As a business owner, it’s only natural that you want happy customers and with that, you want glowing reviews form the efforts you put in to make them happy.

And nothing says that better than 5* reviews. You want your satisfied, happy customers telling the world how amazing you are!

Perfect ratings can only be good for your business, right?

Well, on the whole, yes, this is true. We would always encourage you to try and get 4 and 5 stars whenever you can.

But our message this week is that if and when you get a review that is less than perfect, don’t be disheartened.

It happens to every business at some point – You just need to use them to your advantage.

You see, consumers are smarter and more attuned than ever before and are OK with a certain level of detraction from the norm.

The modern consumer is looking for authenticity.

Don’t get us wrong – the overwhelming majority of your reviews should be 4 or 5 stars, but a mix of good and less-than-perfect reviews is absolutely fine too.

It shows you’re genuine, and that’s what the modern customer wants.

While the star rating of your product or service is vital, it’s not everything. The content of the review matters as well.

You should welcome some negative reviews about your business. There’ll be times when, as a business, you don’t quite get it perfect. And those reviews not only give you an opportunity to put things right with your customer and turn a not-so-great experience into a fantastic one by showcasing your customer service skills, they can also give further credibility to all of your other reviews too. No-one is perfect all the time, we all have the odd bad day, and negative reviews provide valuable insight that can help you keep improving the service you offer.

When you get a negative review, thank them for their valuable feedback and think about – “What can we do to put this right?”

You never know - that negative review you receive today could end up meaning you receive an amazing review from that person tomorrow!

Embrace all the reviews you get, not just the 5-star ones and become the face of honesty, integrity and credibility in your industry.