One Star Review ...

[ColorfulSunburst]

The parent got unhappy because of our answers

He tried to ask the same questions again and again. It seems he is a "I wanna" generation person

"This place is terrible. Poor management and poor customer service. I called to find out information about the school and its program and everything I heard was virtually either "No" or "I don't know". These were my basic questions which I thought were reasonable:
1. What are rates/fees? "We do not discuss rates/fees over the phone"
2. Can I be added to the waiting list? "No".
3. Why can't I be added to the waiting list? "Because we do not have the space at present"
4. I do not need my child to be in your daycare for another year or so...so can't I be added to your waiting list? "No"
5. When will you have space? "I don't know"
6. So how do I get more information your school/program? "You have to come and take a tour"
7. When can I do that? "I don't know"

If they are poor managers...it is quite likely they poor teachers and nurturers of kids. I will definitely pass on this place...that's for sure!"

of course some of our answers did not sound as he wrote it as well as every our "no" was explained in detail. In fact the only answer for the #1 question is written as it was told.

But I am talking not about this ...
I just do not cease to be surprised by the ability of some adults to behave as toddlers who want to get what they wants in any way. They get temper tantrums if they can't get his own way. People, grow up! This world doesn't revolve around you. The Sun is there for this purpose.

[Blackcat31]

The parent got unhappy because of our answers

He tried to ask the same questions again and again. It seems he is a "I wanna" generation person

"This place is terrible. Poor management and poor customer service. I called to find out information about the school and its program and everything I heard was virtually either "No" or "I don't know". These were my basic questions which I thought were reasonable:
1. What are rates/fees? "We do not discuss rates/fees over the phone"
2. Can I be added to the waiting list? "No".
3. Why can't I be added to the waiting list? "Because we do not have the space at present"
4. I do not need my child to be in your daycare for another year or so...so can't I be added to your waiting list? "No"
5. When will you have space? "I don't know"
6. So how do I get more information your school/program? "You have to come and take a tour"
7. When can I do that? "I don't know"

If they are poor managers...it is quite likely they poor teachers and nurturers of kids. I will definitely pass on this place...that's for sure!"

of course some of our answers did not sound as he wrote it as well as every our "no" was explained in detail. In fact the only answer for the #1 question is written as it was told.

But I am talking not about this ...
I just do not cease to be surprised by the ability of some adults to behave as toddlers who want to get what they wants in any way. They get temper tantrums if they can't get his own way. People, grow up! This world doesn't revolve around you. The Sun is there for this purpose.

Sadly this trend is so common now. I spend more time parenting parents than I do kids.
I have a lot of parents that have careers and are well educated but for some reason still do not understand the concept of not getting something just because you want it.

Their natural reaction is to ask louder or pitch a fit....then they get what they want. It's a learned behavior for sure.

We see it played out every day.... *sigh*


I re-thought having the option of comments or feedback on my website/advertising materials and don't offer it. Mostly because I really don't want to know.

[daycarediva]

Sadly this trend is so common now. I spend more time parenting parents than I do kids.
I have a lot of parents that have careers and are well educated but for some reason still do not understand the concept of not getting something just because you want it.

Their natural reaction is to ask louder or pitch a fit....then they get what they want. It's a learned behavior for sure.

We see it played out every day.... *sigh*


I re-thought having the option of comments or feedback on my website/advertising materials and don't offer it. Mostly because I really don't want to know.

YES. I don't have a comment or review section on anything for this reason.

[MarinaVanessa]

I had someone leave me a 3 star review (out of 5) on Facebook without an explanation and I'd never even had the guy as a client .

I responded.
"Hello ____. I would greatly appreciate it if you could send me a message and elaborate on what you did and did not like about my family child care home. I am always looking for input on areas that need improvement. . I looked at my rosters and did not find an enrolled child by the last name of Sell and the name John Sell is not familiar to me. Have I had you as a client before or perhaps you called or had an interview with me?"

He did not respond, I didn't think he would. But I wanted to respond to make people aware that I never and him as a client.

[Fiddlesticks]

I like how he is "definitely going to pass on this place" when there isn't even a space for him to begin with! ::

[Snowmom]

I have removed my name from any website that has reviews for this reason.
A few years back "childcare center.us" allowed an unknown name to leave feedback on me saying they left my home daycare because their child got sick from the mold in my home. It was there for probably 6 months before I happened to do a google search on my name and probably cost me some interviews.
Of course there is no mold in my home beyond the loaf of bread I forgot I put on top the fridge and at that point nobody had (voluntarily) left my daycare in years.

There are some pretty mean spirited people out there.

[Annalee]

Social media plays out with negativity as much as a place where reviews are posted. Many employees of centers have been fired due to negative posts about where they work and clients joining in the conversation online in my county. I don't participate in any social media or offer a place for reviews.

[MarinaVanessa]

I think that because of the times we are living in and the way technology and information has influence on a lot of our lives that I would rather embrace it than shy away from it. Reviews to me are like referrals and references. There will always be silly people out there that will leave unfounded or exaggerated reviews and as long as they are addressed professionally I think other people realize that a lot of people are extremely entitled and unrealistic in their expectations.

I wouldn't hash it out with them on the review page but I would address the points he made with an explination, not for his sake, but for the sake of everyone else that may see the review. It's them that I want to address and explain myself to.

"Dear ___. I'm sorry to hear about your unfortunate experience. That was not our intention. We really appreciate your feedback and would like to take this chance to respond to your comments.

It is our business practice not to discuss our rates & fees over the telephone because each families childcare needs are discussed in person and a rate is set based on those needs.

We no longer implement a waiting list because we very rarely have an opening. When we do have an opening it is typically filled very quickly, often with currently enrolled families needing another spot, so we have no need to use a waiting list. Most families looking for child care are looking for a more immediate opening therefore a waiting list would be outdated by the time that an opening presented itself.

At this moment we do not expect any openings as no families have given any inclination to needing to leave our daycare. Guessing as to when an opening would be available would be impossible.

The best way for families to get information and to fully appreciate our program is to attend a guided tour to see it in action in person. During the tour each families child care needs are considered, questions about our program are answered and the policies and procedures are discussed.

Tours are only scheduled during times when we have an opening to fill. This reduces the number of strangers in our daycare during hours when children are present which our current clients appreciate. We pride ourselves in keeping the children safe and this is just one of many ways we accomplish that. We also schedule extra staff specifically to conduct interviews which again is only done when we have an opening. Doing so keeps our overhead low and the savings can be passed onto our clients.

We understand that everyone has a different expectation when it comes to child care and I'm sorry that we have missed that mark with you. I do hope that you don't judge the whole company by this one experience. We strive to do just one thing ... create positive human relationships. Please feel free to reach out to me directly if you have further questions or comments. Thank you again for the feedback.

Sincerely,
ColorfulSunburst
ColorfulSunburst@email.com

[Hunni Bee]

Social media plays out with negativity as much as a place where reviews are posted. Many employees of centers have been fired due to negative posts about where they work and clients joining in the conversation online in my county. I don't participate in any social media or offer a place for reviews.

Yes, a coworker of mine was disciplined for "vaguebooking" about being required to come in during snowy/icy conditions. She was justified in her complaints (she lived over an hour away and we have in inclement weather team who get paid more to work during bad weather) but they still got upset.

After that I made my page super private, removed any mention of my working there or posts about work, and was very selective about which coworkers I add as friends.

[Meeko]

We once had a negative report that ended up with us laughing.

The guy left a comment saying our daycare was dark and dank and un-inviting. Of course he's never stepped foot in the place.

The fun part.......his parents are our neighbors (he obviously didn't check the address). They HAVE been in our home. His mother is a FB friend and so I recognized the guy from his google profile pic.. We are in the same church congregation. This guy is their "less than perfect" son if you get the drift. 30's, can't keep a job, lost custody of his kids because he's still a kid himself etc etc. He had seen the name of the daycare, but not mine or he would have known who it was.

So....I emailed him and told him who I was. I reminded him he had never been in my home, but his parents both have and THEY do not find it "dark and dank".....(crickets for a few minutes)....

I got the funniest email back!!! He was obviously panicked that I would tell his parents. I got some story of how he had been hacked and would call google and get it fixed. Well...it doesn't work that way. Google doesn't have a phone number and people ready to help at a minutes notice. The bad review was gone in minutes (hahaha) and he emailed me again saying that "google had been very helpful and removed it for him". He was lying through his teeth! The next thing I know, a glowing, gushing review was left in it's place LOL!!!
Then I reminded him that he had left a review saying "meh" for a fellow provider who lives just up the street too. her bad review was gone in seconds. Boy, those guys at google are fast....::::::

[Hunni Bee]

We once had a negative report that ended up with us laughing.

The guy left a comment saying our daycare was dark and dank and un-inviting. Of course he's never stepped foot in the place.

The fun part.......his parents are our neighbors (he obviously didn't check the address). They HAVE been in our home. His mother is a FB friend and so I recognized the guy from his google profile pic.. We are in the same church congregation. This guy is their "less than perfect" son if you get the drift. 30's, can't keep a job, lost custody of his kids because he's still a kid himself etc etc. He had seen the name of the daycare, but not mine or he would have known who it was.

So....I emailed him and told him who I was. I reminded him he had never been in my home, but his parents both have and THEY do not find it "dark and dank".....(crickets for a few minutes)....

I got the funniest email back!!! He was obviously panicked that I would tell his parents. I got some story of how he had been hacked and would call google and get it fixed. Well...it doesn't work that way. Google doesn't have a phone number and people ready to help at a minutes notice. The bad review was gone in minutes (hahaha) and he emailed me again saying that "google had been very helpful and removed it for him". He was lying through his teeth! The next thing I know, a glowing, gushing review was left in it's place LOL!!!
Then I reminded him that he had left a review saying "meh" for a fellow provider who lives just up the street too. her bad review was gone in seconds. Boy, those guys at google are fast....::::::

So he was just sitting around leaving bad reviews for daycares he'd never been in? :confused::confused::confused:

[MarinaVanessa]

So he was just sitting around leaving bad reviews for daycares he'd never been in? :confused::confused::confused:

Lots of people have sour, bitter lonely and unexciting lives to live and trolling businesses and complaining is literally their only excitement in life.

Just take a look at our 28 day cycle here on the forum. Everything will be all hunky-dory and then suddenly like clockwork we'll get that one weird "anonymous" trolling super old posts with a seriously outrageous comment just to incite things. People are losing at life and misery loves company ::::

[Josiegirl]

Lots of people have sour, bitter lonely and unexciting lives to live and trolling businesses and complaining is literally their only excitement in life.

Just take a look at our 28 day cycle here on the forum. Everything will be all hunky-dory and then suddenly like clockwork we'll get that one weird "anonymous" trolling super old posts with a seriously outrageous comment just to incite things. People are losing at life and misery loves company ::::

What she said!!! Kind of in the same category as teens(or anybody really) who have too much time on their hands at midnight on a Friday night so go spray graffiti somewhere.

MV, I loved your very professional response to reply with for the OP.