In dealing with search engine and Internet marketing, there is one topic that appears frequently that can be very challenging for business owners: What do you do with a bad review?

While the negatives of bad reviews are somewhat obvious, most research shows that there are also quite a few positives, and that critical reviews can actually benefit your business. Of course, you need positive reviews too, but most reviews are just honest feedback, and can help prospective customers find the product or service they need. Some value of negative reviews is:

• Lower your return rates, since people know what they are buying

• Correct your mistakes (is a product picture or description mislabeled? Let the customers tell you)

• Sell upgraded or alternate products, as customers make recommendations (such as "the fish is ok, but the steak is amazing")

• Gain SEO value as people mention your business and products

• Create trust as people feel like they see both sides of your company– omission of information erodes that trust

On the point of creating trust, an interesting study was done by SearchEnginePeople.com, which measured the conversion rate of products on a popular ecommerce site compared to the rating that product received in the reviews. Similar results have been found on many other ecommerce sites as well.

People tend to distrust products that have all 5 Star reviews and are more likely to purchase a product if they feel like they get "both sides of the story." This is an important aspect to consider during conversion rate optimization, as displaying reviews (even mixed reviews) can help. As part of your brand management strategy, it is important to remember that influencers depend on reliable and accurate information in order to maintain their influence. Online reviews help to build and maintain that trust. If a negative review does appear, it is perfectly ok, and generally preferable to leave it. But you also should learn from it. From an SEO and brand management perspective there are many things that you can learn.

1. See where the reviews are coming from

Google and many other search engines’ aggregate reviews from sites to display in their search listings. You can make sure that you at least have an official profile or presence on the original site, if possible. This may help other reviews rank as well, and can give you more of a voice to respond to feedback and inappropriate reviews and statements.

2. Learn how people talk about your product

Learning how people talk about your product can help you better target future SEO efforts. This may include certain adjectives (not those adjectives) and also general descriptions of the product.

3. Identify external brand ambassadors

This can help you identify key influential people that act as brand ambassadors. Sites like Yelp allow you to have followers and broadcast your reviews. Many other formal and informal review sites give people similar power.

4. Identify internal brand ambassadors

Some employees or key executives in companies become unofficial brand spokespeople in the eyes of key publics. These are rarely from your PR or Marketing department (everything they say is already suspect). Identifying who consumers trust within your organization can help you reach out and better engage them. This is often seen in large companies such as Google and Microsoft, but can also help identify popular restaurant or hotel managers (or whatever position applies to your business)

5. Identify areas of improvement

Brand conscious companies will always be looking for areas that they can improve. Of course, it is nearly impossible to satisfy 100% of people 100% of the time, but you can identify common trends and areas of concern.

Online reviews can be a very positive experience for your company and for your customers. Responding to them appropriately, and learning from poor reviews can further drive sales and create a valuable customer relationship. There is no reason to worry about a few negative reviews. If you have some time, look up your favorite restaurant, bar, or product and you will almost certainly find a broad range of opinions. It is that range that helps people determine if it is a good fit for their particular needs or interests.