A quick primer on how to get Google reviews and use them as a strategy to grow your business.
Customer reviews are a part of life these days. When we’re looking for restaurants, we look at star ratings to help us whittle down our options. When we’re shopping for clothes, we look at the reviews to see if an outfit is true to fit. The same is true for your business, whether it’s B2B, B2C, a service or a product. People trust other peoples’ opinions more than advertising. In a perfect world, your customers are your best advocates, shouting far and wide about how great you are. But if that’s not the case, then it’s time to work on cultivating some reviews!
What’s more convincing to you: Hearing how great a product is from a company owner or a customer? You can talk about how great your product is, but it won’t have the credibility of hearing it from someone who has nothing to gain from your growing business.
The more good reviews you have, the more importance Google places on your business. For localized businesses, that means popping up higher in Google Maps. For other businesses, that means getting the coveted top spots in Google search results.
Peoples’ search patterns are getting more specific. Instead of searching for “pizza restaurant near me”, people might be searching for “thin crust margherita pizza near me”. While you definitely want to include your specific offerings in your website, it’s helpful if your customers are naming your products in their reviews. The more they do this, the more you’ll show up for these specific searches.
AI search engines love natural language. When it comes to responding to users’ questions, particularly things like “What is the best…”, AI prefers content that reads as conversational rather than informational. Real reviews written by real people fit the bill perfectly.
One thing we always caution our customers against is buying or stuffing reviews. Google only gets users if it’s a reliable source of truth, which means they want to make sure reviews are real. They will filter out any reviews that seem suspicious. So at the outset, make sure your reviews are from real customers, not your helpful friends and family.
This can be a challenge. I mean, what kind of person actually sits down to write reviews? Well as a recipient of the 2018 Yelptime Achievement Award and the author of over 1,000 reviews myself, I can confidently say… nerds.
Nerds love to give their opinion and share knowledge, particularly online. Fortunately, nerds are plentiful. So the simplest way to get reviews is to ask. Reach out to your customers and politely ask them to leave a detailed review. I’ve found that it’s helpful to seed some questions to them, like:
If you’re finding that your reviews are still slow, make sure that it’s extremely easy to review you. Have links on your website and in email signatures, and add a QR code on receipts. We caution against providing a gift or incentive for reviews. That goes against Google’s terms of service and can get your reviews taken offline altogether.
Once you do get a good review, make sure to reply to the review with gratitude. This makes your customer feel even better about the interaction, encourages other folks to review you, and pops you even higher in the search algorithm.
One of the inevitabilities of the internet are negative reviews. Bad reviews can bring down your overall rating, scare away potential customers, and can be really hurtful to read. One thing that might make you feel better is that it’s well known that they’re a fact of life. People make fun of bad reviews all the time, and might not take those reviewers seriously. In fact, a business that only has glowing reviews looks suspicious.
So what do you do about bad reviews? First, you take a deep breath and try not to take it personally. Then you take a hard look at your business to see if there’s validity to the complaint. A bad review is a good way to see where to improve your product or customer experience. Many companies hire third-parties to pose as customers to get an unfiltered audit of their operations. You’re getting this for free!
Next you’ll want to provide a calm response to your reviewer. Here’s an outline for a good response:
That’s it. No need to defend your business or bite back. A measured and empathetic response is the best way to “fix” a bad review. It shows that your business cares about its customers and operates with integrity. And again, your response feeds into the algorithm, signalling your importance to Google.
Google Reviews are an important part of your marketing strategy. Fortunately, it’s also completely free. With a bit of time and effort, reviews can be a great tool to bring more qualified prospects to your door, nurture your relationships with current customers, and gain valuable insight on your business.
Are you looking for a team that understands both design and marketing, and likes to keep things simple?
Go Banana! is a creative agency that blends strategy with creativity to help businesses establish themselves, grow, and make an impact. We dream of making the world a better place, one small business at a time.
Let’s chat about your next project!
