A viral Reddit post mocks a $22 grilled cheese sandwich and helps to sink a Bay Area shop. A restaurant owner is forced to push back on a viral complaint. A small business owner in Maine faces a viral backlash after posting a “No ICE” sign. The owner of a furniture store mistakenly receives backlash after being confused with another store. An influencer calls out a South Carolina boutique in a TikTok video after a negative shopping experience.
I have had countless bad experiences at small businesses. I have eaten cold pasta and seen mice scurry behind a table. I don’t go back. Sometimes, when the experience is particularly great, I’ll give a quick good review on Google. But when I have had a bad experience? Never. Ever.
I’m not even sure what would provoke me into stopping what I’m doing, taking the time out of my day, logging on to a social site, and then putting the thought into a post with the intention of trashing a small business. It would have to be pretty extreme. So I don’t. And neither should you. Why? Because neither of us knows all the facts.
We don’t know the first thing about that person’s business or their life. Maybe staff called out sick that day, or they’ve had a hard time finding workers. Maybe someone in the kitchen made a mistake that one time and undercooked a sausage. Or an exterminator was called that morning and was on the way. Perhaps the business owner is struggling with family issues, cashflow challenges, the death of a friend, a cancer diagnosis. And so what if the owner is protesting ICE or voted for Trump? If you don’t want to patronize the business, then don’t. Telling other people not to is the other – worse – sort of patronizing.
Running a small business is hard. Employees don’t show up, customers don’t pay, suppliers don’t deliver, things go wrong. Trashing a small business is easy. It’s also usually fruitless for the small business to respond to these comments. You don’t win or lose an online argument. You just generate more interactions, hate and clicks, which is exactly what the social sites want you to do. And yet, as a business owner, you’re forced to respond because sites like Facebook, TikTok and Instagram continue to be important places to engage customers and promote products for some.
Big businesses can afford to weather a social media storm. They have millions – or more – to spend on PR, crisis management, advertising. For a small business, one viral post can be terminal.
So next time you’re in a restaurant and the food is good, tell the chef. If the service was delightful, let the owner know. If you’re a fan of the business, keep giving it your money. If you have something positive that you want to share in public, then by all means post that. Tell your friends. But don’t go negative. It’s hard enough running a business. Dealing with an online backlash – deserved or not – can be a major problem for a small business owner. Even if you’re an expert or believe you have all the information you need, you probably don’t. Go ahead, target big corporations. Take on your political opponents. Protest in the streets. There’s plenty of opportunities to let your voice be heard. But leave your local small businesses alone. They’re just trying to make a living and they’re people too.
