There is power in online reviews. Considered as the “word of mouth” on the internet, online reviews can help encourage people to buy your product or use your service.
Benefits of Having Online Reviews
Online reviews can help any business to get more customers. According to Vendasta, 88% of consumers trust online reviews.
Imagine someone who is hesitant about trying out the new restaurant around the block. They have seen the beautifully-designed facade and are wondering if the food is just as good. So they go online, search for the name of the restaurant and on the right side of the screen a pane will pop up showing a few pictures of the restaurant, some general information, its rating, and reviews left by customers. Obviously, these people will be more interested in what people who have been there have to say about the place and the dishes.
If the average review says that the restaurant is good, then that person might be convinced to try it out. If there are more bad comments about the place, then he or she might not go. With just online reviews, people can form opinions of your business even without going there.
But apart from knowing more about a business, online reviews help owners to increase their ranking in the online search results page. The more reviews you have, the more relevant information is created. And when you have a lot of relevant information, search engines are able to include you in the first two pages of the results.
How to Get Google Reviews
With its SEO and popularity benefits, it seems that having more reviews helps a business to get more customers. Except when you have a really bad service, then Google reviews will not be helpful. But other than that, the more online reviews, the better. Here are a few ways to get Google Reviews.
- Engage Your Customers
Reviews can be a hassle to customers even if they’re made online. So, in order to ease getting feedback from them, start by creating a relationship with them even before you ask for a review. This means that the moment you interact with your customer, make sure to ask about the service or the product they bought. However, you should do this in moderation. Don’t overdo asking for feedback because your customers will just get annoyed.
- Make It Convenient
Compared to written reviews, online reviews are relatively easy to give. But your business might also fall into the trap of overcomplicating the feedback process. It would help to design your feedback form in a user-friendly way where your customers don’t have to think so hard. For example, you can give them options on how their experience went. Instead of asking them to write in words or sentences, have icons that describe the experience.
It would also help if you shorten the review. Some people who enjoyed their experience will gladly give a lengthy review but in terms of engaging more people, design something that people would want to fill out.
- Use Several Touch Points
The end of your interaction is not the only time to ask for a review. In fact, you can ask for a review during their stay or use of your product. But the crucial thing here is the timing. Ask for a review too early and you might annoy the client. Ask it too late and they will just leave a feedback form unanswered. So, make sure that when you are about to ask a client, engage them and get them hooked on your service. That way, it would be easy to persuade them.
- Give an Incentive
And finally, offer an incentive. As you disseminate your online review form, you might want to consider giving an incentive. For example, you can give a discount on their next visit when they leave a review. They can also get a freebie. When it comes to incentives, make sure that it is appealing enough for your customer to consider the review. Otherwise, they will ignore it.
When you are running a business, it’s important to know how reviews can benefit you. Although there are also downsides to getting honest reviews, your goal is to gather feedback so that you can give a better experience to your future customers.
