What do you do first when you need services from a new business? You can probably look them up on Google. Prior to visiting a business, over 60% of consumers look up reviews on Google. They understandably want to know what other people’s experiences have been like with your organization before committing to you.
That is why it is crucial to strive to get Google ratings for business. Reviews and average ratings are the first things that come up when you search for a business on Google. If they are negative, prospective consumers will likely go elsewhere.
Good Google review ratings mean greater SEO rankings for companies on Google, the most powerful search engine today. Ignoring Google ratings for business is like taking out all the money in your wallet and setting it on fire if you’re a small business owner with space to develop your business.
The significance of online feedback is undeniable. In this article, we will demonstrate how to utilize it to propel your business forward.
Receiving Google Ratings For Business
Step 1: Creating a Google My Business Account
Making your Google Business Profile should be your first order of business. After a while in business, you should already be visible in local searches and Google Maps; you could even have some reviews. It should be easier for consumers to find you and provide feedback once you have claimed and optimized your business page. The way to accomplish it is this:
- Look up the business’s name on Google.
- Select “Own this Business?” from the menu that appears. To access the Google Business Profile claim page, click here.
- After that, Google must confirm your business. Your ability to edit your profile will be restored after verification is complete.
Person using a mobile app to check Starbucks location and reviews while holding a coffee cup, showcasing the convenience of mobile technology for finding and reviewing local cafes Include a description of your business and some images. Use useful keywords and phrases that pertain to your business, but avoid stuffing it with irrelevant ones or using too many. You could face consequences for this.
Step 2: Get Customer Feedback
You can’t afford to risk getting a large number of positive Google review ratings, as customers are only likely to do so after a bad experience. First and foremost, make sure your consumers are pleased by providing them with exceptional service. The next step is to politely request that your consumers provide you with Google ratings for business. An email or SMS message can do this. Customers will appreciate it if you provide them with an easy way to access your business profile.
Carefully consider the timing—if you wait weeks after a consumer has purchased from you, they could forget about you. It’s smart to ask for a review immediately after a customer’s purchase. When you believe they’ll have time to submit a review, approach them. It would work better if you tried it in the morning or late afternoon. If a review template is required, you might offer to provide one.
You can also set up your e-commerce platform to automatically respond to a review from customers when they order something from your website. Moreover, keep in mind to never, ever, ever purchase reviews. If they find out, you risk a penalty and a drop in ranks from Google.
Step 3: Make a Google Reviews Page
While the strategy mentioned above does the job, an even better one would be to create a whole page on your site just for Google reviews (or reviews in general) and link it from your main menu. In addition to presenting current reviews, the website should provide a call to action to add your own. These do double duty: they entice potential customers to buy and encourage current ones to submit Google review ratings.
While screenshots can be used to fill your reviews page, text-based evaluations are preferred. Reviews often include a wealth of keywords, making them an ideal SEO tactic for small businesses when integrated into websites so that Google’s crawlers can “read” them.
However, you can create a template to copy and paste the content. Another option is to use one of the many available platforms or plug-ins to automatically gather your Google ratings for business into your website.
How To Encourage Customers To Leave Reviews
Make Leave Us A Review Designs and Cards
Customers always appreciate the creativity and effort you put into your interactions with them. Hence, making cute and creative cards and designs can be a good way to ask for reviews.
Add a note like this one:
“Leave Us a Google Review! Thanks to your Google review, we can reach more people in need of our services. Plus, we can’t thank you enough for how your comments help us improve our services. Go over our services and give us a review at www.xyz.com. Much Love xoxo.”
Call to Action in Footer
You may put it at the bottom of your website in addition to or instead of a dedicated page for Google ratings for business (or reviews in general). This way, you can avoid stressing about where to put the call to action. Even though the following example uses graphics, anchor text will work just as well.
Request Google Reviews Personally
Engaging in fruitful discussions with a client at your shop? Have you just concluded a productive support call for which the client expressed unending gratitude? There are plenty of chances to ask customers for Google ratings for business in your contacts. Here are a few situations and instances when you could ask for feedback:
“I’m delighted to hear that our business has brought you so much joy. It would be really appreciated if you could put that rating on Google. It would greatly assist other people who are looking for what you have.”
“Your comments are very useful. It would be fantastic if you could post that review online so other people could read it.”
“We’re glad we could be of service to you. We would really appreciate it if you could spare a few sentences to include in a Google review rating.”
Plus, you can make it really simple for them by including a link on a little card or your website’s review page.
Make It Simple and Easy
You probably already know how simple it is to submit a review on Google, but your clients might not. And there is such a thing as review writer’s block. Even the most enthusiastic or loyal customer could struggle to put your business’s best qualities into a single review. Additionally, there are those who struggle to put their thoughts into words. Therefore, to increase the likelihood of a review, it might be beneficial to:
- Let them know that they can just leave a star rating on Google (if relevant) without having to write anything.
- If they want to write, remind them that a brief review of no more than two lines would suffice.
- Instead of “write a review,” try “leave a review,” or “drop a quick review,” the former can be more comfortable to use.
Run Google Ratings for Business Campaigns
One additional successful strategy to increase the number of Google ratings for business is to use email marketing, either in a targeted or more generalized method. Just be specific in your request; there’s no need to attempt to trick them into giving you a positive review. You’re not being unreasonable if you want them to do something that will benefit other consumers in the future.
Furthermore, you would be amazed at the willingness of satisfied consumers to provide a rating on Google. Warm answers to your request are likely to follow if the procedure is straightforward to understand and complete, as well as quick and painless.
Use Your Social Media as Review Platform
Conversational marketing and openness thrive on social media. Inviting clients to provide feedback (with your tidy and simple Google ratings for business shortcut link) is as easy as posting a screenshot of your best rating on Google and asking them to do the same. Inviting your followers to share the positive experience they’ve had working with your business with someone else is a great way to spread the word.
When contacting Facebook or another platform about this, remember that each has a unique review system.
Make a video tutorial for Google Reviews.
Some consumers might be more inclined to submit a review even when provided with a shortcut link if they can see the procedure in action. Maybe all you need is a short video tutorial on how to submit Google ratings for business. Making promotional movies at home is simpler than ever before with the resources available today.
Motivate Them To Post A Review
Providing a justification for your request might enhance the likelihood that your consumers will comply by as much as 33 percent. A Harvard professor found that the word “because” had a great impact in 1978. The research found that no matter what you’re asking for, your success percentage will rise if you provide a reason. the third
Be specific about why you need a review when you ask for one. A few more lines like “because we would love to hear your thoughts” or “because we care about what you think of our business” may greatly increase the number of reviews that are actually responded to.
You should make explanations simple, even when there are considerably more technical reasons for asking for reviews, such as improving local SEO to establish credibility and authority online and giving prospects up-to-date feedback.
Responding To Google Reviews
Automated Review Responses
Everyone would have access to Weave-like automatic review tools in a perfect society. Customers are more inclined to provide feedback when they get a review request right after interacting with you, which is why review software is so useful. You can even reply to reviews more easily using the many apps and software that are now available. Improve the efficacy of your reputation management and raise brand recognition with the help of software that uses generative AI technology to generate personalized, relevant replies to patient evaluations.
It is common practice to include a clickable link in the request. In a few minutes, the user will be sent to a review platform such as Google or Facebook, where they may provide their opinion.
Respond to Google Reviews and Show Them
Sending a personalized response to a customer’s Google review shows that you value their opinion and encourages other people to do the same. Responding to reviews can increase your review count in two ways.
If you respond to favorable reviews quickly, precisely, and appreciatively, you will attract more favorable reviews. Moreover, converting a bad review into a good one is frequently as simple as responding quickly and courteously to the review and fixing the problem.
Deleting the Bad Reviews on Google
Some reviews could be erroneous or unjust, and you might not agree with them. By marking it as inappropriate, you have the option to report this review. Every business owner has, at least once, read a bad review of their business online. You must try to fix the issue promptly, whether the review is the result of a customer miscommunication or an employee slipping up on the job. However, do not expect Google to remove a review just because it is bad; deletion will only occur in the event of a policy violation.
There is another typical source of fake bad reviews, and you are unable to stop it. Those unfavorable comments are an attempt by your rivals to damage your reputation. Some of your competition could even turn to posting false negative reviews regarding your business in an attempt to achieve this. A plan to remove Google ratings for business is necessary in these cases.
Before we proceed, you should be aware that this method is not foolproof. However, it has been successful in several instances, so it’s usually worth a try.
1. Use Google to find the review.
Find the fake Google ratings for business that needs to be removed. To do this, type your business’s name into Google’s search, and after that, click on the “Total Reviews” button.
2. Flag/Mark the Review
Find your competitor’s review and click the flag to see it. The flag must appear when you move your mouse over the review.
3. Decide Why You Want to Label the Review as Flagged
A dropdown of options will appear when you hover over the flag. To mark a post as having a conflict of interest, click the corresponding circle. Capture a snapshot of your completed form and be sure to include the date.
Also, keep in mind that Google has a list of 10 categories of reviews that are either banned or limited and that they have the option to delete these reviews automatically or after being warned.
4. Find the Forum for Spam and Policy
Verify whether the phony review was deleted after a week or two. If you visit the Google My Business community in the search results, you will find that it hasn’t been.
5. Present Your Argument
To begin posting to the forum, click the + sign in the bottom right corner. Your reputation management efforts will benefit from your making it very clear that this reviewer is not a genuine client. Before you publish your article, be sure to explain how you know it’s a competitor and attach the picture that shows you marked the review. Your chances of successfully removing the negative review increase proportionately to the depth and specificity of your explanation.
The response time on this thread is usually rather fast, so you should find out whether your claim will be escalated within a day.
Bottom Line
Online reviews are important. Their support will uplift your business’s trustworthiness, click-through rates, and search engine rankings. This is why monitoring your business’s Google reviews is so important. Make it a point to react to every review—good or bad—and encourage consumers to do the same.
A prospective client researching your business online might be swayed by a favorable review. Let NetGuard take control of your brand reputation, and we will handle all your worries!
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