You should never try to remove a negative review simply because it is negative. However, a review can be removed if it clearly violates the platform’s community standards and/or its terms of service. Each platform’s guidelines differ slightly, but will often include provisions to remove reviews that are abusive, contain hate speech, harassment, threats, or don’t talk about a customer’s personal experience (“I was with a friend who bought a car from ___.”).
Check out the links below for information on each review platform’s community standards. If you believe a review violates these guidelines, you can reach out to the platform in question to have it removed!
If a negative review doesn’t violate the platform’s community standards, it’s important to remember that the customer can remove the review themselves. We suggest business owners reach out and respond to every negative review to address the issue and help the customer feel heard. Often if a customer feels their negative experience was addressed and handled accordingly, they will give your business another chance and remove their negative review. In fact, 95% of unhappy customers return to your business if you resolve the issue quickly and effectively.
Responding to negative and positive reviews can be an overwhelming task for any busy dealership. Luckily, Friendemic offers a Review Response Service where we will monitor and respond to your dealership’s reviews with empathetic responses in a timely manner, 365 days a year. We even handle review validation and handling of disputes on your behalf. Sign up for a demo and check out our website to learn more!