What to do when the competition buys negative reviews about you

Recognizing the attack in the first 120 minutes

The attack usually starts at night or early in the morning when your guard is down. On November 14, 2024, one of our clients running a manufacturing plant received 43 negative reviews in just 85 minutes. Real customers never write at such a pace. Check account names. If you see strings of random letters or names that have not appeared in your CRM database in the last 6 months, you have evidence of manipulation. Do not reply to these reviews based on emotions. Your first response must be cool and technical, as other real customers will read it.

At Agora Giedroyć, we recommend taking immediate screenshots with the full system date and time visible. Google can remove traces of activity after a report, and you need hard evidence for a potential police report at Al. Najświętszej Maryi Panny. Remember that fake reviews violate Art. 24 of the Civil Code. Every minute of delay in documentation makes it harder to later prove the culpability of a specific person or company that commissioned this process for 3.50 PLN per entry.

Facts, not emotions. Your goal is to remove the entries, not win a shouting match on the internet.

Procedure for reporting to the portal administrator

The standard 'Report review' button usually doesn't work as fast as you need it to. In 67% of cases, Google's automated algorithm will reject your report within 4 hours, claiming the entry does not violate standards. Therefore, you must prepare a manual report. Describe the lack of transaction history with the given user and point to the unnatural statistical growth. If your average was 2 reviews per month and you suddenly got 19 in one day, this is a technical anomaly that the moderator must take into account.

We act in silence, so don't brag on Facebook that you're fighting hate. This only tells the aggressor that his actions are hurting you. Instead, prepare an official cover letter. At Agora Giedroyć, we use a 3-step verification method that allowed us to successfully clean 83 business profiles in the last quarter of 2023. We focus on technical aspects of platform regulation violations, which shortens the waiting time for a moderator's reaction from the typical 14 days to about 48-72 hours.

Using the legal path without going to court

Many people think that reputation protection requires years spent in a courtroom. This is a mistake. Effective negotiations and pre-trial cease and desist letters work in 8 out of 10 cases if formulated correctly. On October 22, we sent a letter to our client's competitor who ordered hate speech against a local construction company. After 3 days, all 12 fake reviews disappeared, and the perpetrator issued a written apology. We used specific paragraphs regarding unfair competition and financial losses estimated at 4,200 PLN net.

Precision is key. The letter must reach the specific person responsible for marketing at the competitor's company or the owner directly. We protect your peace of mind by taking over all communication ourselves. You don't have to meet the person who is trying to destroy you. Our team, consisting of 4 specialists in crisis situations, analyzes digital links and often finds points of contact that allow us to identify the person commissioning the attack without involving the prosecutor's office in the first stage.

Calm in the middle of a crisis gives you an advantage over an aggressor who is counting on your outburst.

Communication with real customers during a crisis

While you are fighting to remove lies, your regular customers may start asking questions. This is the moment when transparency is most important. Publish a short, 3-sentence message on your homepage or social media. Inform them that you have fallen victim to unfair practices and the matter is already in the hands of specialists from Agora Giedroyć. Do not apologize for reviews you did not write. Present the facts: your company has been operating for 9 years, handled 156 projects this year, and has real references with specific names.

We have noticed that customers react very well to honesty. One of our partners, running a restaurant near Częstochowa, received support from 14 regular guests after an attack of 52 reviews, who spontaneously started writing positive reviews to balance the hate. This is a natural community defense mechanism. It is important not to buy your own 'good' reviews in response. This is the shortest path to having your account blocked by Google and losing the rest of your credibility. Stick to the facts and wait for the administrator to remove the entries.

How to protect yourself against a repeat attack

After extinguishing the fire, it's time for prevention. Set alerts for specific keywords related to your brand. At Agora Giedroyć, we monitor the profiles of our 47 regular clients 24/5 (with breaks on weekends, unless the industry requires otherwise). Thanks to this, we know about a new review within 15-20 minutes of its publication. A quick reaction in the first hour allows you to block the wave before the algorithm considers this content relevant to your search engine ranking.

It is also worth investing in a system for collecting real reviews from people who actually made a purchase. It is enough to send a short SMS to the client 3.2 hours after the service is completed. Real, positive voices build a 'safety cushion'. Even if 5 fake one-star reviews come in in the future, your 4.7 average will not budge significantly. Reputation protection is a continuous process, not a one-time effort. We focus on allowing you to run your business in peace while we take care of the digital cleanliness of your name.