As a business owner, having a Google My Business profile and the Google reviews that come with it are essential if you'd like your company to start gaining traction. It will showcase how people can contact you, your business name, and will show your Google reviews. It can also be a great way to attract new customers with ease of use to contact you and see how other customers rate your business.
Many people spend most of their time on their phones and don't mind reviewing a business they visited.
Having a good and accurate Google My Business profile allows you to receive positive and negative feedback through reviews. It also allows other potential customers to see that feedback. Many customers won't try an establishment until they have seen its reviews. Quickly looking up Google reviews to verify a business's credibility based on other users' experiences helps ease their doubts.
Customers have access to more information about service businesses than ever before. They will seek out the business that allows them to have the most information. Once you have set up a great Google My Business profile, a good number of reviews will help you rank better with search engine optimization and show up better against competitors.
All About Google My Business
Setting up your Google My Business profile is quick and easy. Here's what you need to do:
Start by logging into your business's Google account.
Go to the Google My Business site.
Select the "Manage Now" button.
Type your business name.
Accurately enter the address of your business and the region you service.
Select a category that fits with your company's industry.
Type in all of your company's contact information.
Verify your business by using one of the Google-required verification methods.
There are many benefits to having a Google My Business profile set up aside from garnering Google reviews. They include:
- Allowing your business to show up on Google Maps
- Receiving insights about the people searching for your business on Google.
- Being able to manage customer appointments from your Google My Business dashboard.
The Value Of Google Reviews
Whether you're just launching your local business or are a small business owner looking to grow larger, Google reviews can play a significant role in your journey. Reviews are a way for people to talk about your business openly and also for you to respond to both positive reviews and negative reviews. They can even be a way to move an unhappy customer to loyal customers.
Google Reviews Aid With Consumer Trust
Reviews Google has gathered over time for your business help to improve its trustworthiness. Not only do people trust Google reviews, but your credibility as a business increases when you are associated with positive ones. When you have many positive reviews, people look favorably on your business, especially those in the 18 to 34 age range.
Imagine your buying habits. Have you ever looked at a Google review yourself? The chances are high that if you are researching a home services professional, a dentist, or a law firm, you have either talked with people directly to get a review or looked at Google reviews on your Google My Business profile.
Google Reviews Influence Consumer Habits
Over half of all shopping experiences begin online, and most stay there. It is so easy for consumers to look up reviews right from their phones when shopping, and they are less likely to make an impulse buy than they would be in the store. Having positive Google reviews about a product or service ordered online can sway a person from potential consumers to buyers.
It can also be a way to find a new customer with an immediate need. If you are a plumbing company, you may have 24-hour service as a way to connect more with your customers. If someone has a busted pipe and is searching for a plumber in their area, they will probably look at the reviews if they haven’t heard of you or if their first option isn’t available for immediate service.
Good Google reviews provide a billboard for what people can expect from working with you.
Google Reviews Help Consumers Find You
One essential part of having more Google reviews on your profile is that they help to improve your local ranking in the Google search engine. If you are a small local business, people might have a hard time finding you. Fortunately, many Google reviews help your business shine when people search Google Maps locally for things to do or places to eat.
Positive Google reviews can be a very cost-effective marketing strategy for your business as they help increase:
- Local SEO rankings
- Click-through rates from Google search engine ads
- Online brand exposure
- Customer base
With cost-effective marketing strategies, more people will be able to find your business. Also, Google reviews help boost your brand's trust and even provide critical feedback through positive reviews and negative reviews to help you grow your consumer group.
Importance of Quality Google Reviews
Google is one of the most trusted search engines across America, and with how many people use it, you will want to make sure to have a good search engine ranking there. That trustworthiness extends to reviews on Google. Those reviews can also be a great way to help you rank higher on Google ahead of your competitors. However, the reviews themselves must be up to par, or they will reflect poorly on your business. Reviews should always be:
- Authentic
- On topic
- Industry-relevant
Even though it can be tempting to post fake reviews for your business, avoid it. Fake reviews or even reviews that someone misplaced on your site page don't work as quality feedback for your small business.
A fake review can be flagged by Google and end up penalizing your business. That is why it's essential to find ways to get good quality positive reviews from your customers. You can bet that you will get negative reviews, too, so review management is so important.
Here are some tips on how to get reviews and how to have excellent review management for your business.
4 Tips on How To Get Google Reviews
Now that you have learned the importance of earning countless Google reviews for your business, you probably wonder how to do so. Here are four tips that can help.
1. Provide Exceptional Customer Service
Your most crucial pursuit as a company when looking to stockpile Google reviews is to provide high-quality service to your customers.
The service must be worthy of their time to write a good review of your company. Consumers value their time. Fortunately, if they find your company appealing and worthy enough, they will leave a positive review for you.
Going above and beyond for a customer usually gives them an unforgettable tale to tell, and people love to tell a good story. Be it on Facebook, Google, Yelp, or just to their friends, they are sure to pass the word around somewhere.
2. Keep It Internal
When you are looking to improve your Google review rating or the number of reviews you have, turn your focus internally. Consider, for example, giving your employees an incentive anytime they receive a positive review or feedback.
You could run internal competitions to get the most reviews or even turn around a negative review. If you extend the review management responsibilities across the company, it will only help you to get more and improve the customer experience.
3. Automate the Process
There is no magic number for Google reviews. Unfortunately, reviews can grow old and outdated in a consumer's eyes. As a result, you must constantly add to your review reservoir to keep it filled up. It helps to automate some of the review processes to take the strain off of your business.
You can automate your communication step by setting up emails to go out a certain number of days after a customer has purchased a product online and it has shipped. You can also weave it into your company policies to provide excellent service.
4. Respond Responsibly
When customers leave a review on your Google My Business profile, it is like a social media experience for them. They expect a response. In fact, other people reading the reviews hope to see a reply, too. So, as a company, it is essential for you not only to respond, but also respond responsibly.
Are you wondering how to respond to Google reviews responsibly? Well, for one thing, not all reviews you gain are going to be good. Your reply cannot be angry, offensive, or hateful to the bad reviews because that will reflect negatively on your business.
One thing that automates the process and restricts the urge to fight back on critical reviews is to have an automatic response ready for a positive or negative Google review.
These responses can be tweaked to fit the setting if need be, but they allow for cooler heads to prevail and save you time when you sit down to respond to the surplus of Google reviews you have earned.
Respond to ALL reviews. If it's positive, say thank you for being a customer. If it's negative, apologize and try to take the conversation off of the review site so that you can fix the problem.
Specific Tips to Get Even More Google Reviews
Suppose you have checked all of your boxes with exceptional service, great employees, fun communication, and consistency. In that case, you may need an extra boost to help those Google reviews take off. A few Google-related tips that can help you garner those reviews in bulk are:
- Claim your Google business listing so you can customize it.
- Make your listing shine with professional photos and relevant information.
- Make the invitation to review easy by guiding customers to where the review should go.
- Have a website linked in your Google Business Listing that is equally professional and shares more information about you and your business.
How To Invite Customers To Leave a Review
Alleviating the hassle of the review process for your customers will make them more likely to leave a review for your site. After administering a service or sending a product, follow up with your customers. Communicating can help keep your business at top of mind.
If you need help managing your review process, Scorpion can help.
How To Get Reviews With Google Merchant Centers
Google Merchant Center is an excellent tool for expanding your business on the web. It allows you to upload specs about your company and product to Google Shopping and reap the rewards. You can upload:
- Store Information
- Brand Information
- Product Data
Furthermore, Google Merchant Center integrates with Google's other business features to give you even more SEO, analytics, reviews, and sales. Some key Google business features you can use include:
- Google Ads
- Express
- Analytics
With this great integration, shoppers can buy your product directly from the Google search engine. Customers can also leave reviews that are then integrated into your Google My Business page.
Harness the Power of Google Ads To Get Reviews
Google Ads can be very powerful for a service-based business and should be part of any marketing plan. More specifically, Google Local Services ads only make you pay for them when you receive a contact from a potential customer. Furthermore, customers are more likely to use these ads for services because they are offered to licensed, insured service providers. Google even prioritizes the ads to employers who can pass a background check, giving more credibility to the company.
Companies can quickly and cost-effectively gain business leads with these pay-per-lead ads that can result in more reviews.
For more information on all of the forms of digital advertising, including Google Ads, Display Ads, and Social Media. Check out the Beginners Guide To Advertising.
Click-to-Message for Quick Communication
Google has a click-to-message feature available for business owners to set up, which allows their customers to message them from the Google search engine. This tool can help you form a closer bond with your customers or clients. There is a list of etiquette you should establish before setting up a system to message your clients and potential clients back in such a quick and easy platform:
- Ensure a short response time to your messages.
- Don't ask for sensitive information over messaging like credit card numbers, social security numbers, or banking information.
- Send your company contact information over messaging and have customers contact you directly if they need more help.
You can set up the click-to-message system from your Google Business account. Just log in, select messaging, and add the phone number you want the messages sent to. Then, verify it.
Why Does Your Company Need Google Reviews?
If you haven’t figured it out already from the info above, Google Reviews are really important for your business. Google reviews might seem like a lot of effort to build up, but they help your business grow. The more reviews you have, the more features your business can have on Google. This will lead more people to take note of it and become customers. In turn, the more customers you gain, the more reviews you will continue to have. It is a never-ending cycle.
The Google Knowledge Panel
The Google Knowledge Panel is another feature offered to Google My Business users. Google scours the web for information and your company's online presence to complete this handy panel. Then, it pools it all together in a side box that comes up when your company is searched for if you have:
- Claimed your business on Google
- A large enough online present
- Integrated your business listing with Google
The Knowledge Panel is a great way to capture your audience's attention on the web.
Google Ads Campaigns
If you are using Google Ads to gain more consumers, you need more reviews. The ads with a larger number of reviews associated with them typically get higher click rates and sales.
Google Maps
Listing your company on Google Maps can win you some customers. Running ads that push you to the forefront of a customer's search can also get more traction. However, you need reviews on your Google page to gain maximum traction from marketing via Google Maps. From your Google My Business profile, the reviews seen on Google Maps will earn you more attention and credibility.
Working With Google Reviews
There are a few key things to know as a company, like how to leave a Google review, how to delete one, or even how to see my Google reviews.
Leaving a Google Review
Customers have a variety of personal reasons why they leave Google reviews for your business. These may be because of a good experience that evoked an emotional response or a bad one. The customer may just be appreciative of the service you provided, or they may wish to help the business improve somehow.
Some consumers like to be good samaritans and help others out by leaving a review.
Whatever the case may be, knowing how to leave a review is essential for both business owners and consumers. Here's how it's done:
- Find the local business on Google.
- Scroll until you find the "Write a Review" button.
- Select a star rating for the company that reflects your experience.
- Type a message in the box about the experience you had.
- Select the "Post" button when you are finished.
Deleting a Google Review
As a business owner who has a public profile on the web, you are bound to come across a fake or even scathing review from time to time. It is crucial to know how to flag Google reviews to get deleted in these cases.
Before diving right in and flagging every review, you do not agree with, use caution. It will look like you are covering up something if you delete each negative review you receive. There is a difference between a negative review with criticism and a nasty review that is offensive. To get the comment reviewed by Google for a takedown, you can flag it as:
- Fake
- Inappropriate
- Promoting a competitor
While you cannot delete the review, having a few negative reviews seems more natural to people than having a perfect score across the charts.
Google reviews have so many benefits for a company. If your company is proactive about earning them, you should see a traffic boost as you go about business.
Managing your Google reviews plan can be challenging. If you want some help, hire an expert like Scorpion to provide you with review management technology today. Contact our team today.
