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Facebook Reviews and You

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It seems today that most of us have a Facebook account.

Even those of us who aren’t very web-savvy are finding that the social media site is at least a great way to keep up with the happenings of distant family and friends. But that’s not all Facebook offers. This blog looks at the business rating service offered by the site and how that can impact HOA management.

Visit any Facebook page for a business. It could be your local pastry shop, a garden supply store, or even your HOA management company. For any business, Facebook users should have the opportunity to leave a review. Leaving a review for a business on Facebook serves the same purpose as leaving a review on Yelp, Google+, or any other social media site: to advise others on where to spend their money. While HOA management companies may not provide goods, they certainly provide services – services which your HOA dues pay for. Leaving a review can benefit potential customers, and also the management company.

How do reviews even work…really? First, one might wonder if the reviews are pure and true (i.e. if Facebook has or has not moderated or interfered with them). Unlike Yelp, which has strict rules regarding who can leave a review, Facebook focuses on the quality of the review itself. It only removes them if the post is outside of their guidelines (e.g. is overly abusive or encourages illegal activity). Furthermore, advertisers do not get special treatment in regards to reviews, and anyone who is logged into Facebook may leave a review.

Next, let’s look at the “star rating.” Facebook users might see, for example, “3.8 of 5 stars” on the business’ Facebook page. This figure is calculated by averaging all reviews. Hardly anyone has a perfect “5 star” rating. Unfortunately, as we described in a previous blog about Yelp, people tend to leave reviews about service providers when they are unhappy. Like internet utilities or trash removal companies, for example, customers tend to post their grievances and are unlikely to leave a post due to a job well done by these businesses. This is why a truly high-quality, or even decent, company might seem like the pits on review platforms.

On a less gloomy note, let’s look at the positive side of these reviews. They can do a lot for a business and for potential customers. When satisfied or impressed customers post, they provide to the public information on tested strengths of the company. This in turn gives validity to the company. Certainly, no business could go on for any long period of time with only negative customer interactions. Not only is the company validated, but accuracy is enhanced with good reviews. Bias and potential untruths may be present on an online profile if a company has been around a long while but only has negative reviews. Good reviews allow others to see more clearly the quality of a business’ goods/services…the bigger picture. Good reviews effectively encourage others to use the goods/services offered by a company, which obviously is good for the company, but also for the customer who has been looking for quality goods/services. Finally, unfavorable posts can either alert the public to shortcomings, or, as an unintended result of the review, expose and clear up common misconceptions.

We strongly encourage you to leave a review for CAP Management…or any business you like…after having a positive experience worth mentioning. Simply put, it helps screen out the bad guys that *only* get bad reviews. To do this, log onto Facebook (if you don’t have an account, it’s totally free), search for CAP Management, ‘like’ us, and review away! We’d really love to hear from you. Thanks and happy Facebooking!