Reviews play an integral role in your business as they can influence customer decisions in various ways. While negative reviews can sway customers away from your business, positive reviews can go a long way in retaining and attracting new clients. Google Business reviews are public comments and ratings that customers leave about businesses. The reviews usually appear alongside a business’ profile in Google Search and Maps.
Business reviews allow employers and businesses to collect valuable feedback from users who have made purchases on their online platforms.
How Reviews Can Help Businesses and Customers
While Google Business reviews are predominantly viewed as beneficial to businesses, they can also benefit customers. They can enable businesses to build social proof and stand out from the rest. Social proof is a signal that other people trust the business to deliver positive experiences, making customers to feel comfortable shopping with them.
On the other hand, Google Business reviews can also help customers with decision making. Reading the reviews enable customers to know what to expect from a business in terms of product offerings, services and the overall customer experience. Thus, reviews help customers to make informed decisions about the businesses to choose when shopping.
Google Business reviews can also influence other marketing channels. The number and quality of the reviews will directly impact the position of your website in search results. A past study found out that Google reviews account for about 15.44% of the overall SEO score. That means negative reviews can significantly hamper a business’ position in search results.
Strategies to Boost Your Google Business Reviews
Google Business reviews have become crucial more than ever in the swiftly changing online business landscape. According to a BrightLocal study, 87% of customers used Google Business reviews to evaluate local businesses in 2022. That indicated a rise of up to 6% from the previous year. Besides, those customers cited Google as the most trusted source of reviews.
So, how can you boost your Google Business reviews? Here are strategies to help you gain more Google Business reviews to take your business to the next level.
- Get Google My Business page
You need to set up Google My Business page to start receiving reviews from your customers. Some small business usually assume that they will be awarded a GMB page just because they have online stores. However, you should first register the page and fill out the information as directed to start receiving Google Business reviews. Established businesses with Google Places pages are automatically transferred to local GMB pages.
Here is a sample GMB profile for Montien Thai Restaurant to inspire you.
Alternatively, you can also create a page on your website, dedicated to Google reviews. The page should contain existing reviews that have been written by former clients as well as a CTA for writing new reviews. These can be quite instrumental in encouraging prospects to become customers. Besides, they can also inspire existing clients to leave reviews.
Reviews can be posted in the forms of screenshots but, they should be posted in text formats. That is because reviews are usually rich in keywords and including them on your website can form a great part of your SEO strategy.
- Ask for Reviews
Getting more Google Business reviews is not always a walk in the park and you must put in some efforts for success. Do not assume that customers will write reviews about your business even if you offer them the most fulfilling experiences. Customers will often purchase products and have satisfactory experiences using them but, they will never think to return to your page and leave reviews.
While that is common to most businesses, some industries such as hospitality and restaurant businesses usually accumulate reviews easily. Some customers even go as far as following your social media accounts or even signing up to your newsletters during purchases. You can leverage those avenues to ask your customers for honest reviews. Remember, even bad reviews still count as reviews.
Do not be afraid to ask for reviews directly from your customers. Studies show most customers are usually more than willing to leave reviews even without being asked to do so. Apart from the avenues cited above, you can also ask for reviews in marketing emails after e-commerce purchases or at the Point of Sale in physical stores. It would also be a great idea to train your staff to ask for feedback from customers during service delivery.
- Respond to All Reviews ASAP
Whether you get positive or negative reviews, it is always advisable to engage with your customers. While negative reviews may have to wait, you should respond to positive reviews immediately. Show the customers that you appreciate them taking time to fill out the Google Business reviews survey and leave positive words. Even a simple thank you can encourage customers to return and make purchases.
While negative reviews are usually viewed as bad for business, you should also respond to them quickly and thoughtfully. If negative reviews remain in your page for longer without any replies, potential clients are likely to read them and make up their own opinions about your business based on those sentiments.
Start responding to negative reviews by thinking the customers for taking time to give feedback and offer to move the conversation from the reviews to a phone call, messaging or email exchanges. That will make it clear to other customers that you are not quick to point fingers but, committed to making sure that every client is satisfied.
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We offer customized packages to enable you buy Google Business reviews, tailored to your specific business goals and budget. Our packages cater to small, medium and large-sized businesses looking to acquire more Google Business reviews organically. Besides Google Business Reviews, we can also help you to accelerate your social media growth on other platforms including TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Here is a screenshot of the packages for buying Google Business reviews.
- Connect with Customers on Other Social Media Platforms
Do not just set up a Google My Business page and sit back, hoping that customers will leave reviews therein. Besides, you should not leave customers to base their reviews on the experiences with your site only. However, giving them alternative options for interactions will allow more room and issues to discuss in their reviews.
Leverage platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to answer questions and respond to customer concerns. Integrating social media will enable you to communicate better with clients and, increase your chances of generating many positive Google Business reviews. Remember you can still use those channels to ask customers directly to head over to your page and leave reviews.
You do not want to focus on Google and social media platforms only. Instead, scout other avenues too to get reviews. Check out other sites that offer business reviews such as Angie’s List and Yelp. Remember to ask for reviews through popular sites other than just Google and allow users to choose their site preferences.
- Promote your Positive Reviews
Reviews usually start out small but, they grow over time to become regular and reliable flows to your GMB profile. Showing that your business already has several positive reviews can encourage many customers to leave reviews on your page too. Various ways exist for showing off your positive reviews. You can display printed signage of the most positive reviews in locations around your physical stores. Alternatively, you could also use a plugin to display the most recent Google Business reviews directly on your e-commerce platform.
- Make the Review Process Short and Simple
Some customers will simply fail to leave reviews on your GMB profile if they feel that the process is tedious and time consuming. So, try to link as closely as you can to the review form. It is advisable to link directly to the review page to give customers an easier time. Make sure that users have to click as few times as possible to get to the Google Business reviews page.
View every additional step as a point of failure where you are likely to lose a significant percentage of your potential reviews. Emphasize to customers how quick and easy it is to leave reviews on your page.
Below is a simple Call to Action at the bottom of a business website.
- Deliver Top-notch Quality and Customer Service
There is no doubt that your business must deliver on its promises to attract online reviews. Keep in mind negative experiences, whether through low quality products or poor customer service will always attract negative reviews. Thus, the only way to getting around attracting positive reviews is making sure that you deliver the best product quality and customer service.
If you are already attracting a steady flow of Google Business reviews but, need to enhance the average ratings, you must start looking inwards. Keep a close attention to what customers are saying in your negative reviews. Then, make steps towards addressing any operational issues of the business that may be contributing to the below-average ratings.
If you are consistent with providing the best quality products and exceptional customers service, there is always a reason for customers to head to your reviews page and leave positive comments. On other hand, many customers are unlikely to take time to leave reviews if they are not getting what they are paying for. Some may leave negative reviews to discourage potential customers but, many would simply just walk away and shun your business.
- Review other Businesses
Do not think that reviews only come from customers. Some businesses have partners in their industries that also work towards shaping their image in the public domain. Thus, you should also consider leaving reviews of other businesses in your niche to attract Google Business reviews for your company. It may not always deliver positive results but, occasionally the businesses that your review will also do the same for your business. That will not only boost your business’ reviews and ratings but, also help in building business relationships.
Accelerate Your Business Google Reviews with Superior Social Boost!
Generating more Google Business reviews is a process that requires a lot of effort and time. This article has outlined definitive strategies to enable you to attract and boost your Google Business reviews. In case you need further assistance on how to grow your social media presence on Google Business Reviews, TikTok, X, YouTube, Instagram or Facebook, do not hesitate to talk to us for the ultimate solutions.