The Power of Online Reviews
Managing your business's online reviews doesn't have to be a headache.
- Credibility : As strange as it may sound, people really trust the reviews they see online. Even though they don’t know the people leaving the reviews, people still make purchase decisions based on them. When your business has a plethora of great reviews, users will notice. Their perception of your business will be more positive, and they’ll trust you more.
- Awareness : I’ve talked about your Google ranking a lot in other blog posts. Having a higher number of positive reviews will help you climb the ranks. Google takes your business’s reviews into consideration when showing search results. Basically, if you have more good reviews, you have a better chance of being ranked higher on the SERP.
- Feedback : Reviews offer a ton of benefits, but perhaps the most important is the feedback you are getting from your customers. Everyone loves positive reviews, but the negative ones shouldn’t be ignored. Listen to what your customers are saying in their reviews. Every business has its flaws, and online reviews give you insight into how you could improve.
- Customer Interaction : Engaging your customers online is just one more way to improve the image of your business. When users leave positive reviews, comment on them and thank them for leaving the review! It will go a long way in the eyes of not only that particular customer, but other people who see that you responded. Just as important (if not more) is responding to negative reviews. Reach out to those customers who had a negative experience and see how you could remedy the situation.
- Impact on Purchase Decision : Research shows that 67% of consumers are at least somewhat influenced by online reviews. It’s obvious a good review can go a long way in helping your prospective customers make the choice to purchase your products or services, so you wouldn’t want to leave that opportunity on the table.
How To Make Reviews Work For You
Unfortunately, the benefits of online reviews don’t come without a little encouragement. There’s nothing wrong with asking your customers to leave reviews. In fact, it’s a good practice to maintain--especially if you are sure they’ve had a great experience.
It’s also important to quickly respond to reviews, as mentioned before. When you do respond, make sure you are using the right tone and verbiage. You want to maintain a consistent online brand identity, and part of that is watching how you interact with customers--whether it’s in a response to a review or private message. Keeping up with all this can become overwhelming if you get a lot of reviews rolling in, and when it does, you can turn to an online review management tool to help you lessen the load.
These management tools will allow you to take control of your online reviews. More specifically, you’ll be able to see each new review that comes in whether it’s from Yelp, Google, Facebook, or hundreds of other sites. The best part is, you can conveniently manage them from a single dashboard. These features are pretty consistent across different management tools.
At Aletheia Digital, we prefer to use a software called Birdeye. This review management tool provides our clients with a convenient, easy way to see reviews posted in real time, respond to those reviews, and even encourage reviews from customers. Birdeye will automatically request reviews after you’ve provided a service or product for a customer, either via text message or email. You can personalize these requests to your liking so that you know exactly what the automated messages will say.
Another cool feature of Birdeye is its negative review alert system. If your business gets a poor review, Birdeye will automatically send you a notification to let you know. This way, you can immediately start working to rectify the situation. And all of this can be handled conveniently from an app on your phone. Birdeye will also ensure your best reviews are strategically placed where more people will see them.
As I mentioned before, Google will favor your business on the SERP if you have a higher number of positive reviews. Using tools like Birdeye can help you automate the process of building up your average rating. And with a higher rating, more people will find your business when searching for the services or products you offer. So staying on top of your reviews and maintaining a strong, consistent online presence will lead to higher awareness and, down the road, higher sales numbers.
Is It Worth The Cost?
If you opt to use a review management tool such as Birdeye, or hire an agency to set it up for you, you are going to have to decide if it’s worth the cost. Of course, prices for these tools vary depending on the available features, the services you require, and other factors, but they are generally very cost-efficient.
It’s important to measure return on investment when analyzing the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. You won’t start to see overnight increases in sales and customers when you start actively managing your online reviews. Keep in mind that encouraging and monitoring reviews is simply a small part of online reputation management. While it doesn’t mean overnight success, it’s a great first step to increasing awareness of your business, and thereby increasing your revenue.
It’s also important to note how time-consuming it can be to manage your online reviews. Most business owners (especially small business owners) have a lot on their plates. It may seem like it’s not worth committing the time to manage reviews, but that’s where the management software comes in. If you want to stay on top of your competitors and increase awareness of your business, you should consider investing in an online reputation management strategy.
