In last week’s blog, we talked about “9 Simple Steps: How to Setup Your Google Business Page”.
Today is about how you can make the most of Google Reviews to instantly generate more credibility and leads for your business.
If you have a Google My Business Page, a feature you simply must take advantage of is Google Reviews. Google Reviews can only be used by an individual or businesses who have a Google My Business Page Account. If you haven’t setup it up yet… go do it now, it takes less than 30 minutes!
Reviews are becoming more powerful by the day. I know I rarely buy, book, eat or enquire about anything these days unless I’ve checked out the reviews first and a barely ever go anywhere with less than 4.5 stars.
Your customers are really looking for reviews to make a decision when looking for accommodation, restaurants, variety stores, tradesman, holidays, and more… Therefore, paying attention on how to increase your reviews can be very beneficial to your online success.
What You Need to Know About Google Review Ratings
There are two main factors which you would like to pay attention to as far as Google Reviews are concerned:
One is the “Star Rating” and the “Number of Reviews”.
The “Star Rating” is how well people are rating your business. The lowest rating is “1 Star” and the highest rating you can get is “5 Stars”. The higher the rating of your average, the more clout you have over your competitors, and the higher you will be in the online search results.
The “Number of Reviews” is even more important than the “Star Rating”. While the Star Rating gives you credibility and gets you higher up in your search results, the “Number of Reviews” allows your rating to show up on a search for your users. The minimum number of reviews required for your “Star Rating” to show up in Google search is five.
In the below example, you can see 3 different businesses selling Auto parts. Ken’s Auto has 2 reviews and Eddy’s Auto has 4 Reviews, but their “Star Rating” is not showing. Mike’s Auto has the minimum required level of reviews (5 Reviews), and his “Stars Rating” is Showing up on the search.
As you can see, even if you have the highest rating, your “Review Ratings” will not show up if you have less that five reviews.
So, as you can see the number reviews combine with high Star rating are crucial for your business to get picked..
Common Mistakes Business Owners Make When Asking For Reviews.
It’s tempting to ask a friend to add “5 Stars” ratings reviews for your business, I get it. We all like to be liked.
But be aware.
While this can get you higher than other competing businesses, it might not get your business picked from the lot or get people to refer your services. And it could land you in hot water with Google too. No one likes to get slapped by Google so just don’t go there, okay? It’s shonky and it’s bad for your karma. End of story.
Getting Genuine reviews are much more rewarding that fake ones
How To Get A Genuine Review?
Get your customers to leave feedback on Google. By simply reminding them to add reviews on both Google mobile and desktop, you can really make your business stand out from your competitors.
Respond to your reviews – By responding to reviews, you will show to your customers and other web users (potential leads) that you care about your customers’ response and input and that you’re a proactive type of person to deal with.
Make sure that your business information is verified by Google. Power tip: Only verified Local Google Plus Pages can respond to customer reviews so make sure that’s all setup correctly.
Quick Tips To Respond To Bad Reviews The Right Way.
- Don’t get too personal, keep it professional and be gentle
- Be a compassionate leader (remember your response will be around forever for plenty of people to read so you want to get it right.)
- Keep your response short and sweet
- Make sure you thank your reviewer, even if the review is bad
- Avoid the hard sell. Every shitty situation with a customer is an opportunity to turn things around but take it offline. Don’t do the hard sell to win them back in the review for all to see.
So there you have it! Google Reviews can play a hugely effective role in your online marketing efforts.
If you are struggling to verify your Local Google Plus Page or have any questions about the blog, please feel free to Contact Us and get some help. Send us an email or give us a call on 1800 932 123. We’d love to chat.