PR and marketing professionals strive to promote positive online product reviews and counter negative reviews. They believe negative reviews may irreparably damage a company’s reputation, while positive reviews increase trust and attract customers.
Unfortunately, some businesses have employed questionable tactics to publish positive reviews and suppress negative reviews. Some have required customers to sign agreements that prohibit them from writing negative reviews. Some have threatened review writers with legal action and punitive damages.
Such strong-armed tactics often backfired. The Union Street Guest House in Hudson, NY, once threatened a wedding party with $500 fines for every bad review the wedding’s guests left on Yelp. After media coverage prompted a storm of outrage, the hotel soon dropped the policy.
The End of Gag Clauses
The threat of those “gag clauses” have ended.
The Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016, signed into law by President Obama last December with an effective date of March 14, 2017, voids such “non-disparagement” clauses. State attorneys general and the Federal Trade Commission have the power to enforce the act.
However, the law applies only to “form contracts,” not negotiated agreements, points out Mark Lange of Reputation.com, in an article for the PRSA. It doesn’t cover arrangements between companies and their employees or shield consumers from defamation suits.
“Regardless, fabricating or suppressing customer voices isn’t good branding — it’s marketing fraud,” Lange asserts.
Fake Positive Reviews
Writing fake positive online reviews, another unethical practice, may be prevalent, despite the efforts of online review sites to end the practice. A Harvard Study suggested that 15 to 30% of reviews are fake; Gartner estimated 10 to 15%.
Last summer, the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network, which includes 60 governmental consumer-protection authorities, published Online Reviews & Endorsements: ICPEN Guidelines for Traders & Marketing Professionals. Essentially, the guidelines say:
- Don’t write, commission or publish fake reviews;
- Don’t prevent consumers from seeing the whole picture of genuine, relevant and lawful reviews; and
- Prominently disclose sponsored content and other commercial relationships that might impact the content.
Savvy businesses take that advice a step further, Lange says. They proactively seek reviews that accurately reflect your customers’ satisfaction levels. They ask all customers to share honest feedback and display all comments.
Bad reviews can help businesses, agrees digital marketing consultant Shane Barker. They actually increase trust, Barker writes in Inc. Every product has at least some drawbacks. If customers see only good reviews, they may become suspicious. Many bad reviews are not entirely negative and help customers reach better purchase decisions.
Bottom Line: A new law prohibits form contracts that try to stop customers from writing negative reviews. Unscrupulous businesses can take note: Trying to suppress negative reviews or making up positive reviews will backfire and lead to a PR disaster or a marketing catastrophe. The most effective long-term tactic is to seek honest reviews and increase trust by showing both the good and bad.
William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.
