Why Google Reviews Matter
Online reviews are now trusted almost as much as personal recommendations, and 90% of consumers read online reviews before visiting a business. Not only are they a good way of encouraging potential customers to visit your physical store or your online site, but they also hold significant value in the current search algorithm.
Put simply, this means that the more good reviews you receive, the higher you should appear in search rankings.
How you can get more Google Reviews
It’s important to realise that many people don’t trust reviews that are more than 3 months old. This means you need to make sure you are continuously asking for them, so that your profile is always updated with recent reviews.
Do this by incorporating these strategies into your marketing plan.
1. Ask for Google Reviews
If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
One of the easiest ways to get a Google review is to ask for one. If you’re on the phone with a happy customer, this is your chance to ask them for a review- it’s that easy!
2. Send a Follow Up Email
After a job is completed, send your customer a follow-up email and ask them to leave you a google review.
You can include a direct link to your google reviews by following these instructions from Google.
3. Leave Behind a Reminder
Especially handy if you’re a tradesperson, where you are completing jobs in people’s homes, sometimes without ever having met the person, a reminder could come in the form of a Google review card.
4. Add a Review Link to your Website
Adding a review link to your website will help you get more reviews simply because it makes it easier for your customers.
5. Include the Direct Link to your Google Reviews in your Email Signature
Get more out of your email signatures by adding a simple call to action such as “Have feedback? Leave us a review on Google.”
Generating positive reviews for your business can often be overlooked, especially as it is a post-completion request. However, spending a little time on making sure you request them from your customers, can really pay off in the long run. It will both help you attract new customers, and enable you to climb a little higher up Google’s Search Engine Results Pages (SERPS).
If you still aren’t sure on how to get more Google reviews, or have any other local SEO questions, get in touch with us today.