Some companies are afraid to jump into the social media waters because of potential negative feedback.  They do have one thing right, there will be negative feedback no matter how good your company or product is.  Good companies embrace negative feedback because:

a) free information about potential product/service deficiencies

b) gives them a chance to correct the problem

c) it’s an opportunity to shine with the customer in a public forum by listening & responding

d) creates a seamless path to have an ongoing conversation with the customer

Well, if you still aren’t sold by the above reasons than you may be persuaded by this:  having reviews, even those with negative comments, actually helps drive more sales.  At least one small business owner found this out first hand.  The story and findings are highlighted in a timely CNNMoney article by Jennifer Alsever ["Even bad reviews boost sales"].

The article points out that AlpacaDirect saw sales climb 23% on items that had customer reviews, even for products receiving bad customer reviews like the golf cardigan which received a few three out of five star ratings for being “kinda sweaty” and a “poor fit.”  The article has a few other helpful tidbits and is worth a read.

It’s funny that several years ago when company’s received feedback in the mail (yes the kind with a stamp on it) whether it was good, bad or indifferent, they were excited.  After all, they actually received some form of feedback.  Well, it’s time to get excited about real-time customer feedback via social media, even the negative kind.