There are a bunch of influencing factors that stand between your customer and their decision to choose your business. Nowadays, when people are in search of a specific product, there is a lot of research done beforehand – and I’m sure you can relate. Let’s say for example you’re interested in going out for dinner tonight, what’s the first step you take? Do you Google search local restaurants near you? Your answer to that is more than likely YES. That’s because, in the digital age that we live in, the internet has made it so simple to find what you need in an instant. So, as you begin scrolling through the list of restaurants that appear, what are your eyes drawn to first? More than likely, you’re looking at the five little stars to see how many of them are coloured in – you may do this before even noticing the name of the restaurant. That behaviour is WHY your business needs to encourage customers to leave (great) reviews for you online. If you haven’t already incorporated a customer review strategy into your marketing plan, these are a few ideas as to how to do that.
Use exciting deals or offers in trade for a review
One reason many people don’t necessarily go out of their way to leave reviews is that there isn’t a motivating factor driving them to do so. However, what if there was something in it for them? A great and simple way to get more customers to leave reviews is by giving them something for completing a review. Whether that be a 10% off coupon, a credit on their account, or a gift, a promotional offer is a great talking point when asking for that review.
Encourage leaving reviews on different platforms
Google is an obvious (and important) platform for your business to be present on – especially when it comes to reviews. But is your business available on other platforms for people to leave reviews? What about Facebook, Trip Advisor or Yelp? We’re not saying that your business needs to be on every single website people can leave reviews, but it’s a good idea to be on at least a couple of different websites. The more platforms available to leave reviews on, the more likely you are to receive reviews. Not everyone has a Google account but, maybe they have a Facebook account. But, the more platforms you have customers leaving reviews on the more you have to keep an eye on as well.
Ask on social media
Social media is an essential tool to help you communicate with your customers. As much as your sales reps and your marketing team have a great influence on your sales, asking your customers and the public for real and honest feedback is so valuable. Whether you make a post asking for people to leave a review, or a post that showcases a project you’ve just completed user-generated commentary is the new word of mouth when it comes to spreading the word about how amazing your business is.
Invite people to leave a review the old-fashioned way
As amazing as social media is to invite customers to complete surveys or leave a review, you can’t always guarantee they will see your post in the vast sea of content on their newsfeed. Try sending out an e-mail, or SMS (text message), or even think about adding a QR code that can be scanned on the bottom of a rack card you can leave with them or mail out. In addition, when you are talking to the customer either in person or on the phone ask them verbally then to leave your business a review.
Times have changed. You don’t just simply ask a friend where the best place to eat out is. At the click of a button, every option is at our fingertips and you’re given only a few decision-making seconds to make an impression on that potential customer. Plus, the reviews your customers leave online can make or break your business. That is why it is so important to promote as many reviews as you can and when a bad review comes creeping along, you address it quickly and as professionally as possible even when that’s not exactly how you wish you could reply in the heat of the moment.
When it comes to bad reviews…
Take a moment to slide into your customer’s shoes. If you had the experience they did, and you left the review they did, what would you want to have happened after that? Would you want someone to contact you and apologize for the issue? Would you want the product replaced if possible? Being empathetic towards their situation is more productive than fuming about it. And, looking at feedback regularly can help you know as a business owner where your team or business needs improvement. Most importantly though when it comes to bad reviews, never offer a freebie publicly. Replacing a product if it was defective makes sense but offering a free meal, or a discount in reply to a review will only inspire more people to complain to get free stuff. That’s why we recommend taking the conversation offline as quickly as possible but, making it public that you want to learn more about the issue so that you can deal with it directly. People reading your reviews just want to know if it’s a good product or service, that you have good customer service, and if an issue does arise that it will be dealt with instead of being ignored.
If you need help figuring out how to get your customers to leave you reviews, how to reply to a review, or how to build marketing strategies for your business that truly grow your sales and your profits at the same time call us today at (705) 252-4180 or click here to book a consultation and let’s get started!
