COMPLAINTS

NEW YORK — Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos briefly became the world’s richest man Thursday in Forbes magazine’s tracking of wealth, as stock in his ecommerce company hit an all-time high.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates reclaimed the lead by afternoon, as Amazon’s stock fell nearly 1 percent for the day to $1,046.

Amazon shares have been trading at a record high. They hit $1,083.31 at about noon Thursday. According to securities filings, Bezos owns about 80 million shares, or 17 percent; those shares were valued at more than $87 billion at the peak. Bezos also owns The Washington Post through a holding company.

Forbes said Bezos’ net worth was about $90.6 billion when the market opened Thursday. Gates had $90.1 billion. Forbes said Gates would have been the undisputed leader had he not given billions of dollars away to various philanthropic causes. Bezos issued a request for philanthropic ideas in a tweet in June, just before Amazon announced a $13.7 billion deal for organic grocer Whole Foods.

The changes in Bezos’ fortune coincided with Amazon’s quarterly earnings report. Shares fell another 2 percent in after-markets trading as the company reported net income of $197 million, or 40 cents per share, in the second quarter, down from $857 million, or $1.78 per share, a year ago. Randy Nelson noted.

“You don’t always have to apologize if you feel you are in the right,” Castillo added.

But sometimes it’s better to respond and apologize. Do it tactfully, Castillo suggests, such as: “Sorry you didn’t enjoy our service. Call and we’ll talk about how we can make it right.”

Even when an apology is necessary, the business can still promote itself by highlighting its strengths in the response. The reviewer will be happy that the business acknowledged them; most just want to be heard, Castillo said.

It’s a good idea to acknowledge good reviews as well, using the response as a marketing opportunity. Castillo suggests: “Thank you. Did you know we have … Check out our website for the latest …”

However, if a business owner or manager truly believes a review is inappropriate, unjust or plain wrong, a business might be able dispute it and have it removed if the host website agrees with the business.

Keep in mind that people look at how a business responds and puts weight on that. People can find out more about a business by how it responds to a bad review than the bad review itself, Castillo noted.

Many people put more

TOP 10 COMPLAINTS BY INDUSTRY

According to the Better Business Bureau, Yuma consumers filed the most complaints on businesses in the following industries between July 1, 2016, and July 25, 2017: • New Car Auto Dealers • Pest Control Services • Roofing Contractors • Credit Unions • Collection Agencies • Automotive Lubricating Service • Auto Repair & Service • Plumbers • Audio-Visual Equipment Dealers

• Cell Phone & Tablet Equipment, Supplies & Repair stock on trend reviews — what the majority is saying — than individual reviews. They like to see what reviewers liked and what they didn’t like.

However, Castillo cautions not all reviews are real. Some people are paid to post reviews, and some “trolls” have taken over some review websites. According to one dictionary, a troll is a person who posts inflammatory or inappropriate comments online to provoke a

TOP 10 INQUIRIES BY INDUSTRY

According to the Better Business Bureau, Yuma consumers made the most inquiries about business in the following industries between July 1, 2016, and July 25, 2017: • Compliance Consulting • Air Conditioning Contractors & Systems • General Contractors •Swimming Pool Contractors, Dealers, Design • New Car Auto Dealers • Plumbers • Roofing Contractors • Remodel & Repair Contractor • Pest Control Services • Transmissions — Automobile response.

Bad reviews usually go away. Or eventually they go to the second page and most customers only read the first page. Complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau drop off after three years.

Nevertheless, all businesses should have a plan in place for responding to good or bad reviews. Castillo says it can be a generic response tweaked for each review. In certain cases, responses can be creative, funny and silly.

Businesses should encourage customers to rate them by asking customers — hopefully happy customers — to do a review. Don’t be afraid to ask for one; most customers will be happy to share their experience, especially if it was a good one.

Or business send out email invitations asking them to write a review. Be sure to use their name and ask for their help, Castillo said.

Some businesses offer incentives to get customers to rate or review them, perhaps a discount off the next visit or entering them into a drawing for a free gift.

Some send postcards with a note: “Please leave a review.” But use these invitations only occasionally, otherwise customers will start seeing them as spam or junk mail.

Also, publicly acknowledge good reviews by posting them on the business website or reading them out loud in a video and posting them on social media.

For more information on SBDC, go to awc.azsbdc. net or call 928-317-6151.