Reputation: How to deal with Bashers
I got bashed
Recently, I wrote a blogpost titled The Government should pay entrepreneurs salaries to save the economy. I wasn’t saying that this plan is 100% correct, but it seemed logical to me, so I wanted to put it out there to see what people think about it. At least I had some support from a Stanford Researcher and an Ex Venture Capitalist and BCG Consultant.
After a while, this professor from Belmont University Jeff Cornwallwrote a blogpost about how terrible and out of my mind I was. Shortly after, a lot of his readers started commenting on my blog and his blog saying they are “disgusted” and that I’m promoting socialism.
What do you do when that happens?
11 Tips to turn the table around and make bashers supporters
- Thank them for their time and effort
- Apologize for things that you clearly did wrong
- Address every single on of them
- Be polite
- Ask them to specify the things they are bashing about
- Clarify all the misunderstandings or misconceptions
- Address your fundamental differences, but don’t be an ass
- NEVER become emotional
- Stay cheerful
- Thank them at the end and encourage more constructive criticism
- Don’t be shady
I have seen forum threads that were pretty much devoted to bashing me anonymously. I pretty much used these exact tips and dealt with the “trolls” straight on. After 2 long emails addressing every single person, I eneded up with only supporters in the forum and the bashers almost felt embarrassed to say more things.
Gary Vaynerchuck also had a crisis where his website got hacked and redirected to a porn site. He also managed it in a way that helped him gain more followers that respect him.
Your reputation is one of your biggest assets. It’s your job to guard it with your life.
this is very useful. it’s true. when you have an online presence, you expose yourself to not only supportive comments, but also criticism.
Hello Suki!
Nice to see you visit my blog
Yep, and how you deal with criticism is often more important than how you deal with supportive comments.
Good stuff man. It will be nice to see your company to expand. Wonder if there is anything I can do to help.
Hey Fei,
I hope to see my company expand too. I’d love to bring into our journey. Email me at yukai.chou@viralogy.com and tell me a bit about your background!
Hey Yu-kai,
Great advice! I’ll remember this.
Thanks,
Sam
Thanks Sam. Let me know if I can help you with anything
Nice insight. Useful for you to put these thoughts out in one list. It’s especially pertinent for food bloggers since food writing is so opineated. I’ll RT this
Hahaha, really? I never imagined that food bloggers can be bashed. “NO!! That is not the way you eat this food! It will fail and destroy society!”
Thanks a lot Aaron. You’ve always been very kind to me.
Hey Yu-kai,
Useful insights. As I am following you on Twitter, I read professor’s post before you posted this blog post and I pretty much know what you meant. I liked the way you have written down your thought and reply to him.
There would always be differences between two people: whether it’s at thinking level or different opinions on various things. As long as you respect other person’s outlook, you should be fine. At the same time, you also have to know how to construct your feelings and thoughts without attacking other person and protecting your image.
Cheers..
Pritesh
http://twitter.com/mehta1p
Hey Pritesh,
Thanks for the encouragement! Wow, I didn’t know people actually read my tweets (and consecutive ones).
Yea, there are differences between people. I think if Jeff disagreed with me, he could have pointed out my flaws in logic or what not, but the intent of the post was mockery, which isn’t always necessary. The “mutual respect” part on peoples’ differences weren’t really there. But yea, I’m young and he’s an established professor with strong credentials, so I don’t take it personally. I just hope that he is willing to discuss with me why he thinks I am wrong to the extent to deserve such mockery.
Hey Yu-Kai!
Great post, and I fully believe that the gouvernment should do something about our fellow entrepreneurs, we are the solution to the problem!
Also thanks for this post, it explains a lot how to get over the fear of being judged on the internet by the whole world. Remember that haters are haters and there will always be haters anywhere you go!
Take care and good luck with your business!
(ps: you dont suck and you look like your a great entrepreneurs)
Patrick
Hey Patrick! Thanks for the support.
Haters are actually great for building trust and respect to observers!
Let me know if I can help you with anything!
Hey Yu-kai,
Thanks for directing me to your video although your email was already extremely helpful and informative.
It’s great to see the examples of how dealing with bashers in a polite and respectful manner and being open to what they have to say changes how they think and act towards you.
Great tips! Thanks,
Meghan