When the results of your B2B email marketing campaigns come to you, don’t expect that there will be only good responses; it’s almost impossible. It’s natural to get upset about negative emails in response to your campaign, but it’s essential not to take it personally.You just need to be prepared for angry replies and know how to react in such situations.
By telling you all this, we aren’t trying to scare you. We want to ensure you’re ready for the ups and downs, which are a central part of professional growth. Negative responses reveal areas for improvement within your B2B email marketing. Sure, in some cases, your prospects simply can be in a bad mood, which doesn’t mean your strategy has failed. But it takes a long time to fully understand the negative feedback mechanism and how to transform this into positive follow-ups. So we have collected the most common negative feedback mechanism examples and helpful advice so that you can improve your B2B email strategy.
Negative feedback examples
First, you need to dive deeper into the answer to the question “What is negative feedback?” A negative response is easy to recognize. You don’t even need a particular negative feedback definition. But will you be able to understand the reason for the rejection? It is often difficult to understand a prospect’s attitude when they shower you with angry replies. That’s why you need to know the difference between feedback you can learn from and feedback that is simply a result of something out of your control.
What is an example of negative feedback, what types of responses exist, how should you respond to feedback email, and which of the following is an example of negative feedback? Let’s figure it out.
“Not interested” response
If you did your best to increase your response rate, getting a “not interested” reply is already an achievement. It is the most common negative feedback example. Although this kind of answer is rather upsetting, it is much better than no reply at all. You are halfway there if a client writes something like that about your offer. All you have to do now is figure out how to use it to your advantage.
How should you reply to a “not interested” email?
It might sound too bold, but your whole cold outreach campaign depends on your chosen strategy of how to respond to a negative text message. If a “not interested” reply is not a frequent email in your mailbox, then you don’t need to dwell on it; it’s better just to stop writing to these potential customers. The best solution is to focus on those whose interests can be raised.
However, if you receive a lot of “not interested” replies, it’s time to get serious. It means that there is still work to be done. Maybe your unique value proposition (UVP) wasn’t clear enough. You can find out a little more if you use the email template below. Provide your lead with the opportunity to choose the option that suits them best:
{Name}, I sent you a couple of emails last week but haven’t received a response yet. Since my calling schedule for this month is almost finalized, I need to know your status. Please choose the answer that best describes your decision and just send me a number.
- I’m not interested in a conversation right now. Please follow up later.
- I’m not interested because I work with a vendor already.
- I’m not interested because your offer doesn’t feature the assets {Company} needs.
Thanks, {Sales Rep’s Name}.
The ideal response to feedback is to get the information you need without bothering the potential client. This way, a person only has to spend a couple of seconds before returning to their business.
So what should be your next step? Based on the replies, integrate the following changes to your email strategy:
- Review your value proposition. If your email is answered most often by 2 or 3, your message needs to be changed. In this case, reread your templates. It’s a good idea to have someone else read your template too. Fresh thoughts can help you pinpoint problems you never noticed.
- Be more specific. If your intro is filled with vague phrases such as “market leaders,” “innovative technology,” or “increase revenue,” it’s not a surprise that all those “not interested” replies keep coming. Provide more data and precise figures and demonstrate your real achievements to recipients.
- Be professional. Do not forget about professional vocabulary and its synonyms. More often than not, professional slang works well when used as a substitute for common words.
“There is no fit” response
Could it be that you outlined the wrong target audience or decision-maker? Yes, if you get something like “This proposition is irrelevant to me.” This answer usually means that the client is unsure if the product is suitable for them. It’s hard to call it a negative answer as it leaves you free to ask the potential client a few more questions. From such responses, you can find the gap between your ideal customer profile (ICP) and your message, and this is extremely helpful. Here, you need to research what exactly you want to ask and how it will help you and your prospect in solving problems. It is probably appropriate to ask whether a recipient is a relevant person to target and who is in charge of making decisions.
But if a recipient does not wish to make contact, do not put pressure on them.
“F%@k off!” response
It is a rude example of negative feedback and probably the worst type of response. Such letters are unlikely to please you and definitely won’t increase your sales. In these instances, do not look for the cause in yourself or your proposition. Usually, the reasons for such messages lie in the senders themselves and their negative emotions. Perhaps they had a bad day, have problems in their family, or are simply frustrated. It is impossible to find out or prove anything to such a prospect, so all you can do is remove this person from the contact base and keep working.
How should you reply to negative feedback emails?
It’s important to know how to respond to negative feedback to enhance your strategy and build a solid business image. Here you will learn how to respond to an email professionally regardless of its tone.
In terms of negative answers, they are not dangerous themselves. The main thing you should avoid is the “spammer” label. You may be seen as such by leads whom you continue to try to convince after their negative response. Such scenarios can ruin your company’s entire reputation very quickly. No matter how good a product you have, spam reports can damage your domain rating and nullify the whole email marketing channel. Rest assured, you will come across different types of responses, but you just need more experience with objections and practicing your own reactions.
Answering emails is crucial for every business, but how do you decide how to respond to feedback emails and define negative feedback? Here is some advice for coping with a negative feedback response and a few “how to respond to rude emails” examples.
Keep a calm tone
Kill them with kindness, as they say. To instantly defuse tension, use these phrases to respond to criticism:
- Thank you for your email!
- We appreciate your feedback.
- You’ve got it!
No matter what happens, it’s best not to act angry or defensive in your response. It is possible that a sender’s reaction is completely groundless or that the situation is not your fault. A harsh response will not improve the case in any way. You must remain calm and positive here, and your answers should be as neutral and objective as possible.
Think twice
While composing the answer, think about what a client wanted to express and what kind of professional answer they would like to receive. Ask something to clarify the situation to get rid of misunderstandings.
What to pay attention to if you receive a lot of negative feedback
If you get only a few bad feedback emails out of a hundred, don’t worry about it. But if you suddenly have more negative messages than expected, you should reconsider the text in your letters and answers.
Spam triggers
The main thing you should pay attention to is your content. You need to periodically check your emails for spam words because their lists are constantly growing. Also, an abundance of salesy phrases and commercial clichés can cause mistrust.
Regardless, don’t forget to review and update your existing template to modern standards.
Your timing
Finding the best time to send emails takes a lot of trying and tweaking. If you get a lot of negative feedback, it may mean that your cadence needs to be improved. Try to increase the intervals between messages because a large number of letters in a short time can look like spam.
Your targeting
Being taken for the wrong employee is very annoying when you get a commercial B2B letter. If you send emails to specific status positions, there’s a high chance that your message will be ignored or lost. Heads of departments are in charge of urgent, serious matters. Sure, they’re part of the decision-making group, but they only join the process after other group members receive a proposal from the supplier and put it forward. Therefore, you ought to find the person responsible for the scope of your services who will most likely be interested in speaking to you.
Each negative response is an opportunity
You can come up with valuable conclusions when responding correctly to rude emails. Just think about it: Prospects demonstrated a willingness to reply to your letters. It is a good result already. All you need to do is to process the responses and transform them into benefits.
Remember to ask the right questions
It’s not about how to reply to an email that doesn’t express interest in your services. It’s about why you received the email to begin with and what you should do to prevent them in the future.
Only with experience comes an understanding of how to respond to a negative message and whether it is worth answering something or thinking about something else. A nice way to obtain experience is to be prepared for challenges and not run away from them.
In any case, ignoring negative answers is not an option. Sometimes you should reconsider your actions, and sometimes you should answer and convince. It just depends on the type.
Embrace your failures and turn them into learning experiences
You might think that negative replies are your enemies, but this is not true. Your strategy requires you to use them correctly so they will show you your weaknesses and points to work on. No one will tell you as much truth as people who actually do not need anything from you and don’t know you. As long as you keep your head in the business and stay focused, negative answers are not a problem but a new source of experience for you.
We believe this article has helped you understand which of these is an example of negative feedback, how to write an angry-email reply professionally, and how to dispel your fears of negative answers when sending emails.
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