What’s the first thing you do when you’re looking for a new product or service which you haven’t used before? If you’re like most people, you’ll do an internet search for that product or service and try to figure out what people are saying about it. Before you go ahead and buy something, you’re probably going to read some reviews and see what other people have to say. In general, you’ll assume that the more stars a certain product or service gets from a large number of people, the better it’s going to be. In other words, the reputation of the company and the product will make a big difference to you.
How Reading Reviews Works for the Consumer
People like to say that their views are independent of the views of other people, but the truth is that we’re all influenced by what other people have to say. And the fact is that we’re not usually disappointed by the results—if a product has a lot of good reviews, we also generally find that it works for us. And when a product has a lot of negative reviews (but we go ahead and buy it anyway) we are usually disappointed. So a company’s reputation is usually deserved (though in some rare instances, this may not be the case ).
How Do Positive Reviews Benefit Your Company?
What does the whole online review system mean from the point of view of a company which is selling a certain product or service? It means, of course, that it can really help them to get more positive reviews from customers. Not only will this help the company to increase their sales, but it also helps to improve their online reputation. The more “buzz” a company can generate about its products and services, the better. And a lot of this buzz can be created with the help of positive reviews.
Reviews on Your Website vs. Reviews on Review Sites
It’s important for a company to keep in mind that people are not just going to be looking for reviews on their website. Your potential customers know that you would never post a negative review of your company on your website. So they prefer to go to a review site such as Google My Business, Amazon, Facebook, Yelp, TripAdvisor, Zillow etc. These websites have purposely been set up to enable people to write and read reviews which are impartial, and these reviews can play a role in building up your company reputation, even on a local level.
Popular Review Websites in the US and Worldwide
There are many popular review websites in the United States. Amazon is great for reviews of online purchases. Yelp, BBB (Better Business Bureau), Yellow Pages and Angie’s List are all good for pretty much any type of business while TripAdvisor is great for anything hospitality-related. The US traffic for Google My Business is only 19% of its total traffic, but given that Google My Business has about 158 million visitors every month, 19% of that is still going to be a lot.
How Do You Ask Customers to Write Reviews?
It’s not tough to start getting new reviews. All you have to do is call your previous customers and request them to write a review. Many people will be happy to dash off something short and give you a star rating too. Others might actually take the time to sit down and write something more detailed because they feel good about sharing their opinions and helping others. Plus, it makes them feel more valued as customers when you ask them for their opinion. And it also helps to build up your local company reputation.
Contact us to learn more about how getting good reviews from your customers can help to build up your company reputation.