Quote Of The Day: "Negative Reviews Are Good For Business" Edition
Like most corporate trends, the rush to social media is often little more than an opportunity for new consultants to sell common sense packaged in the buzzwords du jour. And though it’s easy to just laugh off the process as just another fad, it’s important to remember that common sense is in relatively short supply these days… if the only way to get it across is to punctuate it with words like “engagement” and “voice share,” so be it. And because social media is forcing companies to come to grips with every possible kind of feedback, the trend is actually helping validate the hard-hitting editorial approach that TTAC has long embraced. At Motor Trader’s social media conference, Richard Anson, CEO of the consumer review site Reevoo, explains the simple truth:
Social content will help drive sales so trust and transparency are vital; we all trust our peers more than any vendor or brand. Negative reviews are good for business. Retailing is all about transparency so perfection is not credible. Customers expect and want negative reviews and they give dealers a great opportunity to engage.
Hear, hear!
This is a lesson that the auto industry often struggles with, especially with in-house social media efforts like The Ford Story (now social.ford.com). But even within the larger automotive media scene, there’s a lack of appreciation for the constructive powers of negative reviews. Due to a long and pointless tradition in the automotive media of trying to objectively evaluate all vehicles on a single rating or “star system,” there’s a sense that negativity in a review implies that a car is not worth considering. In reality, if someone is going to own and live with a car, aren’t they going to be as interested in its flaws as its charms? Consumers aren’t stupid, and if they feel like they’re getting a whitewash from any one review outlet, they’ll look elsewhere. And thanks to the internet and “social media,” they’ve got lots of options.
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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I think that negative reviews that are fair are good. But many reviews from print and online publications take extremes with their reviews. Jack Baruth covered this recently with the Sebring/200 reviews from a particular writer. I think finding fair reviews are much harder these days.
I think the way it is these days on most products is that we expect a minimum standard of competance. In 2011 we expect stuff to work and not break down whether it's a car or computer or camera. I would also think that people have some idea of what to expect... if you buy a Corvette you expect to have blistering speed, poor interior room and a bad Cobalt class fittings and poor fuel economy... so you need to see if you can live with the downsides while enjoying the upsides of which it has many. I agree with the above poster who says he looks at the negatives first. I love reviews that sums things up with the pros and cons. Look at the cons, see if you can live with them. Ignore the pros because you basically should know what they are depending on what kind of car you're looking at.