Ever read a Yelp review of a local restaurant and think “This sounds too good to be true”? Unfortunately, even legitimate review-based websites can fall prey to the proliferation of fake reviews, often written by “customers” who’ve never used the product or services.
Online industry leaders and legal authorities are making a concerted effort to crack down on these phony customer reviews. The goal is to remove deceptive and misleading content, which often functions as marketing and advertising for everything from sandwich shops to law firms.
Below is an overview of why your law firm should avoid using fake reviews and how you can leverage the power of online review sites ethically.
Posting Fake Reviews: A Dangerous Game to Play
A business found to have provided, bought or solicited false reviews is at risk for suspension or banishment from a review site. Depending on the severity of the behavior, a company could face financial penalty through civil lawsuits and government fines.
The New York Times recently reported on a major New York-based crackdown of companies who routinely used fake reviews (both positive and negative) as a way to bolster their online reputation. Investigators found businesses solicited fake reviews for sites like Citysearch, Google, Yelp and more.
Overseas content providers – who had never even set foot in the businesses they reviewed – were responsible for many of the false write-ups. Other businesses paid customers or offered incentives to get them to leave positive reviews on the popular sites. Some business owners penned the fake reviews themselves.
The investigation resulted in 19 companies paying a total of $350,000 in penalties. The Times reports this signals a trend in the industry, with regulators across the country likely to follow suit.
How to Harness the Power of Online Reviews
Online reviews can affect your law firm in a profound way. After all, consumers respond favorably to “word-of-mouth” recommendations. There are ways to garner positive reviews without paying for them or strong-arming clients into writing them.
After you resolve a client’s case, ask if he or she will consider writing a testimonial or a review for one of the top sites. You can do this in person or in a low-pressure follow-up email. Do this without offering an incentive apart from the opportunity to tell others about their experience with your company – but make sure they don’t write the review while at your offices.
Take a proactive approach to fighting negative reviews. If someone leaves a bad review of your firm, resist the urge to “bury” it with dozens of fake positive reviews. Instead, contact the client directly and work to resolve the issue. He or she may even choose to remove the post. You may be able to write a follow-up post as the business owner under the negative post; politely apologize for the inconvenience they experienced and offer to work with them to resolve the issue.
A qualified and ethical online marketer can offer you personalized ideas on how best to manage your online reputation.
