Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My best friend is a small business owner. Last weekend he discovered his wife is having an affair. He immediately moved out, filed for divorce, and things are already getting pretty ugly. She's already lashing out and trying to make his life miserable in any way she can. He's very concerned about soon to be ex-wife trying to hurt the business by making fake accounts and posting malicious/bogus reviews. Obviously he's got a lot on his plate, and reached out to me to look into the bogus review thing for him.
Has anyone dealt with this kind of thing before (not the affair/divorce, but people for whatever reason trying to hurt business through bogus reviews)?
I did a little research already. Seems there is a way to flag a review as inappropriate and violating TOS. I also found a link for Google small business portal where there's a Contact Us option where you might be able to contact an actual human via email.
Just wondering if anyone else has any suggestions or ideas or experiences with this? Is there any way to get his business removed from Google completely for a time? He's worried that even if he can be successful in getting bogus reviews removed, if they're even up for a short time it could have an irreparable negative impact. Based on his profession (he sees patients) he thinks she might say things like inappropriate advances, sexual harassment, etc.
I know it's hypothetical at this point, but he is very worried about it. Just trying to get ahead of it so we know what to do should it happen.
I think company owners can leave a response on Google reviews.
Yeah I saw that too. But having a review on there saying "Do not go here, he was very creepy and tried to touch me inappropriately" and then a response from business owner saying "This is a troll review and isn't true" is still a pretty bad look. I know if I saw that in the reviews I would be hesitant to patronize that business.
Find a competent and qualified attorney that specializes in defamation and have them at the ready. If the post crosses from free speech to defamation, get the lawsuit filed and the person served. Additionally, be prepared to go public. This way instead of just saying the review may be made up, you reference a specific public story pertaining to the situation.
He should hire a company that reviews and monitors online company reputations. Someone who sees patients is usually licensed by the state and your friend should also protect his personal reputation.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
