Positive reviews are not just a great sales and branding strategy, but on sites that allow user ranking, a good review can stimulate buyer activity. Phony reviews can actually hurt your reputation, and you may be breaking the law. You have to get reviews from real customers. Here are a few keys to ensuring your audience can always find a good review of your company.
Use Local Listings
Many mobile users search primarily for products and services in their local area. If your company depends on these customers, or if you’re trying to establish a connection with these users, it’s helpful to set up a profile on local listings where anyone from your geographical location can find you.
Sites like Google’s My Business and Yahoo Local are optimized for local searches and invite users to leave a review. Get your profile listed on as many of these sites as you can under the closest major city. Make sure your information is correct, and the good reviews will continue driving traffic your way.
Priority Review Sites
A great review is worthless if nobody sees it. You want to get good reviews posted onto the sites where most of your prospects will be looking. In addition to Google My Business, you should also consider popular sites like the Better Business Bureau, Yelp, TripAdvisor, MapQuest, SuperPages, and Angie’s List. Some of these sites cater to certain industries. Do some research and try to find the top-ranked websites that your market segment uses.
Ask for the Review
Don’t expect a lot of customers to voluntarily leave you a good review. Be sure to ask for it in your email campaigns, printed materials, social media, and your chat or phone conversations. Craft it as a personal appeal to each customer. Make certain they understand how to do this by providing the direct web address of the review entry page you prefer.
Success Path reviews on Highya are a good example of how you can promote and request reviews in a professional way. You might also provide incentives for doing so, such as coupons or freebies. However, legally you should make it clear that getting the incentive is not dependent on making it a good review.
Consider Software
There are a number of software tools to help manage your online review chores. Some are free. There are also third-party services like DemandForce or CustomerLobby who handle all this for you. You could do this on a temporary or full-time basis, so long as you’re able to sustain some positive, recent reviews. Some of these tools and services will also help with the downside of online feedback: negative reviews. They may have tools and strategies for burying or removing the occasional bad review.
Follow Through
Review or not, customer relationships are about two-way communication. Periodically check your review sites and try to respond to all reviews, good or bad. Personally thank customers for good reviews with a thoughtful email. Even when the feedback is negative, it can work to your advantage if you make every effort to set things right.
Appearing calm, professional, empathetic, and sincere will make your business look good no matter how nasty the review is, or at least help to minimize the damage. Fix the problem and then ask the customer to withdraw or update the bad review. If it’s a legitimate complaint, use it as a learning experience. Explain that you’re making changes, and thank the reviewer for their “suggestion”.
The best way to get super reviews is to deliver a super product and service. Every happy customer could be the source of another great review. So don’t hesitate to ask.
