How To Handle Negative Comments On Social Media as a Nigerian

No one finds happiness in negative comments on social media but unless you are perfect, it will surely happen. This is because we live in a world and in a country where everyone has a voice online even though it is rare physically. Social media in Nigeria creates an avenue for Nigerians to speak up.

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Why You Should Handle Negative Comments On Social Media

Most times, negative comments on social media are the most prevalent case. Both your customers and followers will always give their comments which may be positive or negative. These commentators might be older people or even those that you are older than. What matters is if you can handle these negative comments.

Come to think of it, you might have been getting positive comments on social media for a while. But at some point, you start getting negative comments on social media which may be due to a change in your contents’ style. Now, how do you manage these negative reviews? Stick around to know how to manage negative comments.

9 Effective Steps to Handle Negative Comments On Social Media

Analyze the negative comment

First of all, it is necessary to carefully read the negative comments on social media made by a user. Then, you should identify the problem and try to adopt a positive attitude.

In addition, it is important to analyze the consequences and the impact that the said comment could have on our brand to act accordingly. By so doing, it will be easier for you to handle negative comments.

Make yourself available and visible

Your social media profile should be made easy for your friends and followers to contact you and for you to reach out to them. This is because all negative comments shouldn’t be replied to in the public.

If your followers complain about your posts and how they go against them, leave a polite reply that shows you talked from your perspective. Perhaps you are a business owner and you get negative comments on social media about your product. With a gentle tone, say sorry to your complainants and make sure to rectify the situation. By doing this, you have been able to handle negative comments on social media without affecting your brand.

Keep calm

Always have it in mind that you are a brand and you represent your brand on any social media in Nigeria. The negative comments on social media you are experiencing or likely to experience is not for you but your brand.

Therefore, don’t get carried away by the negative comments for the time being. Keep calm and take a deep breath in that kind of situation before saying anything or taking any action. You have a lot of reasons to keep calm because you have an image to protect.

So, you need to meditate on the kind of response you give to a person who comments negatively on your posts. Despite the kind of tone they may use to reply, take your time to reply respectfully with a nice tone. It is not all about them but about you. A lot of people are watching how you will reply to such comments and you need to shock them.

It is important to meditate on the answer that we are going to give to the user. Also, it is important to be respectful and to take care of the tone you use. The ideal way is to use close language and provide words that help calm the situation and not enter into conflict.

Listen to followers and be empathic

As a user using social media in Nigeria, you need to have a listening ear. Although the situations aren’t easy as it looks, you must learn to listen to your followers. An influencer or just a social media user needs to pay special attention to criticisms and requests from friends and followers.

You must learn to empathize with followers and friends. Using this medium, you will have more certainty about what your followers think of you. Unknowingly, you are building the capacity to handle negative comments.

Reply to negative comments on social media with a nice tone.

All negative comments on social media require an immediate response.

Do not delete anything

This is a very important way to handle negative comments on social media. Looking at it the best way, to handle negative comments is to remove the negative comments which is not the best thing to do. This is because this may damage your reputation.

You mustn’t delete any negative comments media because people may use them against you. However, if you don’t delete it despite how deep it is, people will believe in you and your brand. This is because only a person that is sure of himself can leave a negative comment on social media without deleting it.

Some negative comments on social media are meant to improve you. Not all negative comments are meant to damage your reputation. Learn to always see negative comments and criticism as an opportunity to correct a bad practice, strategy or habit you use incorrectly in time.

An intelligent option is to see negative comments, picture the mind it is coming from and learn through each of them.

Be fast with your response

Any negative comment on social media needs an immediate response. If it takes too much time, it may affect your brand. This is what makes many businesses and brands crumble to date. Always schedule your replies to comments on social media in Nigeria both negative and positive. At times, negative ones need urgent attention.

Note that, while you give comments urgent attention, it is irrelevant to argue with some people to resolve a matter.

Be Respectful

In the course of handling social media comments, understand that respect is key. The way you communicate with others is a direct reflection of who you are. You need to be kind and respectful in your responses because that is what defines you.

As someone using social media in Nigeria, you need to understand that respecting everyone on social media matters. Both Nigerians and non-Nigerians, rich and poor people are watching. This is how you manage negative comments on social media.

Be thankful

Negative comments on social media can be more useful than positive ones if you aim to detect the weak points of your brand and are willing to improve. It is especially important to be grateful to those followers whose comments. Even if it is negative since they dedicate their time and effort to help you improve. Also, being appreciative shows responsibility, approachability, and a willingness to listen to your customers. Let’s not forget the Ken Blanchard quote, feedback is the breakfast of champions.

Reply to all comments

Someone who writes on your wall and dedicates a few minutes of their day to it expects an answer–an explanation. That’s why you must give them an answer. From all the comments, you can learn.

Conclusion

These are some of the ways to handle negative social media comments in Nigeria. However, just as managing negative comments is not all about posting content, managing criticism is not all about answering them. It requires special sensitivity and communication skills that lead the situation to the best possible spot. This will help prevent a negative comment from giving rise to an unwanted debate that damages the reputation of your brand.

So far, what have you learnt from this post? Drop it in the comments section. Perhaps you want to learn more about this article, let’s discuss it in our WhatsApp community. Moreover, you can follow us on our Twitter page to keep track of more engaging posts. Thanks for your time!

About Author

Olunlade Toluwalase Joshua

Olunlade Toluwalase Joshua is a Certified Content Writer, a Certified Computer Operator, and a Certified Copywriter. He is also a sexual puritan, a youth advocate, the Gospel's Voice.
He is passionate about the gospel and impacting lives with his writing skills and public speaking.

He guides youths to navigate the destructive and distracting hurdles on their path.
He is a reporter in a non-governmental Academic Organization called Aremu Oluwabrain Academy (AOA), the online Community of every Nigeria Student, to interact and get useful information.