How Can a 1-Star Review Save Your Client Relationship?

New research in the Journal of Consumer Research describes how critical feedback helps with your clients’ blood pressure as well as your bottom line.

One study, as part of the project, used machine learning to analyse 22,983 negative reviews of airlines. It found that the odds of recommending the airline went up 5 to 10 times when the review included rational as well as emotional criticism. People who are aware of the flaws in a service will still recommend, albeit with caveats.

Another study had people about write about negative restaurant experiences. People who had bad experiences but wrote balanced reviews, again with a mix of rational and emotional opinion, were more likely to have visited that restaurant (based on their own reported behaviour) despite the poor experience.

A third study monitored the heart rates of reviewers when writing negative feedback. People who wrote in a way that integrated the rational along with emotional, experienced an increase in systolic blood pressure, which was unseen on other groups, suggesting it was a cathartic exercise for them.

The upshot is that you need to give clients a structured mode of reflecting on their experience. If they feel negative sentiment, writing about the experience can help them to emotionally and cognitively recover. Having the opportunity to give feedback reduces the likelihood of long-term damage by increasing customer ‘recovery’ and eventual return.

Even when you know the client is unhappy, ask them for feedback – the process will help with winning them back!

For the full research, check out Digital Therapy for Negative Consumption Experiences: The Impact of Emotional and Rational Reviews on Review Writers, by Alisa Yinghao Wu and Vicki G. Morwitz in the Journal of Consumer Research, 2025. You can access the article here.