Negative reviews in Google: how to work with reputation in search results
27.04.2023 13:18
We recently posted a comment on our website about the fact that the search engine Google missed several angry pro-Russian comments on its Google Maps service.
We were interested in the issue and decided to find out how brand owners or online stores should respond to negative reviews, namely how to get rid of them. As it turned out, it's not enough to simply delete a comment from Google.map or a third-party website. The issue of reputation needs to be approached comprehensively. And you can start by simply monitoring mentions of your store or company in search results.
What technologies do experienced professionals use to combat online hate and how can they apply them in their business?
Why Google?
It is a well-known fact that Google is a monopolist in the Ukrainian virtual space. According to the 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer study, only 47% of people trust the media, while 60% of people trust search engines, which exceeds the level of trust even in experts (41%).
Nowadays, finding information on Google is as commonplace for people as going to the library. Despite the growing amount of unreliable and harmful information and its increasing accessibility to all people on the planet, Google remains the main source of data.
Given the growing influence of the Internet, modern consumers' perceptions of a company, brand or store are also shaped by search engines. If a user comes across sites with negative mentions of your store in the search results, they will probably not want to do business with you.
Thus, to grow your online business, you need to not only create a quality product and provide first-class customer service. You also need to work out negative reviews, on the one hand, and build a positive image, on the other.
Let's take a closer look at how to moderate negative reviews if they appear on third-party websites or on Google Maps.
How Google moderates store reviews
Google analyses reviews about a store, product or service using automated algorithms and human moderators. The algorithms automatically check reviews for signs of spam, offensive language, verbal abuse, and other violations of the rules of conduct on the Internet.
Google moderators review reviews that have not been automatically moderated. They can detect violations of the rules, such as fake or purchased reviews, as well as specific comments that do not meet the search engine's review criteria.
Business owners can respond to comments on Google maps or other third-party sites by controlling the content published on their profile.
However, what to do when the reviews authorised by Google are harmful to the company's reputation? For example, a Torgsoft client faced a situation where the search engine missed negative comments:
Is it possible to remove data from the search engine?
The easiest way to remove a negative review on someone else's website is to contact the administrator, host, or owner of the resource with a request to remove unwanted content. However, there are often situations when the site has either been down for a long time or your request has been rejected.
In this case, you have the right to remove information from search results under the DMCA - DMCA Report Form - a special complaint form for Google and other search engines.
In Google, you can file a complaint through the content removal form. Some countries also use the so-called right to be forgotten, which can be used to remove information from search results. In Ukraine, this right is currently not widespread and its implementation depends on the development of the country's relations with the EU.
According to the Law on Personal Data Protection, the personal data of the information owner may be deleted in the following cases:
- Upon expiry of the data retention period specified by the website owner or the law.
- Upon termination of the legal relationship between the personal data subject and the website owner.
- By a court decision to delete or destroy personal data from the website.
Why is it important to work with Google search results?
According to a study by Status Labs, 90% of people searching for information about a brand on the Internet have not yet formed an opinion about it before starting the search. Reputation in search engines is extremely important for business, as it helps companies create an acceptable image in the online environment.
One of the technologies used to build online reputation is SERM, which is the formation of search engine results in the most favourable way for a brand. This formation of positive search results is achieved through a number of tools, one of which is monitoring the results (queries, mentions of your brand) and preparing appropriate recommendations for new placements.
For example, you can post positive content that aims to neutralise reputational damage:
- prepare positive reviews as opposed to negative ones,
- publish loyal content on external and own resources,
- cooperate with the media and opinion leaders when necessary.
SERM tools and technologies should be used on an ongoing basis.
Remember, if you don't build your reputation on Google, someone else will.
SERM as a way to remove negative information from search results
SERM is a win-win way to push out negative mentions of a brand on the Internet and strengthen its reputation, which works in the long run. SERM is a part of ORM (Online Reputation Management), which is the process of managing public opinion about a brand or person through online communication.
SERM, in particular, identifies negative factors affecting reputation in order to reduce them in search engine results. Using techniques and manipulations, SERM can push negative positions down 2-3 pages.
The SERM strategy plan includes the following points:
1. Identification of reputational queries on Google.
You should choose the queries that are most relevant to your business. For example, relevant queries for a lingerie store may include: "Store name_buy", "Store name_name of a popular product". You can check the popularity, i.e. the frequency of queries that people use to find information about you, using Google Keyword Planner, Google Alerts, or analytics services such as Semrush.
2. Analyse search results for reputational queries.
Next, you should enter each query from the list in the Google search bar and determine the number of links to your store in the results. The content for each link is analysed for its tone (positive, negative, or neutral). For qualitative analysis, experts recommend recording the results of search results in incognito mode. You need to audit search results on an ongoing basis.
Review Google search results, including the top sites in your industry: ratings, employee reviews, customer feedback forums, images, social profiles of customers, etc.
3. Develop communication guidelines and measures to replace negative content.
The strategy for responding to negative comments is based on the number and type of such materials that need to be removed. If necessary, you can return to the methods of removing unacceptable information described above.
For more details on online reputation management, algorithms for working with search results and responding to negative feedback, see our article:
4. Use of Internet marketing tools.
Other ORM methods will help to manage the authority of a business on the Internet and accumulate positive mentions:
- Writing texts as part of media relations. Users should see more positive and valuable content about your brand when they enter a search query about you. Materials should meet reputational needs and work to improve the image of the company/store in the eyes of people.
- Selection of platforms and placement. Articles about your usefulness and positive reviews can be published both on third-party resources that have great potential for successful search engine promotion and on your own channels (website blog, social media, RSS feed of content on your website).
You can order paid articles on influential online media with backlinks to your website, which will help to increase the link mass of your website, increase the citation and traffic to your resource.
- Internal optimisation (SEO). If you optimise the internal pages of your website or social media well, your content will be displayed on the first positions of search results. This means that it can replace negative comments about the store.
- Audit the positions of posted materials in the search results. After publishing positive content, you need to control how long it stays in the top positions in search results. And update the content. This can be done both manually and with the help of keyword position monitoring services, such as SE Ranking.
- Fixing and analysing the results. This is the final stage of the SERM strategy, when an online reputation specialist determines the results of the activities carried out, which goals have been achieved or which need to be adjusted or repeated.
If you do everything consistently and wisely, you will see fewer negative comments about your store and more satisfied customers in a few months. After all, working with reputation, although it does not have an immediate effect, still has a significant impact on the promotion of your business both online and offline.
What can you do now?
If you run a regular business and have satisfied customers, ask them for help so that they leave real constructive feedback about working with your store. Dealing with fake, abusive, irrelevant comments is a common struggle that can rally customers to defend your store.
Ask friends and acquaintances to file complaints about irrelevant reviews. The more complaints about such reviews, the more likely they will be removed.
If you can't delete the reviews, leave a substantiated comment with your own point of view under each one - potential customers pay attention to how the business owner responds and answers.
Thank you for your feedback! It will be published after being reviewed by a moderator.
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