It is inevitable that you to face some people in your life that will try everything to destroy your business, as some will spread false information to prevent people from benefitting from what you have to offer. However, you can’t let them win and end the day controlling the narrative, so here are some ways to minimize the impact of their comments and come out strong.

Determine who posted the comments

You can check if the comments came from a suspicious account. If it has, the said comment might probably be from your opponents and you’ll need to deal with the problem head-on and tell the truth. On the other hand, if you determined that the comment was legitimate, you need to explain and tell the person that you are going to look into the matter and find a way to deal with it if it turns out to be true.

Delete the comments

Since you can control what appears on your page, you can delete the comments if they bring nothing to the discussion. By removing the comments, the conversation will no longer revolve around it. You also prevent other people who are yet to see the comments from seeing them, being beneficial for everyone.

Be diplomatic

After realising that the comments came from an actual customer, you need to be diplomatic. Try to explain further through a private message, and If you wish to explain in public, you need to be careful with your words. You need to avoid reaching a point when it feels like you are already blaming the person for leaving a negative comment. You are dealing with a customer, and your reaction could adversely affect all other customers.

Block the accounts

Again, you will know it if the statement is from a real person, or if it is a bot. You will also see if it was a fake account created for the sole purpose of destroying your business. Yes, your competitor might keep on creating new accounts to destroy you, but it could get tiring at some point. You control your page, and you can determine who has permission to leave comments.

Don’t threaten anyone

Even through private messages, you need to avoid threats as you’ll regret it in the end if the person screenshots the conversation and posts it publicly. These comments might hurt you, but they won’t end your company. You don’t have to make threats to stop people from saying something wrong and If you knew who they are, you could always file a suit against them.

Don’t obsess on social media

If you have a social media account you know how toxic it is to participate in the online discussion, however since you need to have an online account to promote your business, you need to face these challenges. Nevertheless, you need to also create a marketing strategy to execute outside the online world and for instance, you can buy exhibition stands so that you can use them when advertising during trade shows and conferences. It is easier to control the narrative for offline ads compared with online discussions where misinformation can quickly spread.