Sometimes, it is the eye of the beholder. A Ripoff report isn’t the normal course of business. Work toward minimizing the impact of negative reviews with positive reviews on valid review sites. Use technology to aggregate your reviews. Positive comments can help potential patients understand you better. In addition, a positive rating improves your overall review score.
Know When and When Not to Respond: Sometimes, someone with a personal grudge writes a review. Or, the review has nothing to do with your service. PUMC has seen numerous fake reviews for our plastic surgery clients, including Ripoff reports and targeted websites. If you have no record of the service, there’s a good chance the review isn’t authentic. While you should ignore reviews on Ripoff and damaging websites, you need to respond to valid review sites. State that you have no record of the treatment. Add that you are known for your excellent care, good surgery results, etc. Then, ask the person to contact the office to discuss the issue.
Use caution when responding to negative reviews. Typically, we encourage our clients to respond quickly to reviews. However, there is an exception. If you detect a “venting, angry” tone in a review, wait for the emotions to diffuse. If you fan the flames, the reviewer may post on multiple review sites. This is what you don’t want. Allow venting to play out before responding to a review.
An excellent online reputation is important to a plastic surgeon or medical spa. For most of us, we don’t get there without a few negative reviews. Thus, you need to implement ways to help potential and existing patients evaluate you properly. Contact PUMC for an analysis and actionable ideas for your online reputation.
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