I posted the below text as a “Note” on my FB account today. It mainly resulted from the following review of my restaurant:
“very average pizza…too many other great pizza places.”
That was the entire review. Nothing more. I don’t mind criticism. But I don’t get the point of some of these Urbanspoon ****es. Anyway, I wish Urbanspoon, Yelp, etc would put put something like this on their website as an introduction. Or maybe have a waiting period for posting. Something that makes people think before they post. Sheez
"While I’m at it, let me get on my high horse and say a few things about Yelp and Urbanspoon reviews. My wife and I own Next Door Pizzas and, like so many other small businesses, we have poured our own personal savings, time, and energy into making it a success. We have created over 30 jobs in our community (thanks to help from Summit Bank of KC). Countless businesses in our community are in the same position.
When you post negative things on the internet about these businesses, it hurts. It hurts the business, it hurts the owner, it hurts the employees, and it hurts the community. So I encourage you to read this before you post.
If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.
First, if you simply do not like the food or product at a business, why say anything at all? We are not offended if you don’t come back because you don’t like our food. We think our food is great, but everybody has different tastes. But what purpose would you serve by posting this information on the internet? Do you gain notoriety? Is it self-inflating? In our mind, what you are saying is that you hope we fail. Obviously, you don’t want us to improve or you would have kept the conversation private, right? Imagine if your boss was dissatisfied with a project you completed. Would it be more useful for him to publicly announce your poor performance or tell you in private? And think, if the business fails, what have you gained? A vacant storefront? A community with fewer jobs? A bankrupt family? And for what, because you didn’t like the style of pizza?
Sometimes, however, we businesses earn negative feedback. And if we personally mistreated you, I expect you to go sing it from the mountain. It is your right. But, have you first considered e-mailing me to see if we can make it right? Were you vocal enough about your dissatisfaction to allow us to correct it? Is it fair to the business to criticize them on the internet for something you were unable to criticize them about in person? Before you make that negative post, ask if you are willing to make those comments in person to the business. If not, perhaps you should reconsider your post.
Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.
The internet is a great tool which has opened up countless opportunities for small businesses. It also provides a large voice to the otherwise voiceless. But be conscious about whom you are speaking. If the public could evaluate your job performance every day, would they find negative things to say about you? Now imagine, they could post those things on the internet. Now imagine that you had no recourse about what those people said. Not pretty, is it?
In conclusion, please be considerate about us small businesses next time you decide to post reviews on the internet. Is it worth the pain and sorrow that it causes small businesses in your community? Would you like it if people publicly criticized your job performance?
Thanks for taking the time to read and I apologize for the grammar in this post, as I’m sure I did not proofread it
"
“very average pizza…too many other great pizza places.”
That was the entire review. Nothing more. I don’t mind criticism. But I don’t get the point of some of these Urbanspoon ****es. Anyway, I wish Urbanspoon, Yelp, etc would put put something like this on their website as an introduction. Or maybe have a waiting period for posting. Something that makes people think before they post. Sheez
"While I’m at it, let me get on my high horse and say a few things about Yelp and Urbanspoon reviews. My wife and I own Next Door Pizzas and, like so many other small businesses, we have poured our own personal savings, time, and energy into making it a success. We have created over 30 jobs in our community (thanks to help from Summit Bank of KC). Countless businesses in our community are in the same position.
When you post negative things on the internet about these businesses, it hurts. It hurts the business, it hurts the owner, it hurts the employees, and it hurts the community. So I encourage you to read this before you post.
If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.
First, if you simply do not like the food or product at a business, why say anything at all? We are not offended if you don’t come back because you don’t like our food. We think our food is great, but everybody has different tastes. But what purpose would you serve by posting this information on the internet? Do you gain notoriety? Is it self-inflating? In our mind, what you are saying is that you hope we fail. Obviously, you don’t want us to improve or you would have kept the conversation private, right? Imagine if your boss was dissatisfied with a project you completed. Would it be more useful for him to publicly announce your poor performance or tell you in private? And think, if the business fails, what have you gained? A vacant storefront? A community with fewer jobs? A bankrupt family? And for what, because you didn’t like the style of pizza?
Sometimes, however, we businesses earn negative feedback. And if we personally mistreated you, I expect you to go sing it from the mountain. It is your right. But, have you first considered e-mailing me to see if we can make it right? Were you vocal enough about your dissatisfaction to allow us to correct it? Is it fair to the business to criticize them on the internet for something you were unable to criticize them about in person? Before you make that negative post, ask if you are willing to make those comments in person to the business. If not, perhaps you should reconsider your post.
Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.
The internet is a great tool which has opened up countless opportunities for small businesses. It also provides a large voice to the otherwise voiceless. But be conscious about whom you are speaking. If the public could evaluate your job performance every day, would they find negative things to say about you? Now imagine, they could post those things on the internet. Now imagine that you had no recourse about what those people said. Not pretty, is it?
In conclusion, please be considerate about us small businesses next time you decide to post reviews on the internet. Is it worth the pain and sorrow that it causes small businesses in your community? Would you like it if people publicly criticized your job performance?
Thanks for taking the time to read and I apologize for the grammar in this post, as I’m sure I did not proofread it
"
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