Do you browse the Internet to see what people are saying about your firm? What do you do when a client posts a bad review? That review can be seen by anyone, including people who are seeking the legal services that your firm provides. People who, in all likelihood, will end up going to your competitor if a bad review discourages them from your firm.

It is time for damage control.

If you have implemented the good communication practices outlined in Getting bad reviews? Review your client communication, you are well on your way to getting great reviews and preventing negative feedback from your clients.

However, you still need a plan for responding to negative feedback. It does not matter whether the client complained online or through a phone call, email or snail mail. All client feedback, positive or negative, deserves your time and attention.

Have a Process in Place

You must first have a process in place for responding to unhappy clients. Keeping everything in writing is a good idea, but most situations are better resolved by talking to the client on the phone or in-person. This helps avoid misunderstandings. You can always follow up with an email that reviews the main points of your discussion.

But what about online reviews? If a customer says something negative about your firm on a public forum, by all means, respond on that forum. It is important that others see that you are doing what you can to right the wrong. Respond in a way that enables you to work with the client to resolve the issue, instead of pitting yourself against him.

The goal is to create a client relationship-building situation by doing these things:

• Agree that a problem exists and state that you will work with the client to resolve it.

• Apologize for the situation, even if you do not acknowledge the specific accusation.

• Thank the client for bringing the problem to your attention and for helping you resolve it.

• Implement conciliatory outreach to show that you are willing to go above and beyond to ensure satisfaction.

• Follow up once you think the issue is resolved in order to make sure the client is satisfied.

You should have a response template ready to send either by mail or by email when needed, but it should be customized to fit each situation. Your response should make it clear that you are truly sorry for the problem and you want to resolve it to the client’s satisfaction.

Employing a reputation and reviews management campaign will help your firm track negative online reviews so you can respond quickly. This minimizes the damage and maximizes positive exposure.

In addition, be sure to make your clients aware that they can contact you directly if they are dissatisfied for any reason. In most cases, clients want to give you the opportunity to fix the problem. If they feel comfortable enough to contact you directly, it gives you a chance to resolve the issue before they post about it online. The end result will be a happy client and a positive review.