Just this week I experienced the downside of a Yelp type marketplace. Someone who is not a client, did not become a client left several 1 star reviews on Yelp and Google because he did not like how I price the professional services and products I provide. OK, so you think I am too expensive for you. We, as a firm, are very clear in our conversations with potential clients that we specialize in businesses and the people who own them. People with complicated situations, complex tax issues. Our fee structure reflects that. I try not to waste people’s time if I know that our fee structure will not be appropriate for their situation.
But if you don’t like someone’s price, that then inspires you to leave terrible reviews of a company you never even did business with? That is unfortunately the downside of an open marketplace where people can leave reviews for any business they find online, whether they have ever even seen the business or not. This person does not even live in my state, so why he was searching for a CPA in a state so far away from him, I do not know. I looked at his Yelp profile…no friends, but he leaves a ton of bad reviews. Yelp took down his really crazy reviews, but notified him that they were doing so and he then felt compelled to leave yet one more review which Yelp refused to take down….
The point to this rant…..be wary of the 1 star review where the person sounds so dramatically unhappy with the company and then look at the other reviews for that same company. If the 1 star review is an anomaly, then it was likely left by a troll. As we all know the online world allows for anonymity….. no responsibility for backing up or proving an actual experience with the company they are reviewing. Some people really need to get a life, enhance their own real experiences and realize that when you like to leave bad reviews, you like to trash people for fun, it is you with the problem. Recognize your own unhappiness and stop taking it out on others you don’t even know, will never know.
We need to change the collective conscience in so many ways to improve the world we live in. We need to start practicing kindness, restraint, respect unless we want the norm to be a toxic, insult driven, confrontational environment. I for one like the way it feels to be nice, encourage, empower and lift people up. Ask questions first before attaching blame, insults, passive aggressive behavior. And, let’s face it, we all know what it feels like when that random act of kindness is unexpectedly aimed at you. Let’s do more of that.
