Google reviews are an excellent way to build trust around your business or brand and it’s not really that hard to get them. In reality, all you have to do is ask. Most customers will be more than happy to write you a short review if they’ve had a good experience. To help you get things going, we’ve listed a few ways to start building trust around your brand on Google.
All you gotta do is ask
Really, it’s that easy… but you can make it even easier. On your Google My Business listing, there’s a big button that says “Get more reviews” this will give you a link straight to your review form that you can share with your customers. You want to be sharing this link where ever you’re asking for a review. So what else can we do?
- Send an email: Seriously, you can just send an email to your customers asking them to leave a review on Google. Be sure to include a link to your Google My Business page so it’s easy for them to leave a review.
- Use a Google reviews request card: Some businesses include a Google review request card with their receipts, business cards, or on their product packaging. This card includes a link or QR code to the business’s Google My Business page and encourages customers to leave a review. If you have the time, a short, handwritten note included with your products definitely adds to your customer experience. You could print off a QR code linking to your form page and write your message here.
- Ask in person: If you have a brick-and-mortar store, you can ask customers to leave a Google review in person. You could have a sign displayed in your store with a QR code linking to your review page, or simply ask customers as they are paying for their purchase.
- Use social media: You can use your social media accounts to ask customers to leave reviews on Google. You could post a message on your Facebook or Twitter account, or include a request in your email signature. Be very careful here. When requesting a review, it makes sense to customers who’ve had a good experience with your business. When you’re just putting it out there without any personalisation you could be inviting more than you bargained for.
How to respond to bad Google reviews
As they say, you can’t please all the people all of the time. There will probably be a time when you receive a negative review. How you deal with it can turn a bad review into a positive experience.
Responding to Google reviews is one of the best ways you can show your customers that you are willing to listen to and address their concerns. It shows you care about your customers and are willing to go the extra mile to ensure their satisfaction.
For customers, seeing that you respond to Google reviews can increase their trust in your business. It demonstrates that your business is transparent and, ready to step up and be accountable for the products or services you provide. Customers are more likely to trust and choose a business that is responsive and willing to address their concerns.
Responding to reviews can also help to improve the customer experience. If a customer has a negative experience and leaves a bad review, you have the opportunity to address the issue and try to resolve it. This can help to turn a negative experience into a positive one, and may even result in the customer updating their review to reflect their improved experience.
All that being said, it’s worth treading carefully when you enter into a discourse with your customers over a negative experience. Especially online. We’ve put together a couple of tips to help you navigate the process of responding to Google My Business Reviews.
Best Practices when dealing with bad Google reviews
Here are five best practices for responding to negative reviews on Google My Business:
- Keep it professional: It’s important to remain professional, even when facing negative feedback. This means avoiding responding in a defensive or aggressive manner, and instead focusing on finding a solution to the issue.
- Say Sorry, and mean it: If a customer has had a negative experience, it’s important to apologise for their frustration. A sincere apology can go a long way in showing that you care about your customers and want to make things right.
- Offer a solution: If possible, try to offer a solution to the issue that the customer has raised. This could be offering a refund, providing additional support, or simply acknowledging their concern and explaining how you plan to prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.
- Be timely: It’s important to respond to negative reviews as quickly as possible. This shows that you are actively listening to your customers and are ready to address their concerns.
- Thank the customer: Even if a customer has had a negative experience, it’s important to thank them for taking the time to leave a review. This shows that you appreciate their feedback and are willing to take it into consideration. This goes for both positive and negative reviews.
By following the tips above, you should be able to effectively handle negative Google reviews and demonstrate to your customers that you’re committed to providing the best possible experience. After all, you might actually learn something and gain valuable insight into how to improve your business online. Win!!!
Oh, and when you get a good review, celebrate them! Add them to your website as we have here using a testimonial component. These can be sprinkled throughout your website and can help you to build trust further once the customer has actually landed on your page.
We hope you found this useful. Why not share it, or better yet, leave us a review on Google? Yay!