July 2019

Page A8 JULY 2019 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on A proactive approach to reviews on all the major sites, but if you only have bandwidth to tackle one on a regular basis, Google is your best bet. Google reviews are tied to search engine results, and your deathcare company’s Google star rating is often prominently placed inmap and GoogleMy Business results. If first impres- sions are everything, you certainly don’t want a poor Google star rating weighing down your business ship. At the same time, even funeral homes with stellar customer service reputations and a bevy of qualified, experienced staff members won’t please every- one all of the time. Less-than-stellar reviews hap- pen occasionally for legitimate reasons, and they happen more often for illegitimate ones. Here’s what you need to know to deal with both: Dealing with Legitimate Negative Reviews For this purpose, legitimate negative reviews are defined as any low-star review coming from a person to whom you actually provided service. You might (or might not) feel the content in the review itself is warranted, but it’s not a fake review in that it didn’t come from a bot, a competitor, or an actual client or family. Here are some best-practice steps for turning a negative re- view into a positive word-of-mouth marketing situation: 1. Start by reaching out privately to the individual to resolve the issue. Sometimes, low-star reviews are a result of mis- understandings, and taking the step to make things right can shift the wind in your favor. Once you resolve the situ- ation and the individual seems satisfied with the outcome, consider asking if they will update the review. When po- tential clientele see this activity on review sites, they know that you’re a company backed by caring, professional peo- ple who want to do a good job for those they serve. 2. Next, leave a public message letting the reviewer (and others) know that you have reached out. This way, if the person never responds or a resolution isn’t reached, other people see that you are responding to situations and care. 3. Finally, if all else fails, leave a response to the review with your side of the story. Always take a respectful, tactful tone, but let others know the truth about what services you provided or how the situation occurred, especially if it was not your or your employee’s fault. Responding to reviews makes your company seem more human in an industry that thrives on human contact and care. But do remember that sympathies may automatically lean to the clientele when others consider a deathcare servic- es review, so be kind and careful in how you respond. Dealing With Fake Negative Reviews While it certainly hurts to see that someone wasn’t happy with your services, it can be even more frustrating to face fake reviews. And they’re more common than you might think: About 75 percent of people have seen one or more fake review online in the past year, and that only accounts for fake reviews that could be identified as such. Why would anyone leave fake reviews? They can be attacks from competitors willing to engage in black-hat marketing tactics, internet trolls who simply don’t have better things to do, or someone who has a grudge against your company, (or you, or one of your employees). But you don’t have to sit passively and take these attacks. Here’s how to fight back: 1. First, conduct some due diligence. Make sure this is an actual fake review. Remember, just because you don’t like it doesn’t necessarily make it fake. 2. If it is fake, leave a response to the review noting that you don’t have a record of serving this person or asking the reviewer to contact you so you can respond to the situa- tion. Obviously, you’re not waiting on a fake reviewer to reach out, but taking the high road in a public forum lets others see that you’re professional and care about provid- ing quality service. 3. Flag the review and report it as fake. You can do this via your Google My Business dashboard. 4. Ask other people to flag the review too. Google doesn’t even look at the review until five or more people have flagged it, so ask your employees or trusted family mem- bers to log into their own Google accounts for this pur- pose. It only takes a minute to flag a false review. Flagging the review doesn’t automatically mean it will be removed. Google looks at the review and decides whether to remove it. But following the steps above and ensuring you’ve done everything you can to publicly show you’re handling things on your end can help impact Google’s decision. Moving on From Negative Reviews Not every negative review becomes a positive opportunity, and not every fake review goes away. And that’s okay, because your star level on Google doesn’t need to be perfect to inspire trust and confidence in individuals and families looking for When You Can’t Please Everyone: Dealing with Negative Google Reviews By Welton Hong Welton Hong Google reviews, and reviews in general, are powerful online marketing tools. Almost all people (97 percent) read reviews for local businesses before making a decision about goods and services. And they use those reviews as fodder for purchasing decisions; 90 percent say positive reviews impact buying deci- sions and more than 85 percent say negative reviews do too. With so much riding on reviews, keeping an eye on them and managing them is synonymous with managing your online reputation. It’s a good idea to take an interactive, Continued on Page A10 By Kristan Dean Let’s Chat In 2000 Kristan Dean began working with her family to bring Merry Christmas From Heaven ® to all who need the gifts’ mes- sage of Comfort, Love, and Faith. Today she is the Vice President of Marketing and one of the primary members of her family’s Bereavement Ministry.   Thanks, in great part, to the thousands of funeral directors and retailers nationwide who make Merry Christmas From Heaven ® a part of their communities, countless numbers of families reach out to their family every year. Their bereavement ministry helps families realize that those in Heaven live forever in our hearts. Their love is with us always.    Prior to Mooney TunCo, Inc. Kristan worked with companies nation- wide helping them build revenues by creating greater sales opportuni- ties through the use of sales intelligence and marketing alignment. www.nomispublications.com Funeral Home & Cemetery News Contributors share insights and exchange ideas. B logs Every time we get on a plane, a voice comes on to tell us, please remember to put on your own oxygen mask be- fore you try to assist others. What happens when we take this instruction off the airplane? Are you saying: I get it. It makes sense. I must make sure that I am ok first so that I am better able to help others. Now, what happens when you hear the question: How can you be more kind? Are you thinking about all of the ways you can be kind- er to others? I am right there with you. Regardless of how many times we hear it on an airplane or life itself reminds us that we cannot give our best to others if we do not make sure we are ok first…we do not always take heed. Proof: Even with this logic at the front of your mind, I bet when you read the words—how can I be more kind—that your mind bucks and takes you back to all of the ways you can be more kind to others again. Why do the instructions we hear on the plane, the ones that make perfect sense to us off the plane, fall flat in real life? There are many reasons. The first that comes to my mind is when we see the question—how can I be more kind—the voice within us, the one that wants us to be the best person we can be…pipes in…then our brains relay the ways that we can be kinder to others while it mutes the parts where our inner voice tells us how to get the tools we need. How does this happen? Aren’t our voices within and our thoughts the same thing? Short answer: They can be. The problem is: we give up control to our thoughts because we think that our brains have the best answers. They are pow- erful. Our minds can bring us to amazing answers. The problem is that they can also stop us in our tracks with loops of what ifs and worry. Which leads us to the question: How can we be our kindest self if our minds are looping in worry and what ifs? Worse: how can we even think about being kind if our thoughts are always berat- ing us for the mistakes we make? Are you asking…What is the oxygen mask for that or how do we stop the thought madness? If you are like me the oxygen mask your brain needs is peace. The question is how do we get peace into our minds when they are anything but peaceful? Please tell me your thoughts. Let’s help each other get the tools we need to empower our minds so that we may be our kindest and best selves. Please reach out to me by email me at kristan@ mooneytunco.com or give me a ring at 781-331-5308. Prayers you are having a beautiful day when you read this column.