Fake reviews can cause a big problem for many businesses. Whether these reviews are spam reviews or are reviews that are not meant for your business, if the review is negative, it can impact your local reputation. Even if these reviews come with a high star rating, your business should do its best to remove them. However, this can be more complicated than you’d think. Here are some tips on how to handle fake reviews on Facebook or Google:
Get the Review Removed:
The first step to handling these fake reviews is to try to get the review removed. Unfortunately, it can be challenging to work directly with Facebook and Google as they may not be the most responsive. Do your best to get it removed by reporting the review.
Fake Facebook Reviews:
The best way to try to get rid of a fake review on Facebook is to repeatedly report the review. In the right-hand corner of the review is 3 dots. Select the 3 dots and then select “Report Post.” This is where you can report the review as spam. If you repeatedly report the review, it will more likely get Facebook to remove the review. It can also help to ask others to also report the review so that it comes from multiple sources. Facebook will hopefully end up removing the review but it may take some time.
Fake Google Reviews:
To report fake reviews on Google Search, click the three vertical dots in the top right corner and select “Report Review”. Select “Spam” from the list of Report Review options. From Google Maps, select the review, click the three vertical dots, and click “Flag as inappropriate”. Google may take up to 20 days to remove the review if they decide it’s spam.
Respond to the Review:
While you are trying to get the review removed from Facebook or Google, respond to the review as your business page. Since it may take a while to get the fake review removed, you want to make it clear that the review is fake by responding in the comments. Here is an example from one of our clients. This business has gotten multiple spam reviews. These are obvious spam reviews so it’s simple to respond with “Thank you but this has nothing to do with our business” or “This is a spam review and is not relevant to our business.”
Occasionally, businesses may get real reviews that do not belong to their business. A customer may confuse you with another business or another location. If this is the case and it really is not meant for your business, you can respond with “Thank you but this review was not meant for our business. I believe this review was meant for another business.” If the review is negative, it’s very important that you respond and make it clear that this person did not do business with you.
Fake or spam reviews can be very frustrating for business owners. If you are struggling with your reviews, we are here to help. Book a consultation with one of our experts today.
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