Small Business Owners: Rave Reviews is Needed for Small Buiness

We’ve discussed a lot about the benefits about local Search Engine Optimization, or local SEO. Did you know that local SEO helps your business create local connections and improve trust worthiness and credibility? But did you also know that online reviews impact your rankings in local search engines? Online reviews affect your rankings in local search engines, determine which search results get surfaced and influence consumer purchasing decisions.

The reputation of your business matters whether via word of mouth or on the Internet. In today’s digital age, 93% of customers say their buying decisions are influenced by online reviews and 84% of shoppers said they trusted online business reviews as much as a personal recommendation from friends or family.

It is also important to note that online reviews make up about 10% of how Google and other search engines decide to rank local search results. To manage and monitor your online reputation you must get consistent customer feedback, testimonials and reviews on third-party sites.

Below are a few tips on how your business can generate more online reviews:

• Use the right review websites. To determine this, start by going to Google and searching for “(Your Industry) + reviews” and see which sites pop up first on the page. You can also look under leading search results at sites listed under “more reviews.”
  
• Link your review profiles on your ecommerce website.
  
• Create print materials that list all different sites customers can review you.
  
• Train staff and yourself to “make the ask” when checking out customers.
  

Once you have gotten customers to offer feedback via reviews make sure you continue to monitor your online reputation. One way to do this is by setting up Google Alerts which will notify you every time your business is mentioned online and allows you to take a more proactive approach to reviews and reputation management. Don’t forget to handle every review with professionalism and don’t let your emotions get the best of you if a negative review does pop up. Manage and diffuse the situation just like you would do if you were dealing with an upset customer in person.

Reviews May Lead to More Referrals

If you get new reviews from happy customers regularly, you may also see a rise in referrals. This is because customers who are happy with your products/services are more likely to refer others to your business. If a customer leaves a positive review on a relevant review sites, they can provide links to those sites and their own unique review. Having the link to your business on the review site will let other customers know that there are more positive reviews online about your business. This may encourage customers to click on the links and read reviews, which may lead them to click on the "write a review" button as well and write their own positive review about your business.

Show Customers You Are Trustworthy and Responsive

Review sites let you show customers you are trustworthy and responsive, which is critical for small businesses. When you respond to positive and negative reviews, you show customers that you care and are willing to work with them to make sure they are happy with their purchases. This builds trust and loyalty in your business, which may lead to more sales in the long run. If you respond to negative reviews, you can turn customers who are still undecided about your product/service into loyal customers who will shop with you again.

Are you ready to explore the digital world of local SEO advertising and build an online reputation strategy? Tommy House Studios is ready to help. Call us at 334-310-2915 or 1-877-246-1315 and we will walk you through the steps to keep your business booming in this digital age. Contact us today!