Ratings and Reviews Boost Consumer Confidence in Local Businesses
Rating and Reviews Can Change the Perception of your Business
There’s no doubt about it, online reviews and ratings make a difference when it comes to changing perceptions about the nature of a local business. Local businesses are discovering that word-of-mouth is not only verbal communication, it’s cyberspace communication as well, and the cyberspace communications may represent more credence that the typical “they do a good job” recommendation given verbally by existing or past clients. In fact, 67% of respondents in a recent survey conducted by Brightlocal.com say they trust online reviews and ratings as much as word of the mouth communication. Developing an effective ratings and reviews presence online not only allows consumers to say what they think, it drives more traffic to the business site and increases search engine rankings. Local businesses that use this strategy discover that their offerings pop-up on when other local searches are done for other services and products. Tangible results from these searches often manifest as telephone calls and online leads that can produce additional revenue.
Follow A Basic Strategy When Establishing a Reviews and Ratings Presence Online
Getting a return without breaking a budget is always a concern especially when Internet activities are involved. Here are a few basic steps that will increase the productivity of an online reviews and ratings site.
- Ask for a review in simple terms and make it easy for consumers to leave comments and ask questions.
- Monitor the reviews regularly and flag the hot-button keywords. Keywords instigate online traffic so they play a pivotal role in feedback.
- Respond to feedback quickly especially if it’s negative feedback. Fix what’s broken and let consumers know that it’s fixed.
- Accept negative feedback. Businesses learn something from negative information. Identify issues that can impact future transactions without emotional reactions.
- Report reviews that are unnecessary. Reviews left by competitors, fake and off topic comments, and reviews promoting other products should be “flagged as inappropriate” using the Google Maps link, which is found under review to submit a report. Express concerns to the webmaster of the site where the review appeared.
