Get More Reviews for Your Business
Posted: May 29, 2019 - By Kalena McElroyIn many instances, a business’s website is not the first place potential customers look to make decisions—it’s reviews. In fact, 88% of consumers trust online reviews just as much as a personal recommendation. Many sites like Yelp, Facebook, and Google allow your customers to publish unbiased public reviews of your business. These are the same sites that people are looking at to make informed decisions about whether or not to use your business.
Positive reviews are great, but the quantity and consistency of reviews also matter. Consumers need to read around 10 reviews to trust a business and 86% of people think only reviews from the last three months are relevant. Collecting more online reviews can help your business grow—here’s how to do it.
Get listed
First things first, make sure that your business is listed on the sites that matter most for your industry. TripAdvisor is one of the most popular review sites, but it’s probably not relevant if you own a hair salon. Research where potential customers are searching for similar businesses and make sure to get listed there so you can start building up reviews.
In addition to Google and Demandforce Local which cover all types of businesses, these are the top review sites by industry:
Medical/Dental
- Yelp
- WebMD
- Healthgrades
- RateMDs
- Vitals
Auto
- Cars.com
- Repair Pal
- Yelp
- Foursquare
Lifestyle
- Yelp
Veterinary
- Yelp
- Angie’s List
Ask for online reviews
You won’t get many reviews if you don’t ask. Immediately after one of your customers has a great experience, ask them if they have a moment to leave your business a review. Automated review requests can then be sent to customers by text or email to speed up the process. You decide which sites these reviews are published on.
Don’t buy online reviews
Resist the temptation to make your business look better by buying fake reviews. Not only will you get penalized or blocked from the sites, hurting your reputation, you can also face fines from the FTC. Getting caught using shady tactics will drive away potential customers and undermine current customer loyalty. No one wants to use a company they can’t trust.
Get your staff accustomed to asking every happy customer for a review. 90% of people read online reviews before visiting a business so collecting reviews is essential to acquiring new customers, improving your online reputation, and boosting your business’s top line.
Nextdoor is also a great place to post reviews for places in your neighborhood.