How to get reviews working for your business
It can be slightly unnerving asking your customers what they really thought about your business or service, but you need to do it. Not only will it provide you with feedback that will help you improve your offering and hone your business to meet your customers’ expectations, but reviews are also an invaluable tool in the marketing mix. Reviews are so much more than customers feedbacking to you, they are an invaluable insight into your business for the millions of potential customers who haven’t found you yet.
There are many ways that you can go about getting reviews and multiple sites where these are published, the important thing is that you embrace the opportunity that they present. While it may seem safer to simply ask customers for feedback on your own website, customers will post reviews elsewhere whether you like it or not. If people are looking to buy something online, they will look at the reviews.
People shopping online will not only look at the ratings customers have left on your curated website, but they will go and look at public review and comparison sites out there. People want to know what other people think. If you have reviews of your products on multiple sites like Google, Yelp, Trust Pilot, or Trip Advisor people will feel reassured that they are getting an all-round view of your product or service.
In the past reviews might have been the domain of professional critics in newspapers or magazines and restaurant critics still hold the fate and reputation of many chefs and hotels in their hands. However, the power has moved into the hands of everyone, and anyone can leave a review on Trip Advisor about what they thought about where they stayed or the meal they ate.
Reviews help people decide on what service or product they will spend their money on. Take the online gambling industry as an example. In such an industry, people need to feel safe and that they can trust the operator whom they are depositing their money with. UK online slot reviews allow gamblers to compare all the features and options across a wide range of providers and games. Customers know that they are dealing with properly regulated providers.
Once reviews are in the public domain on the review sites the business owner needs to make the most of them. By ‘claiming’ your business on Google or Trip Advisor, for example, you can take control of the process. This will allow you to respond to reviews that you think are unjust or even have one taken down if you believe that this is fraudulent. In 2020 over one million Trip Advisor reviews were found to be from fake accounts.
Reviews form part of a perfect marketing circle. When a customer buys from your site, if you collect their email address you can ask them to post a review on one of the major sites. You can then embed reviews onto your own site so potential future customers can see what existing customers have said about your company. In addition, some people will start their shopping journey on one of the review sites and will be driven to your site on the back of someone else’s recommendation.
Social media is also a key part of the review process. All of these areas are interlinked. Make sure that you have a strong presence on social media platforms and ask for feedback from your customers. Facebook, for example, has a review feature that you can make work for your business. Simply go to your brand page and toggle the ‘reviews on’ option.
Remember to reply to reviews politely and in a measured way. Don’t get involved in unprofessional arguments. If you feel that a review is unjustified, you can appeal to the review site team as long as you have claimed your business on the site.
Great reviews will make your team feel great and drive more sales and make your business stand out.