How to Remove a Zillow Review on Zillow

Many home buyers and sellers turn to Zillow to seek out an experienced, highly recommended real manor amanuensis to help them with one of the biggest transactions of their lives. So a battery of bad Zillow reviews can cause existent reputational and professional harm—which is why information technology is crucial for existent manor professionals to know how to remove a bad Zillow review.

Realtors and existent estate agents can remove a bad Zillow review using the post-obit methods:

Ask the original author to remove the negative review,
Flag the negative review to Zillow for Terms of Service (ToS) violations,
Pursue legal activeness against the person who left the review, and
Employ Online Reputation Direction and SEO to suppress the negative review(s).

At Minc Law, we have helped thousands of individuals and businesses, including real estate agents and agencies, remove reviews, identify anonymous reviewers, and file defamation lawsuits. Information technology is our priority to deal with defamatory online content quickly and efficiently while cartoon equally little attending to the affair equally possible.

In this article, we explain Zillow's review process and when bad reviews actually constitute defamation. Then, nosotros give several tips and tricks for dealing with negative and defamatory Zillow reviews.

What Realtors & Premier Agents Should Know About Zillow Reviews & Its Community Guidelines

If you are looking to remove information and negative reviews from Zillow, the best place to start is by learning more than virtually its review policies.

Zillow is a U.S.-based online real manor marketplace company that was founded in 2006 by ii former Microsoft executives. Zillow emphasizes that it is the most-visited real estate website in the United States. Zillow and its affiliates offer customers an on-demand feel for selling, buying, and renting homes.

Realtors and consumers both apply Zillow, where it is free to listing a home or holding for sale by the owner, agent (premier amanuensis), or rental manager. Potential buyers and renters can search for a property using their website or app, compare listings, and connect with local professionals.

Zillow welcomes and encourages users to rate and review real estate professionals. Equally with every website online, Zillow has customs guidelines of which you—equally a Zillow realtor or premier agent—should be aware.

What Types of Content Will Zillow Reject & Remove From Its Platform?

According to Zillow's review guidelines, users should non submit reviews that contain:

Foul or inappropriate language,
Information that is not relevant within the context of the Zillow website,
Information that is not relevant within the context of the services provided by the professional person,
Personal attacks,
Offensive comments, and
Spam.

If Zillow feels that the review submission does not comply with their guidelines or policies, it will non be posted to the Zillow website. Zillow likewise reserves the right to withdraw submissions in which suspicious activity or a conflict of interest could be nowadays, such every bit:

Reviews from family members or employees of the same company,
Invalid email addresses, including "disposable" addresses,
An unusually high number of submissions past one user,
An unusually high number of reviews for a professional person, and
Reviews from users who have received or been offered bounty for submitting a review.

Are Reviews on Zillow Anonymous?

Co-ordinate to Zillow, its client review organisation is completely anonymous. The platform uses its ain method to moderate reviews and verify their authenticity.

Once a client review is submitted, the subject of the review receives an email alert—but they will merely exist able to run across the username of the reviewer, non their legal or real name. If the reviewer chooses to use a username that does non friction match their real name, determining the identity of the affiche can be more than difficult.

Nonetheless, it is yet possible to place who posted the review with the help of an experienced cyberspace attorney. For case, experienced defamation attorneys ordinarily identify anonymous posters by issuing subpoenas to the platform where the unlawful content was posted and tracking the poster's IP data.

At Minc Law, we take found that where we have multiple data points on the anonymous poster, the data is "fresh," and they are not an expert hacker, we tin can typically identify anonymous perpetrators 9 out of x times.

When is a Bad Zillow Review Considered Defamation?

In the U.s.a., robust First Subpoena and free oral communication protections empower consumers to voice their opinions and speak freely virtually their experiences with a business (online and off). However, when those statements about a business organization cross into the territory of defamation (are fake), y'all may so legally hold someone liable for their unlawful statements.

A bad review may be considered defamatory when:

A false statement is made,
Information technology is communicated to a third party,
The reviewer acted with at least negligent intent, and
Some harm or damage is caused to the person who is the bailiwick of the statement.

A bad review can cross the line into defamation if a reviewer falsifies that they were a customer, or falsifies anything nigh their marketplace experience with your business.

What is the Difference Betwixt Slander & Libel?

Defamation is the act of damaging someone'due south proficient reputation. It can be broken down into two categories: slander and libel.

Libel is defamation expressed in writing. Libel tin take place online (such equally on a blog or social media) or in books, police reports, text messages, emails, and whatsoever other grade of written communication.
Slander is defamation expressed verbally. Slander takes place in the spoken word, and information technology can take the class of rumors existence spread from person to person, conversations over the phone, or any other spoken advice.

A expert way to remember the deviation betwixt libel and slander is to think of a fiftyibrary for 50ibel. Libel is written defamation, and there are written materials in a library—and both words first with the letter "50." When you think of slander, recollect of the word spoken. Slander is spoken defamation, and both start with the letter "S."

Because defamatory Zillow reviews are published in an online medium, they fall under the category of libel. It is disquisitional to accustom yourself with the difference betwixt libel and slander as filing requirements (such equally the statute of limitations) may depend on the type of defamation claim you accept.

What is the Difference Betwixt a Bad & Defamatory Zillow Review?

Only because a review is negative and causes damage to your reputation, it does not ever mean the statement is defamatory. For example, there are countless defamation defenses that a defendant might rely on to avoid legal liability for their published argument(s).

Listed below are two examples clarifying the difference between a bad review (which is perfectly lawful) and a review that crosses the line into defamation.

Case of a Bad Review That Does Not Cross into Defamation

"I ordered a rug from this visitor and the colour is not what I expected, then I am merely giving them ii stars because I feel that the photo didn't match the product."

If this review was left by a real customer and reflects a genuine marketplace interaction, they are well within their rights to leave a negative review based on their real feel. Also, this type of review would be considered an opinion. To be considered actionable for defamation, a argument must be a simulated statement of fact—not but the speaker'due south opinion.

Case of a Defamatory Zillow Review

"The owner of this institution engaged in theft by charging $150 extra on our credit menu for the meal. Do non become here or they volition steal from you likewise!"

If the owner did not in fact charge $150 actress on the patron'due south credit carte du jour, this review would be considered defamatory because the veracity of this claim is provable by fact, that the owner did non in fact steal the patron's money.

As well, the reviewer published the defamatory argument to a third-political party (an online review platform) with the intent to harm the owner/concern. And lastly, the owner and business concern may suffer a loss in business organisation or other amercement as a upshot of this review (causing harm or harm to the person who is the subject of the statement).

If you are unsure if a bad review is defamatory or not (and if you can sue for a bad review), contact an experienced net defamation attorney to hash out your rights.

When Should You Avert Suing Someone for a Bad Review?

A review may be harmful to your business, simply not every case of a negative or damaging review is appropriate to file a lawsuit over. You should avoid suing for a bad review in the following circumstances:

If the review is factually true,
If the review is pure opinion, and
If doing so might draw more unwanted attending to the review.

Avoid Suing if the Review is Truthful

First, you should avoid suing someone for a bad review when the reviewer is telling the truth.

One of the key elements in a defamation claim is falsity. The plaintiff in a defamation instance must show that what was written or said is false. If the statement or review in question is true, there is no valid defamation claim at play.

In that location is a reason the phrase "the truth hurts" is a platitude. Information technology is an unfortunate reality that businesses take to deal with hard truths in the form of an occasional negative review. Utilise the opportunity of receiving a bad, nevertheless truthful, review every bit an opportunity to ameliorate for next time!

Avoid Suing if the Review is Opinion

You should likewise avoid suing for a bad review when the content of the review is the writer's stance.

Unfortunately, the line between fact and opinion is not always clear. When a defendant shares an stance that cannot be proven true or false, they may rely on the defense of opinion. Withal, a mixed statement that contains both facts and opinion might withal be considered defamatory and worth bringing suit.

Avoid Suing if Doing So May Draw More than Unwanted Attention to the Review

Even if the review in question is clearly defamatory, there may be other reasons not to file a defamation lawsuit. If your business is big and has hundreds or thousands of reviews, a unmarried negative review may non be worth the time and effort of having it removed.

But if your business is small and does not accept many customer reviews to begin with, a single defamatory review may do a bully bargain of reputational and financial harm. In that case, the benefits of instigating a lawsuit may outweigh the costs for you.

Another consideration is that in some cases, filing a defamation lawsuit may describe more unwanted attention to the matter. This social phenomenon is known as the Streisand Effect. Attempting to censor an individual's speech tin can backfire if your lawsuit draws more public attending than the original statement would have garnered.

Video: What is the Streisand Upshot & How Tin can I Avoid It?

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Minc Law Defamation Lawsuit Tip: Yous should too be certain to consider all potential defamation defenses that may invalidate the claim earlier suing for defamation. Common defamation defenses include privilege , consent , statutory defenses, and an expired defamation statute of limitations .

Can You Sue Zillow For a Bad or Defamatory Review?

Only put, y'all cannot mostly sue Zillow for a bad or defamatory review. When a bad or defamatory review is published, your first instinct may be to file conform confronting the platform where the review is hosted. However, this course of activity is not your all-time choice, since most lawsuits of this nature fail.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act codification the broad immunity bestowed on cyberspace service providers and websites that host third-party content, like Zillow. According to Section 230, ISPs and websites are not held liable for what their users post (unless a narrow exception applies), even if a party was harmed by the post.

Due to the broad immunity granted to ISPs under Section 230, information technology is more often than not about appropriate to sue the publisher (poster) of the defamatory Zillow review directly.

Tips For Handling Bad Reviews on Zillow

Unfortunately, bad reviews are but a part of doing business organization. Not all customer reviews will be positive, then there is no need to panic if you receive a bad review. Think of a bad review as an opportunity to build connections and trust with your audience.

Below, we outline the steps y'all tin can have to deal with a bad review, including when you should and should not answer—and tips on how to craft the perfect response to a negative review.

What Tin You Practise About a Bad Review on Zillow That Is Untrue?

If a bad review crosses the line into defamation, at that place are legal remedies available. Fifty-fifty if the review is written past a customer, they cannot fabricate stories and make up false statements well-nigh y'all or your business.

If you take a bad review on your hands, there are options available. Here are four ways you can endeavor to remove a bad Zillow review:

1. Ask the Original Author to Remove the Negative Review

The most directly method of removing a negative Zillow review is to convince the original author to have information technology down. However, this method is not equally simple as it appears.

If the review was left past a real client, y'all may exist able to solve the trouble by reaching out to them privately and using exemplary customer service to deal with whatever legitimate complaint they have about your business organisation.

Keep in mind, however, that nosotros generally practice not recommend responding directly to reviews on the website where they were posted unless information technology is extremely serious or you accept otherwise exhausted all other options to remove the review. Try your best to respond to real customers using other communication channels, such as phone, email, or direct message.

But if the review was fraudulent, you are unlikely to see success in dealing direct with the affiche. Their goal is to damage your concern, and so it is possible that no amount of respectful communication will dissuade them.

two. Flag the Negative Review to Zillow For Terms of Service Violations

While real estate agents cannot directly delete whatever reviews on Zillow, they can flag the review for Terms of Service (ToS) violations to be reviewed or re-moderated by Zillow's moderators.

After locating the review you would similar to report/flag, click "Written report a Trouble."

You will then need to select the reasoning for reporting the review from the dropdown menu (inaccurate review, offensive language, appears faux, inappropriate real manor amanuensis response).

Y'all tin likewise provide details on why yous are reporting the review (this section is optional, but strongly recommended). Lastly, you lot must provide an email address where you lot tin can be contacted for further information.

After yous have reported the review to have it re-moderated, Zillow moderators will review it. The squad will remove the review if they find that it does non encounter their review guidelines. Simply if the moderators find that the review meets their guidelines, it will remain published on the site.

It is as well important to notation that real estate agents can opt out of being rated past deleting their Zillow contour altogether, including all reviews.

Continue in mind that review removals on Zillow are rare, and if you effort removal past flagging the review and information technology does not get removed, you take other legal options and y'all should contact an experienced legal professional to talk over your options.

3. Pursue Legal Activity Against the Person Who Posted the Review

Assuming that the review in question is imitation and qualifies as defamation, filing a defamation lawsuit is an pick to finer remove the review.

Bringing a defamation claim against the reviewer is a serious step that should be viewed but every bit a last resort. Filing a defamation lawsuit may be a fourth dimension-consuming, hard, and expensive process.

But if you take exhausted all other options, pursuing litigation against a known or anonymous defamer can be an effective style to:

Obtain a courtroom society to take the negative review removed;
Identify an anonymous poster backside the review (ex. filing a John Doe lawsuit);
Read a settlement or obtain defamation amercement for the damage acquired;
Achieve legal acknowledgment that your rights were violated.

Well-nigh lawsuits over faux and negative reviews are resolved without the need to go to trial.

If you decide to pursue legal activeness, keep in mind that in that location is ever a take chances that the lawsuit may go contentious and difficult. Because of the complex and fast-moving nature of defamation litigation, it is extremely of import to work with an experienced attorney who tin help you navigate the process and move quickly to obtain the necessary prove.

4. Apply Online Reputation Management & SEO Strategies to Suppress Content

In some instances, it is not feasible to remove a negative review. The best course of action in these situations may be to use online reputation management (ORM) strategies to curate your meridian search results and brand it more probable for positive media to appear showtime.

ORM strategies and services typically strive to bolster one'southward digital footprint by:

Creating positive content about you lot such as articles, blog posts, and social media posts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram);
Cultivating a positive review profile and online presence,
Monitoring social mentions and online reviews, and
Suppressing negative content.

Additional Ways to Handle Bad Reviews on Zillow

On top of flagging the review for re-moderation, Zillow suggests these helpful tips for dealing with a negative review on their platform:

Respond to the review publicly,
Contact the reviewer through Zillow, and
Brand more review requests from other real manor clients (because the number of reviews can drive more than contacts to real manor agents than the rating itself).

However, remember that we do not generally recommend responding publicly to reviews. If yous practise choose to reply, keep in mind that you should always prioritize using at-home, respectful language that is not defensive and does not reveal any private information about your client.

Below, we explore instances in which a existent estate agent may want to reply to a review—and when they should not respond.

When Should Yous Answer to Negative Reviews on Zillow?

While it may be your gut feeling to defend yourself or your business confronting a false or negative review, have a step back and call up it over before you respond—because it may not always be the best course of action.

There are pros and cons of responding to reviews, and many reputation management professionals are split on this particular topic. Below are ii lists of instances in which you should—and should not—respond to a negative review.

When You SHOULD Answer to a Negative Review

When a customer has posted a review that is substantially true, and at that place has been some type of wrongdoing on your or your business' part;
When a customer posts a true review and information technology is about something of genuine business concern; or
When a customer posts a factual review, merely just includes a small complaint (in this example, go on your respond curt and sugariness and thank them for their feedback).

When Yous SHOULD NOT Respond to a Negative Review

The client is hostile or vicious, and you think responding may escalate the situation;
You plan on taking legal action—in this example, defer to your attorney regarding whether or not a response is a smart motion; or
If yous are a certain type of professional person, similar a doctor or lawyer—in this instance, y'all could become into legal or ethical trouble by responding to reviews.

What Are Some Tips For Responding to Bad Reviews on Zillow?

Below, we listing a few key tips on how to respond to bad reviews on Zillow:

Respond to the Review Inside 48 Hours

If you practice cull to respond to a bad review, try to reply in a timely style.

But if you need to take time to absurd downwardly, practise it; writing a response when y'all are feeling heated or upset tin end up escalating rather than de-escalating the state of affairs.

Use the Customer'due south Name in Your Response

If the customer has provided their name, utilize their name when writing your reply. This extra touch can aid the customer experience personally heard.

Understand What the Customer is Saying

Be sure to answer to what the customer has actually written, not what y'all retrieve they should have said or what you believe their experience was. Focus on the customer's concerns and refrain from making excuses or becoming defensive.

Sympathize With the Customer & Genuinely Apologize

Admit the customer'south experience and testify that you sympathize with their negative or bad feel. Apologize for the negative experience they had, and make certain your apology is sincere.

Try to Resolve the Issue

Attempt to fix the problem by asking the customer what you can do to arrive correct. Another option is to invite them dorsum to experience your services once again.

Give thanks the Client for Leaving the Review

Demonstrate appreciation that the customer took time out of their twenty-four hours to write the review on Zillow.

Go along the Response Short & Sweet

Avoid including too much information. Oversharing details virtually the customer'due south feel may provide more than opportunities for the client to become upset and respond again.

Take the Word Offline

Offering to have the discussion to another, more private communication channel by providing your direct contact information.

Minc Police Tip: Responding to a negative online review is a delicate job since a bad choice of words can create more problems than it solves. For more tips on how to reply constructively to negative reviews, see our article: " How to Respond to Bad Reviews on the Internet ."

How a Legal Professional Can Help With a Defamatory Zillow Review

A negative and fake review can accept devastating impacts on you and your real estate do. Contacting a legal professional is in your best interest if you lot are receiving negative or defamatory customer reviews on Zillow.

An experienced internet chaser has the feel and access to tools and resources necessary to help y'all:

Develop strategies for a response and navigate platform reporting procedures,
Compile evidence of the defamatory review(due south) and nowadays it to the platform,
File a defamation lawsuit,
Place anonymous reviewers,
Obtain a court order to remove content, and
Explore alternatives to litigation.

A legal professional, such as the attorneys Minc Law, can assistance you make up one's mind whether the review is defamatory and if you have the choice of legal recourse. Law firms with internet content removal experience can aid you lot navigate the legal system and explore creative options when it comes to dealing with negative reviews online.

We Aid REALTORS & Existent Estate Brokers Remove Fake Zillow Reviews

If you are struggling with negative or defamatory reviews on Zillow, it is important to contact an internet defamation attorney to discuss your options and rights.

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At Minc Law, we are dedicated to removing fake and defamatory online content. We understand and have the skillset to remove negative and fake reviews from websites like Zillow.

For help with bad Zillow reviews, contact us for an initial consultation by calling (216) 373-7706, speaking with a Chat Representative, or filling out our online contact form.

Contact Minc Law

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