Reviews are great for your business because they tell everyone what a great job you can do! But occasionally, there’s the odd fake google review. And while almost anyone can leave fake reviews, it’s usually one of your competitors or somebody that accidentally reviewed the wrong business. And since this review will reflect adversely on your reputation and potentially deter customers, you’ll want to do something about it- and fast!

But how to respond to a fake Google review?

Well, while there is no definite answer to how to respond to a fake google review, here are a few things you can do to respond.

How to Spot a Fake Review?

Some businesses tend to buy reviews to build an online reputation, but this is definitely not a good idea! In fact, you should know that you might have to face legal consequences for doing so possibly. However, sometimes trolls can also leave fake, often bad, reviews on your business page. But before you think of how to respond to a fake google review, you need to be able to spot one. And although you can’t know for sure, here are some ways to single out fake reviews:

• Fake reviews are not as detailed or specific.
• They have more verbs than nouns.
• They contain more first-person pronouns.
• They are either one or five stars.
• The reviewer has a horrible history.

How to Respond to a Fake Google Review?

Not responding to a bad review can be potentially damaging, and thus, you must always work on putting out your side of the story. Google itself will tell you that you need to be polite but brief when responding to a fake review. So, you can write something along these lines:

Hi (reviewer’s name),

We take these matters very seriously. However, unfortunately, we have no records or recollection of your experience with us, nor can we verify your identity in our records. Given you have done business with us, we would like to investigate the issue further. Please contact (employee’s name) immediately at (company’s email address) so that we can work towards a solution.

Thank you!

Flag the Review

Once you’ve responded to the review, you should flag it. This will take you to the ‘Report a Policy Violation’ page, where you can enter your details and select the type of violation. You can also expedite the process by getting other people to flag the review as well.

Try Deleting the Review

You can never be sure that the review will be removed, and so you need to know how to respond to a fake google review first. This is because proving that a review is fake can be pretty tricky. Nevertheless, if the review is hateful or profane, you should delete it. For this, you’ll need to contact Google Support, and they’ll get back to you in about two business days.

If you want a review removed, here are some grounds you can base your complaint on:

Unfortunately, though, these complaints are only valid for text reviews and not only-star reviews.

• Off-topic or irrelevant
• Illegal content
• Spam and fake content
• Terrorist content
• Dangerous or derogatory
• Offensive content
• Restricted content
• Sexually explicit content
• Conflict of interest
• Impersonation

Ask For Help

Fake reviews can be frustrating but remember that you have to respond and not react. Be calm, collected, and professional. Also, instead of asking how to respond to a fake google review, consider hiring a professional to do it for you because they know precisely when and how to respond to fake reviews to mitigate potential risks. Thus, get in touch with a professional for the best results without any of the hassles.