Customer reviews have become the bread and butter of online marketing. And with Google being the first point of contact for just about anyone searching your keywords, the importance of the reviews found there are hard to underestimate. Google reviews accomplish many purposes:
Google reviews pump fuel into your marketing strategies
Receiving testimonials that are both quantitatively numerous and qualitatively excellent will boost customer approval significantly. If Google list a 4.5 star rating with 9+ reviews, people will be far more persuaded of your reliability. As a matter of fact, negative reviews severely damage your conversion rate. A conversion can be classified as any way in which your marketing strategy exhibits lead-producing results. This could be a phone call, an email, a request for a quote, even an online sale! The less positive reviews you incur on Google, the less likely customers are to choose your services or even notice you, much less reach out to you. Think about it: If you were to do a google search for a product or service, would you pay any attention whatsoever to the business with 3.5 stars? Or would your eyes immediately fall towards the company with multiple 5 star ratings and praiseworthy testimonials? Having a wealth of these positive recommendations at hand will also provide you with fodder to optimize your website in general. As potential customers browse your website, they can be swayed and convinced of your product or service by being reminded of how great you are! Installing (or manually coding) a testimonials widget onto your site will engender confidence in your brand as users peruse through the services you offer. Google reviews are typically the most common place to retrieve a healthy supply of these glowing commendations.
Google reviews give you a regular business diagnostic
It is important to have a constant flow of consumer feedback to work from in order to expose flaws and work towards growth. There is often a reluctance to being promoting Google reviews out of fear of getting bad press. Don’t be scared of receiving an occasional poor review! Not only will this give you an opportunity to learn from some mistakes, it will also give you a chance to respond quickly to the grumpy reviewer and possibly resolve the issue. This further promotes trust and reliability.
Google reviews boost your ranking on Google
This is arguably the most important aspect of Google reviews. Google has publicly announced that when a user searches keywords with a local intent, the top rated businesses will be the first to show up. Consider these strategies of raking in more reviews so that you can consistently rank higher:
- Encourage your clients to review your product/service directly after delivery/completion.
- Ask friends and family who have used your services for a review. This is a great way to start out when you don’t have many reviews to begin with.
- If you have strong existing relationships with past clients, reach out and ask for a review.
