Is It Necessary to Get Reviews for Your Business? Yes, there is a spoiler.
Is It Necessary to Get Reviews for Your Business? Yes, there is a spoiler.
Reviews have never been more critical in the digital marketplace. They have the power to influence whether a customer chooses you or your rival. If they’re looking for a new restaurant, deciding where to live, finding a dentist, deciding which homebuilder to use for a new home, or deciding where to stay on their next holiday, your reviews are increasingly becoming their first stop.
Customers are searching for information about your company’s quality of operation, fair pricing, venue, and customer service in reviews. Reviews are critical in any industry, and your company needs them to stay competitive!
What Role Do Reviews Play in Business?
Reviews are 2x more likely than loyalty to be an important factor in selecting a local company, according to Podium’s State of Reviews for 2021. That means that even though you have a loyal customer base, you risk losing their business if your rivals have higher star ratings and new, appropriate, and high-quality feedback.
a sneak peek at Podium’s State of Reviews for 2021
Source: State of Reviews for Podium 2021
According to the same survey, 88 percent of customers use feedback to find new local businesses. And before they accept your company’s goods and services, customers want to hear what others have to say about you before learning more about you.
To prevent this, you must make it as simple as possible for your customers to leave positive or negative feedback about your business.
What Impact Do Negative Reviews Have on Your Business?
If a customer leaves a negative rating, it’s possible that something or someone failed to fulfill their standards. According to Podium’s survey, 85 percent of the time when consumers leave negative reviews, it’s because of a bad experience with an employee.
Negative reviews can be devastating to your online credibility, but they also provide an incentive for you to better your business. It could be as simple as having a conversation with your staff about the value of customer service, or you could need to come up with some ideas for streamlining operations or procedures to avoid long wait times. In any case, your customer’s analysis may reveal information about your company that you hadn’t considered before.
Must-Do: Address negative reviews in public.
Whether it’s an employee’s attitude, the quality of a purchase, or an event that didn’t go as planned, publicly responding to negative feedback shows that you care for the customers’ concerns. Suggestion: take the discussion offline to further address their problem. Since the review will stay on your profile, consumers will be able to see how your customer service handled the situation in the future.
Screenshot of a Business Responding to a Negative Review
Sixty-six percent of consumers claim that a company’s response to negative feedback has influenced their opinion of the company. It’s obvious that ignoring positive or negative feedback has an effect on how consumers perceive a business, so keep this in mind the next time you manage your company’s reviews.
5 Ways to Get Positive Online Reviews for Your Company
Make a claim of ownership of all of your profiles. This includes Google, Yelp, Social Media, and industry-specific websites, among others.
Said (screenshot) My Business Locations on Google Verified Google My Business Profile
Claimant’s Yelp Business Page (Screenshot)
Yelp has claimed your profile.
This allows you to have complete control of your company’s online identity. You can monitor your business hours, contact details, and react to online reviews with Yelp and Google My Business, for example.
Request feedback.
If your best clients, partners (such as Realtors), or tenants had a positive experience, ask them to leave a comment. Your chances of turning consumers into promoters improve if you have outstanding customer service and a quality product. Delighting your customers with ideas that enthusiastically address their issues will help you create a loyal customer base that will be more likely to leave glowing reviews.
Add Review Links to Your Website
Add links to your website to your Houzz, Google My Company, or Yelp profiles. Put them in an obvious place, such as the “Contact Us” section or the footer of your website. Make it easy for your customers to find your profiles if they want to leave feedback without being asked.
When you say “thank you,” follow up.
Follow up with a “Thank You/Leave a Review” note. If they receive an email asking them to leave a review after having a positive experience, 36% of consumers are more likely to do so. Your “Thank You/Leave a Review” email can be scheduled to go out at the most convenient moment for your prospects and customers. Is this the point at which a project is finished? Is this a few days after the project is finished? Determine when you believe your customers will be most pleased with the service provided and schedule your follow-up emails accordingly.
Get the Right Tools to Make It Easy for You
Customers can easily rate and review your company using tools like Podium, ReviewPush, Yext, and SEM Rush. These “get more feedback” tools will automate the process of sending review requests via text or email, compile and publish reviews, and make it simple to respond to all reviews that are sent quickly.
Creating a Review-Building Strategy?
Let’s talk if this sounds complicated and you already have a lot on your plate. SimpSocial has a track record of connecting companies with the right tools to increase their online visibility and get more feedback.
While you concentrate on your company, our team will assist you in developing a customer retention and review plan. Let’s get in touch.
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