Receiving new reviews on Indeed for your company can either be exciting or horrifying, depending on the words that follow. Knowing how to handle company reviews, though, whether they are positive or negative, can have a big impact on how potential employees view your company. And yes- in case you were wondering, company reviews have a huge impact on your reputation in the employment world.
You can deal with company reviews on Indeed the right way by focusing on these critical 13 do’s and don’ts:
Do:
- Respond Quickly
- Be Polite
- Acknowledge Their Concern, if Any
- Show How Your Company is Changing and Progressing
- Thank Them for Their Review
- Have Managers or Other Higher-Ups Respond
- Leave Contact Information
Don’t:
- Solely Focus on Negative Reviews
- Be Hostile
- Ignore Their Concerns
- Go Into Too Much Detail
- Make Excuses
- Cut and Paste Responses
When a potential employee is job hunting, one thing they look at is the company reviews. This is your only reputation for the employee on Indeed, so they’ll be looking into it to see if it’s a good ‘fit.’ Knowing how to professionally and successfully handle company reviews- good or bad- will help your reputation in the community and bring better workers to your job force.
Can Employers Respond to Reviews on Indeed?
One of the great things about the Indeed platform is that employers have the ability to respond to reviews left about their company, whether it was a disgruntled employee or someone who was giving an honest recount of their work-life there in an effort to encourage or discourage future hires.
But how you respond is going to be the most important piece of the puzzle here. There is certainly a right way and a wrong way to go about it. Choosing the right path will keep potential employees interested, even if they see a few negative remarks along the way.
Can a Company Delete Reviews on Indeed?
No, a company cannot delete reviews on Indeed. Yes, some of the reviews a company receives may be downright horrible. But if it’s all true, there really is not anything you can do about it. Of course, if the negative review is an outright lie, the company has the option of emailing the Indeed support team to consider removing a review.
For the most part, though, a few ‘bumps in the road’ here and there isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Negative reviews have a few advantages to them, including:
- It shows your company is human. No job is entirely perfect. Even if it’s the perfect fit for someone, another employee might have found a few things they weren’t so happy about. Negative reviews show that you’re a company full of humans, and you can’t keep everyone happy.
- It allows your company to respond in a successful, positive manner. A negative review just gives your company a chance to show how they respond and adjust to make improvements. This can leave a future hire feeling confident that the company not only cares enough to touch base with the unhappy employee, but that they know how to care for the disgruntled individual.
The Do’s and Don’ts of Responding to Company Reviews on Indeed
Reviews are incredibly important during a job hunt. In fact, many studies have been conducted on just how impactful these company reviews are. The results showed that well over 50% of people looking for work will look to the company reviews to see how the company truly is.
That being said, it’s true that negative feedback on your company is going to make future hires a bit weary. In fact, too many negative reviews can make your company an undesirable place to seek employment, and they may not put in an application altogether.
It’s important to handle company reviews professionally and successfully. Positive reviews will boost your company’s reputation, but negative remarks will humble your company. Knowing how to properly deal with positive and negative reviews is the best way to keep your company on-track with a good rep and lure in more potential employees. Here’s how:
Do:
- Respond Quickly
One of the best things to do is to respond as soon as you see the new company review. Whether it’s uplifting or pointing out the negatives of your company, you shouldn’t leave the review hanging around. Responding quickly shows the employee and future employees that the company cares about you and their reputation.
Future hires like to see that comments and concerns are being handled in a timely fashion. If you can show that you care about a few remarks on Indeed, they can feel confident that you will care when they (possibly) have a real problem in the workplace.
- Be Polite
Being kind and courteous is always going to be a sign of professionalism. Nobody wants to work for a place that is childish and doesn’t care about their employees, past, present, or future. If you are rude on the Indeed platform, then potential hires are definitely going to see it as a negative mark against your company.
The best thing to do is to always respond in a polite and professional manner. Even if the review is brand new and loaded with negative feedback from an unhappy past employee, the company should respond politely and keep up with their professionalism.
- Acknowledge Their Concern, if Any
Even a company that has 4.5 stars on Indeed and has over 300+ positive reviews will still have a few bumps in the road. Remember- you can’t keep everyone happy, and even something as small as having to work until 6 rather than 5 can leave someone feeling dissatisfied with your company.
So what should a company do when they see negative remarks about the job or company? Respond to the concerns. Don’t try to respond by swiftly looking past the negativity and only thanking them for their positive comments. This will only make the unhappy employee even more unhappy.
Instead, acknowledge the concerns and discuss ways that the company is handling the situation. The main goal is to take the negative and turn it into a positive. Discuss how the company is making positive changes so that these issues will not be an issue in the future.
Seeing that the company has a plan to avoid these negative situations in the future will give potential hires confidence in the team. That being said, always respond to the negative review and show how your company is fixing it and moving forward.
Last but not least: don’t forget to apologize to the employee and the situation they endured. Apologizing is going to make your company appear humble to potential hires. It shows them that you aren’t afraid to admit when you are wrong or show empathy for their team, which is always a good thing.
- Show How Your Company is Changing and Progressing
This can work with positive and negative reviews alike, but even more so when a review is riddled with negative comments. We discussed this a bit in the previous section, but we will go into greater detail here.
Give specific information and details when showing how your company is working to solve the situation and progress. For instance, if someone was upset that there was not enough vacation time offered while they were employed, you can discuss how the company has evolved and instigated vacation time for employees, and how they are able to earn more days throughout the year.
When it comes to positive remarks, the best thing to do is acknowledge the positive review and promise that the company is continuing to run in the same way. For example- if a reviewer was satisfied with how quickly employees were able to earn bonuses and raises, reinstate that the company is still providing this special feature and will continue to offer their employees with great salaries and bonuses along the way.
- Thank Them for Their Review
Sure, the company may not have loved seeing the 2-star review on their Indeed profile, but that doesn’t mean the company should be bitter. Whether the review is positive or negative, always thank the poster for their comment. This shows potential hires that you are grateful for someone’s time as well as what you have to say, whether it’s a good or bad thing about the company.
If they left a name with their review, try and place their name in the thank you, too. This will show that your company pays close attention to detail and wants everyone within the company to feel valued. Remember- it’s the little things that count, and those on the job hunt are always looking for them!
- Have Managers or Other Higher-Ups Respond
One thing that makes everyone upset is being directed to an HR team when they have a legitimate concern. If you have something negative to say about a company and want to see actual results, the last place you’re going to get it is with human resources. While they may be useful for some things, they aren’t the ones to change the way a company works.
That being said, commenters want to see that big problems within a company are seen and handled by a higher-up, such as a manager. When it comes to responding to comments on Indeed, even the positive reviews should be followed up by someone in a higher-up position- instead of relying on a special ‘team’ that doesn’t seem personal.
- Leave Contact Information
When someone seems to be very upset with something that has gone on with your company, sometimes the best thing to do is apologize and see if the situation can be handled privately. This is probably more likely if someone has a more personal issue with the company and has- or hasn’t- described it thoroughly on Indeed.
If that’s the case, then you will want to leave contact information for the individual to get in contact with a higher-up to discuss the details of the negative comments. Invite them to email or call with their concern to see if the situation can be handled properly.
Doing something like this shows that your company is truly interested in solving bad situations. In turn, potential hires feel confident that their voices will be heard, and even the worst problems will get ample attention from someone involved in running the company.
Don’t:
- Solely Focus on Negative Reviews
It can be tempting to ignore positive reviews. After all, the employee was happy, you’re happy, and that’s all that needs to be done- right? While negative reviews should receive more attention than positive reviews, you should never outright ignore the positive comments left for your company.
The best thing to do when it comes to positive comments is to thank them for commenting and that you are happy they enjoy/enjoyed working for the company. Then, share with the commenter (and readers) that your company will continue to run in the same way that leaves their employees feeling content.
Responding to positive reviews, again, shows potential hires that you care about everything your employees have to say. It shows that you are willing to take time on positive feedback just as much as negative, which can also make potential employees believe that you pay attention to the ‘good’- which could lead to increases and promotions more regularly.
- Be Hostile
Being defensive and hostile to negative reviews is one of the worst things any company can do. This type of hostility will have potential hires running from your job post. After all, who wants to work for a company that is only going to reject them and become defensive when they have a problem? This can only mean the company does not care about its employees.
That being said, even if the review seems outlandish or excessive, you must remain professional and calm. Don’t let their negative energy destroy your company’s reputation even further. Respond politely and professionally, acknowledge their concerns, and show how your company is working to resolve these issues in the future.
- Ignore Their Concerns
Could you imagine talking to your manager about a concern you have, only to be ignored? Employees want to feel valued by their company. But how can they have any validation when their concerns are being overshadowed?
You never want to ignore concerns left on a company review on Indeed. You must always acknowledge these issues and find solutions to the problem, then voice them in your comment. This will allow potential hires to see that you care about all aspects of the company and truly want to find resolutions to all types of problems, big or small.
- Go Into Too Much Detail
A three-page long comment back to a negative review is just not going to cut it. Nobody is going to want to spend 30 minutes reading about how a company is going to change each and every problem. Instead, be clear and concise about how you’re going to fix the situation and change the company, so these problems don’t arise again.
If you really do have a lot that needs to be discussed about the company, you are encouraged to take the conversation off of Indeed. Leave your contact information so the problem can be discussed further. Even when you don’t have more to say, sometimes it’s best to leave contact information, so everyone can feel comfortable that their problems are being resolved.
- Make Excuses
Any company that makes excuses rather than handling problems within the companies is a major turn off for potential hires. Job-hunting individuals will most likely ignore the job posting if they see that your company is not listening to the employee and rather finding a way to blame the employee or find an excuse.
That being said, never make excuses for why your employees are unhappy. Instead, use conflict resolution and discover ways to handle the situation properly. Share these ideas with the commenter for everyone to see and be happy about.
- Cut and Paste Responses
There is probably nothing more cold and annoying than a ‘cut and paste response.’ It leaves the commenter wondering if you even read the review at all. That being said, while it might be easy to cut and paste a thank you response, it’s going to make your company seem shallow and make it appear like you don’t care.
Each and every comment- good or bad- should have a personalized response. Responses should acknowledge everything that was written in the review, including positive and negative remarks. A thank you should always be added to the response by the company, too, to show that you are professional and sincere in your answers.
Conclusion
Company reviews are a part of being on Indeed, and they greatly help those looking for a job. With reviews being one of the main tools potential employees look at, it’s important that your company is handling reviews properly. The best thing to do is to always remain professional and polite, whether it’s positive or negative. Always acknowledge concerns, find solutions, and voice how your company is improving and progressing to avoid these downfalls in the future.
