How To "Remove" Bad Online Reviews

We're sorry to be the bearer of bad news here, but you can't remove bad online reviews. This is especially true on places like Google, Yelp and Facebook. Removing bad online reviews goes against the policies of the major review sites, and for good reason.

In an attempt to maintain the integrity of business reviews, many review sites only allow for the removal of a review in extreme circumstances. But don't worry, if you suspect that a review left for your business meets one of the removal criteria, there is a chance you can have have the review removed from your listing.

If you haven't already, you need to familiarize yourself with Google's review policy. These policies outline which types of reviews (content) that violate their review policy, giving you an idea if the review you're trying to remove is in violation or not.

After taking a look at Google's policy, if you still believe the bad review you're trying to remove violates one of the criteria, you can take steps to have the review taken down.

For a detailed overview of how to " flag and fix inappropriate reviews " please visit this link. On Google's support site, they list these 7 steps to take to possibly have a review removed from your Google listing:

"To flag a review for removal:

1. Navigate to Google Maps.
2. Search for your business using its name or address.
3. Select your business from the search results.
4. In the panel on the left, scroll to the “Review summary” section.
5. Under the average rating, click [number of] reviews (see example image below)
6. Scroll to the review you’d like to flag and click the flag icon .
7. Complete the form in the window that appears and click Submit ."

It is worth noting that just because you flag a review for removal, doesn't mean that Google will 100% remove it from your listing. Google states that it doesn't get involved with that disagree on facts related to the review, and says to be patient once you have flagged it for removal as it take several days for Google to assess your request.

As with Google, it is important to understand Yelp's content guidelines. These guidelines give a great overview of what Yelp considers inappropriate, and will give you a good idea if you have a chance of having your bad Yelp review removed.

Yelp cites 3 main reasons they might remove a bad review:

1. The reviewer has an apparent conflict of interest
2. The review doesn't focus on the reviewer's own experience
3. The review includes inappropriate material

3. Our moderators will evaluate the review against our Content Guidelines , which may take several days. Check your email for a notification of our decision - you can see which email address you’ve registered with Yelp in Account Settings."

Just like Google, Yelp's process to assess your request can take several days. Be patient while you wait for a decision.

As an up and coming place for businesses to be reviewed by consumers, Facebook's review policies appear to be a little "fuzzier" right now. When it comes to removing a bad Facebook review, Facebook simply points business owners to their "Community Standards" in order to evaluate if a bad review fits their removal criteria.

Common reasons why a Facebook review may be removed are:

1. Direct threats
2. Bullying and harassment
3. Criminal activity

At the end of the day, it is worth noting that getting bad reviews removed from your listing is really difficult and rarely results in the review being removed.

Proving that a review violated one for the major site's guidelines is hard and often times Google, Yelp and Facebook error of the side of the customer vs the business.

Yes, it is possible to have a bad review removed from your listing but know that you're in for a fight and you better come armed with specific details, citing specific guidelines that the reviewer violated.