3 Ways to Increase Your Google Reviews
Of the hundreds of customers you serve every month, how many take the time to leave a positive review? The answer for most businesses is a very small percentage. Part of this is because reviewing doesn't fit into the natural flow of business. At what point during the process of doing business with your company should your customers flip out their smartphones and rate you? No matter how glad you are to have the review, this would actually come across as fairly rude in the middle of an interaction. Even those customers that do rate may not do so on the site you'd prefer. Fortunately, you have the power to change this process. With a little effort and innovation, you can make rating and reviewing a smooth and integrated part of doing business with you. Not sure where to start? Try one of these methods:
1) In-Store Reviewing Device
Are there digital kiosks in your venue? If so, where in the process do your customers use them? Some restaurants, for instance, use mounted tablets and touch-screen computers as a way to speed up the ordering process. Tech and computer stores have them to display their wares and help customers find the exact product they're looking for. Even car dealerships tend to have kiosks available so customers can manage their finances and insurance while preparing for a purchase. What you need is a quick reviewing feature that allows customers to choose their star rating and tap out a few warm words on their way out the door. Your chances of complete reviews will rise significantly if it's an integral part of service with your business.
2) Link in a Follow-Up Email
Many companies use automated emails in order to follow up with their customers. This is a great business practice because it not only shows that you care about their satisfaction after the fact, it also gives customers a chance to try out their product and get back to you in their own time. As you're already looking for feedback, it's only natural to include a quick and easy way for customers to leave you a star rating and review through a link in the email. As they're considering the quality of your service, offer them the ability to choose a star rating, something that when clicked on will take them to the Google ratings page for your business. This will get a much larger percentage of your customers not only reviewing, but doing so on the site you want them to.
3) Connect it To Your App
Do you have a mobile app out there making access to your business easier for on-the-go customers? Thousands of businesses do and if you are one of them, you can make reviewing a breeze with a little simple integration. When your customers regularly spend time on the app, you don't even need to send a follow-up email, as the app itself can ask for post-service feedback. Encourage mobile users to share their opinions and experiences through the google review system and watch those mobile reviews roll in.
From coffee shops to business consulting firms, your Google business reviews matter. They appear any time someone looks up your company on the world's most popular search engine and they are a powerful influencer when it comes to customer decision making. Whether you have two reviews or two thousand, that final average star rating matters, as do the personal stories of your customers. When you have high stars and a large collection of excited personal success stories, others will flock to your business looking for the same enjoyable experience.