Feedback, even if it hurts
More big companies inviting customers to sound off online
A Bank of America customer recently posted a scathing online review of the giant financial institution, giving it one star out of five. "I would never recommend this bank to anyone," the critic said. "I had to pay over $120 in overdraft fees that should have not been there from the start."
But the review was not published on a blog or a consumer website. It was posted on the bank's own site, Bankofamerica.com.
"We felt that in the offline world customers communicate with other customers about our products and services, so why not allow them to do it in the online world?" said Tara Burke, a spokeswoman for the bank, which has 303 branches in Massachusetts, including 202 in Greater Boston. "We wanted other customers to learn from each other the good and the bad of our products and services."
More consumer-oriented companies are allowing customers to review their products and services on their websites - a practice once used mainly by tech companies and business-to-business service providers.
In addition to Bank of America, Starbucks Corp., Dell, Ford Motor Corp., and others are increasingly providing bandwidth to let consumers offer praise or zingers - a shift from the longstanding practice of protecting the brand at all costs.
"There are a ton of community sites out there where users can post these reviews already," said Jeff Catlin, chief executive of Lexalytics in Amherst, which makes software to help companies track what is written about them on their own sites and across the Internet. "I think the companies are taking the position that it's happening anyway, so we might as well let it happen in a place where we can exert some control over it."
Indeed, Bank of America's site displays favorable reviews first. Once they navigate to the customer reviews section, which is difficult to locate, users must click on a search bar to rearrange the site to show negative reviews.
But Burke said the bank does post all feedback, positive and negative.
Catlin said technology companies have long allowed users to post product comments - good and bad - online, and many have used the feedback to fine-tune products and brand messages.
"Having an open forum site is a company saying, 'We're really into listening to our customers,' " he said. "I think it's better for the brand in the long run."
Bank of America customer Brittnie Correira, of Bridgewater, said she is happy with the bank and is particularly fond of its "Keep the Change" savings program, which rounds off debit card spending to the next-highest dollar and automatically transfers the difference to a savings account. But she hasn't read any of the website reviews, nor does she plan on writing one.
"That's just not something I would do with my time," Correira, 20, said. "I think the only reason I'd write a review is if I had something to complain about."
Lindsey D'Angelo, another customer, has been repeatedly frustrated by her efforts to talk to "a real person" on Bank of America's customer line. Nor does she like the bank's fees, which are a frequent target of online critics. D'Angelo, 38, of Winchester, said she has increasingly moved her business to a small local bank. But like Correira, she isn't about to log on to Bank of America's site to voice her frustration.
"They wouldn't want it and likely would never do anything about it anyway," D'Angelo said.
Naturally, companies are reluctant to give up control of their brands and potentially be subjected to a public flogging. Amy Vickers, national director of enterprise solutions with the Boston office of the Web-design firm Avenue A|Razorfish, coaches companies on how to use programs to solicit, respond to, and use customer feedback.
"Companies have to be open to the criticism, and they have to be authentic, and they need to be ready to respond," Vickers said. "They can't just do it because everyone else is doing it."
Authenticity seems to be the buzzword in the movement toward online critiques. Vickers said that when Wal-Mart Stores Inc. tried to pass off a 2006 social media campaign as being grassroots, it backfired and did more harm than good. Other firms - including Nike Inc. and Starbucks - have done a good job of attracting fans who visit the websites regularly and often defend them from detractors.
"It really is a matter of acknowledging that the dialogue is already happening and deciding on whether or not you're going to participate," Vickers said. "You shouldn't be looking to protect the brand image at the cost of communicating with your customers."
Burke said Bank of America began allowing customers to post reviews for online banking, online bill-paying, and mortgage products in September. Since then, it has logged more than 2,800 customer reviews. Bad reviews range from constructive criticism - several users asked the bank to improve the site's compatibility with Quicken financial management software - to the sarcastic: "Looks more like a online game board than a user-friendly banking function."
Good reviews can rival copy turned out by the company's own publics relations department. For example, one user wrote: "I was sick and tired of my old bank! It was like pulling teeth to get information on my accounts. Since I have switched to B of A, I no longer put off balancing my account!" Another gushed, "Dear Bank of America: You are the best thing that ever happened to me!!!!"
Burke noted that by hosting the comments on its own site, the bank is also able to verify their authenticity.
"There are many other sites that allow product ratings of our products but those sites can not guarantee those customers are even Bank of America customers," she said. "We guarantee these are truly Bank of America customers since we validate which accounts they own, which is something the other rating sites cannot promise." 