The last twenty-four hours have been a tough one for a Tacoma, Washington brewery that had at least one employee lash out at customer after the customer gave a negative review about the brewery’s beers on social media. I’m going try to protect the identity of the brewery so as not to be viewed as piling on, and I’ve censored what pictures I’m going to post in this article as to make it acceptable to all readers. But the lesson I’m going to try and communicate to you is this: You must always comport yourself with professionalism in business, particularly on the internet.

Social media is the blessing and curse of small business. On one hand, it’s free (or at least the basic levels of entry typically are), nearly instantaneous, allows you to communicate what’s going on with your business in real time, connects you to your customer base, promotes your business through both passive and active networking…the list of benefits goes on and on. Used properly, social media can give your business advantages and a growing customer base in a short time that entities years ago would spend years and thousands…even millions of dollars attempting to generate. Not only that, but the masses of people plugged into the internet can use these social media platforms to come together as a group and accomplish a number of positive accomplishments. Through the use of smart phones, millions of people hold real influence in the palms of their hands and their reach has almost no boundaries. We’ve seen social media increase awareness on a massive scale of even the tiniest event, cause a flood of charitable dollars to go towards a cause that needs attention yet isn’t newsworthy by today’s journalistic standards and allow some of the smallest creative ideas and inventions to get enough traction to make it a resounding success. The internet and social media can link people all over the world almost instantly in support of a common good.

The flip side to that coin, however, has a number of drawbacks. Social media and reference sites that allow peer and customer reviews have almost zero accountability for those who write inflammatory or unfounded negative reviews. A person with internet access doesn’t have to have fundamental knowledge of a product to review it negatively. Users don’t have to prove that they were even a patron of a business to leave a scathing review of its ineptitude or deplorable business practices. Customers with an imagined grudge can lower the overall rating of a business without proper vetting of either the author of the review or the facts in question. As is human nature, people are much more likely to register and review a business or product due to a single instance of dissatisfaction than to do so after numerous instances of exceptional experience. On the whole, we as consumers feel that it’s a business’s job to make us happy and that their products are supposed to do the same. Why waste time writing about the good things this business has done when that should have been its aim in the first place?

Businesses hope that there will be an equilibrium to the use of review sites and social media. They would much rather you talk to them about a bad experience you had in their building or with their product, at which point they can attempt to make restitution to you personally, rather than have you get in your car and hack out a hastily-written, emotionally-driven review that paints the business in a bad light. There are a number of things to consider when writing reviews and how to go about them; I’m sure I’ll touch on those at a later date. Today I’m going to give a cautionary tale to business employees with access to their company’s social media: In the case of a negative online comment about your business, saying nothing is usually the smart move.

Yes, you want to and may need to improve your business or your product. Yes, on some social media platforms you want all of your customer base to know that you’re listening. But you must never, ever lash out at a customer. I’m not here saying the customer is always right, and I’m not saying that you shouldn’t stick up for yourself, your employees and your business in general if you feel like you are being unfairly bullied. It happens. Using profanity, degrading comments or threats of violence won’t get you anywhere, however, in a business setting. And as the brewery in question is now horrifyingly aware, doing so on the internet can be akin to professional suicide. I’m going to paraphrase from a few sources I’ve come across over the years that make these statements simply and effectively: The internet isn’t written in pencil, it’s written in ink. That one was from Aaron Sorkin. The other is that it takes years to build a positive reputation, but only a brief moment to bring it crashing down. That was my high school band director. You made a positive difference, Mr. Johnson!

Customers are going to give you bad reviews. It’s an inevitability. There are people out there who are on social media and simply don’t believe a business should have a perfect rating. Others just like to rock the boat. Some may even simply be trolling you. Perhaps the best thing to do is say nothing publicly. Responding in any fashion via the internet can have dire consequences, particularly if you do so by making it personal, making slanderous comments and being completely unbending about someone’s statement, no matter how true or overblown it may seem. The brewery in question is currently reeling from an onslaught of negative press by nearly every social media and review outlet available to the millions of people who have access to it. Instagram, Facebook, Untapped, Google. Everyone is throwing burning brands into the fire. The actions of one or two angry people may cause everyone involved their business, their employment and their reputations.

I’ve had to restrain a number of my bosses over the years from responding to online criticism, and the action of taking no action has always paid off over getting into an online spitting contest. The majority of users will take no notice of an errant comment by a snide reviewer, but the internet as a whole will rise up and take notice if you begin a pugilistic argument with anyone who rubs you the wrong way online, and you won’t know whether the faceless mob is on your side or not until it’s too late.

Take a breath. Take a hot shower. Have a beer. If you absolutely have to make a comment to a bad online review, do it in whatever privacy the internet affords you, and make damned sure that you’re being as professional and objective as possible. You don’t want to end up like this soon-to-be-closed brewery.