If you’re looking to invest in a business that has tons of negative Yelp reviews, should you run fast?? I’ll address what negative reviews could mean, how they are controlled and managed, and whether an entrepreneur or investor should consider negative reviews when validating the opportunity.
In a franchise, negative reviews COULD be a sign that the franchisor needs to deliver better training on customer service. When you’re exploring a franchise, the most important thing that you’re going to do is validate with other franchise owners. Here’s the thing: these franchise owners that you’re going to be talking to you are the ones who are DELIVERING on the training and DELIVERING a customer experience that ultimately is LEADING to these negative Yelp reviews. So if you get to the franchise owners, and they’re happy and they feel well-trained and they feel well supported, but there still many negative reviews, that is something to consider!
When it comes to mitigating negative reviews in a franchise, is it the responsibility of the franchisor or the franchisee?
The reality is, the customers who leave negative Yelp reviews are typically those who have had a negative experience. The best way that ANY business owner can control their Yelp reviews is to do what I do–ask EVERYBODY to leave a review. Now, yes, when you’re investing in a franchise, you’re investing in a brand. A brand is supposed to be a consistent consumer experience. But how does a franchisor control that consistent consumer experience when each location is independently owned? They do it through strong systems, through strong support, through ongoing training, by staying in contact with their franchisees, by working with their franchisees, by monitoring those key performance indicators.
Ultimately, it’s up to that franchisee to carry out that customer service and deliver that great customer experience. Now, if a lot of franchisees are getting negative reviews, the franchisor can go back and offer more support in the areas where the reviews may be negative if they’re trending over one topic, but ultimately, we have to focus on the franchisees and the experience that THEY are delivering through THEIR team in their particular locations.
These quality franchisors are very interested in what the end customer is saying about their brand. And it is the franchisor’s job to protect the integrity of that ENTIRE brand, and they have to care about how the franchisees are executing in order for the brand reputation to continue to grow in a positive way. Yelp reviews are controlled by franchisees and customer experience that’s delivered at the franchisee level. That can be controlled through great training and support, but it has to be executed on and delivered by the franchisee.
So if you are exploring a franchise that has a lot of negative Yelp reviews, should that be a deterrent from moving forward? I think it’s something to consider… But there are MANY different ways to validate the strength of a franchise brand. Yelp reviews should NOT be the key determining factor to whether you move forward or not.
If you are interested in finding a great franchisor that delivers great training so that you can go out and live the life of your dreams and create POSITIVE Yelp reviews with your franchise brand, I would LOVE to be your Daly Coach, and if you’ve enjoyed this video, you could leave ME a review by commenting on the YouTube video!
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