When Kylie Jenner, Inc. – the corporate entity operating Kylie Jenner's "Kylie Cosmetics" – recently received a rating of "F" from the Better Business Bureau ("BBB"), the reality television personality's team began taking steps to improve the business' failing BBB rating.
How should businesses respond to BBB complaints?
BBB Ratings System
The BBB rates businesses based on how the businesses appear to be interacting with their customers. BBB ratings range from "A+" to "F" and can fluctuate. According to the BBB, its ratings algorithm considers a number of factors relevant to each business, including:
- the size of the business;
- the number of complaints filed with the BBB against the business; and
- if complaints have been filed:
- whether the business resolved the complaints in a timely manner to the customer's satisfaction;
- whether the business made a good faith effort to resolve complaints;
- whether the business failed to resolve the underlying cause of a pattern of complaints; and
- the age of resolved complaints.
Kylie Cosmetics' BBB Rating
Last month, Kylie Cosmetics' BBB rating was downgraded to "F." Once the bad grade began receiving national media attention, Kylie Cosmetics representatives contacted the BBB in an effort to improve the BBB rating.
According to a statement released by the BBB, Kylie Cosmetics has since resolved a number of previously unresolved complaints and notified the BBB that the company is doing a much larger volume of business than originally believed. As a result, Kylie Cosmetics' BBB rating was changed to "NR" or "No Rating," signifying an ongoing review and update of the business' file.
Protect Your Business' Reputation
As the above-referenced case illustrates, if a business does not submit timely and appropriate responses to BBB consumer complaints, its BBB rating can be drastically reduced. This is especially true in consumer-facing industries, such as Internet marketing and telemarketing. Moreover, because responses to BBB complaints are typically accessible by the public for a period of three years and may contain legally sensitive information, BBB responses should be carefully tailored by an attorney experienced with consumer law and BBB procedure.
If you would like to learn more about this topic, or if you have received a consumer BBB complaint or are interested in improving your BBB rating, please e-mail us at info@kleinmoynihan.com or call us at (212) 246-0900.
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