Here is what you need to do when you find yourself in a ROR situation.

 

1.         Make 2 Vital Calls

 

When A PR crisis occurs, the first call should be to the legal counsel. The second call should be to the PR team. Whatever actions are taken after these 2 first calls should happen with the PR team and the legal team working together. You might feel a little temptation to release a press statement, a fast rebuttal or file a lawsuit.

 

Well, it’s advisable to wait until your legal and PR teams weigh in on the ramifications of your next action. You will make the whole situation worse by giving a hotheaded response. Therefore, take the time to listen to your lawyers and PR teams to avoid any negative consequences.

 

2.         Now You Can Respond

 

There are many schools of thought on what to do next suggest Velseoity. However, if you have received a complaint from a legitimate customer, you should respond. Make sure you use a professional and positive tone in your response. There might be some SEO ramifications when you respond on the ROR site. However, your answer is the immediate and direct way of sending out the message.

 

Basically, you will be letting people know that if a bad experience happened, you are prepared to set things straight. It might be a little difficult if you suspect the anonymous complaint comes from someone posing as a customer. It could be an ex-spouse, an ex-employee or a business competitor, so you need to be careful.

 

3.         Engage In White Hat SEO And PR Tactics

 

Do you have a good and trustworthy SEO resource? Now you can populate the internet with some search engine results that provide a response to the allegation. Make sure these responses are professional and not emotional. You should also increase your efforts in positive and legitimate PR tactics. If there is favorable and robust content regarding your business, it will come in handy when any issue comes up.

 

4.         Take VIP Arbitration Into Consideration

 

It’s one of the newest features in the ROR process. Here, the term VIP is an abbreviation for Voluntary, Impartial and Private. You will spend about $2000 on this process with half of that amount going to the arbitrator. The whole process is entirely in writing and you will not meet with the accuser in person.

 

Here, you will file a complaint that calls out the false statement and provide any corroborating evidence you have. The accuser will reply and you will also provide your reply afterwards and the process continues. Once it’s complete, the arbitrator will provide a ruling. The report will go live but ROR will remove any false statements regarding the case.

 

If the accuser fails to respond or provides the wrong email address, the arbitrator takes note of this and considers them in the ruling. However, you should know that cases are completely different and unique. Therefore, if there is a non-responsive or phony accuser, the ruling might not entirely be in your favor.

 

5.         Who Will You Sue?

 

Removing the false statements doesn’t address any issues of opinion. In the event of highly defamatory information, there is a change of pace. For instance, if there is a direct accusation of stealing, child molestation, violent crimes or rape, you can hire an attorney and produce a court order showing the accusations are actually false. Here, the report will be present but ROR goes ahead to remove the false statements.

 

Note that, arbitration if the most affordable and quick way of solving any issues regarding false accusation rather than going to court. You might choose to sue ROR but it will be a fruitless endeavor since the site is protected by freedom of speech. Previously, some companies have actually been successful in suing false and malicious complainers for the value of any damage caused by their complaints.

 

6.         Subpoenas Can Be Used To Reveal Anonymous Complaints

 

It’s a new development that has proven to be quite helpful. Previously, any victims of defamation were stuck with ROR when it comes to this issue. However, if you are a defamation victim, you can get a subpoena. Next, you can use it to force ROR to provide the identity of the person who filed the complaint and pursue civil action. As such, malicious postings should reduce considerably because of the chance of being unveiled and face legal action.

 

7.         Use A Court Order To Seek Removal Of Statements

 

It’s the newest feature of the ROR process. Announced last month, they revealed that they will redact some specific false statements of fact, especially those identified in a judgment by a U.S court against the author. However, ROR should first determine the judgment will be valid and reliable.

 

Well, there is a huge silver lining for many entrepreneurs. Take a company such as a multilevel marketing firm. There are always many complaints about distributors who don’t behave properly. As such, they will bring about a way for the company to remove the bad apples and transform their customer experience accordingly. It might appear effortless at first but many entrepreneurs have followed it and received the best results from it.