Power of Reviews for Your Business: How They Benefit Search and Finding New Customers
Reviews of your business are perhaps something you've put off looking into, only because you fear the responses you'll receive. Considering you've likely seen some of the negative reviews businesses receive on places like Yelp, you've maybe wanted to avoid the risk.
In truth, you'll find as many positive reviews on Yelp and Google as you do negative ones. While it's true some businesses feel frustrated with negative reviews, they actually figure in to balancing a more accurate picture of who you are.
What's important is to start allowing customer reviews since they benefit you in how people find you online. Google takes online reviews seriously, and so do those looking for businesses on their mobile devices.
Here's a broader look at what online reviews can do to find you new customers.
How Many Customers Select a Business Based On a Positive Review?
According to recent statistics over the last year, 56% of customers rely on positive online reviews when they make decisions about a business. This tells you a lot about what actions people take when they're searching for a business and weighing the options with your competitors.
Since you may have dozens of other local businesses similar to yours, it's essential to stand out from the pack. While this is going to take numerous marketing steps, simply being found quickly during a Google search matters more than anything.
Yet, many people searching for businesses like yours don't want to have to sort through pages of information to find what they want. A review is going to give them a quick assessment of who you are and what other customers think of you.
Reviews Help Your Local SEO
Did you know reviews make up 8.9% of all SEO, including helping your local SEO? You obviously want people to find you on a local basis rather than merely putting yourself out there nationally.
Positive reviews place you within the first page of Google's search results so you'll be found above everyone else. Part of this involves placing your business on Google Maps, which is a major advantage for people searching on mobile.
Many prospects are going to find your business while on the go. Positive reviews make up 8.4% of your local search ranking factors, so it pays to get going on working toward making these reviews happen.
The question is, how do you go about obtaining positive reviews without making it a forced process? Since Yelp punishes businesses for creating phony reviews, you can still persuade people to write a review.
Inspiring an Honest Review
Keep in mind that if you persuade customers to write a review, ask them to write an honest one. Too many positive reviews can actually create a negative effect on how many people trust you. One reason behind is consumers know no business is perfect. Having some negative reviews actually helps you, especially when blended in with positive ones.
This mix of reviews makes you look real and proves you aren't faking reviews, which can lead to huge penalties on search engines.
Gaining this kind of trust is going to help you find new and loyal customers who know you have fellow customers giving varying opinions about what you offer.
Improving Your Business From Customer Reviews
If you happen to get some negative reviews, it helps to reply to them on places like Yelp to prove you want to solve any problems the customer experienced. Others searching for your business are going to see this and realize how genuine you are in trying to fix any issues displeasing customers in the past.
Addressing those who wrote the negative review can also convert that customer back to being loyal once they know you've solved their complaints.
Visit us at BJC Branding so we can help you attain positive reviews using various digital marketing services. Come see how our CEO, Bryan Caplan, helps businesses lock down their marketing.