Google+ business reviews are very effective in not only enhancing local SEO but also promoting trust and confidence of a business. A survey by Zendesk revealed that 90% of consumers who were polled made a decision to purchase a product after reading positive reviews and 86% claimed negative reviews also influenced their purchasing decision. This statistics means that both positive and negative reviews have an impact on your business.
Based on the fact that Google is the dominant online search engine, it is important to channel a lot of effort and focus on getting as many reviews on your Google My Business page. In this article, we will look at the primary reasons why Google business reviews are important and how to politely request customers to write and post them without violating the set guidelines.
What is Google My Business? Is it Really Important?
Google My Business is the updated version of Google Places for Business. Business can now share information such as operating hours and location by integrating it with their Google+ account. Thanks to advancement in Google algorithm, this search engine now aggregates and displays a series of businesses in a particular geographic location. Businesses that already have a verified Google My Business will have their address, location, phone number, reviews displayed in search results.
Reviews help the business to appear at the top of the local park as well as boost click-through-rate. Go ahead and set up your business on Google+ and strive to get as many genuine reviews as possible from clients.
As mentioned earlier, consumers buying decision is influenced by the reviews posted by other customers. They are an indication of the quality of your services and can enhance your competitiveness.
Google’s Local Pack used to display review stars only after a business had received multiple 5 star reviews. This rule was dropped early this year and now even businesses that have one review are displayed regardless of the stars. Before we proceed, it is important to note that rating stars can increase CTR by up to 20%.
The reviews are also displayed in the Knowledge Graph. This graph also go an extra mile to display reviews from other accredited third part sites such as Yelp and so you should not limit yourself to just getting Google+ reviews.
How to Request for Google My Business Reviews
Savvy customers can tell which reviews are genuine and which ones are not legitimate. Needless to say, the natural looking and genuine reviews are the ones that will impact your business positively. The first thing that you need to note is that the customers need to have a Google account to write and submit a review.
Here are proven tips on how to get Google My Business reviews.
Timing is Important
You need to know the right time to request the customer to write a review. You should not ask too early or too late. Too early and your client may not have fully tried out your product to write a genuine review. If you ask too late, the initial satisfaction they got after using the product may have faded away.
Simplify the Process
Most businesses do not make an effort to simplify the process. As a result, satisfied customers who are willing to write a review just purchase the product and leave. Your social media account and website should not only be used to motivate clients to leave a feedback but also show them the process. One of the best ways of doing this is by linking the social media profiles to your Google My Business page as well as placing links on your website.
Leverage Your Email Marketing Campaign
If you already have an email marketing campaign in place, you can use it to request customers to review your product. Send them an email request about their experience and motivate them to submit a review on Google+. You can also include a link to your Google My Review Page in your CTA.
Linking to Google My Business Review Form
Six months ago, it was difficult to get this link but Google has made certain changes to simplify the process. Your customers have a busy schedule and so you have to make it absolutely easy for them to write and submit a review. One of the proven ways of achieving this aim is by providing a simple link that they can click on to access your Google My Business page.
Here is a guide on what exactly you should do to link to your page.
1: Conduct a search for your company on Google using your business name
2: Click on “Write a Review” Button
3: A Google review window will appear, copy the URL displayed on the address bar
The URL will look like
https://www.google.co.uk/#q=excellent+marketing&lrd=0x34567c32cd8ff36d:0x9a6103cc070a8c6e,3,
Anyone who clicks on the link will be redirected to a review box where they can write and submit the feedback
Changing the “3” at the end of the URL to “1” will show all the current reviews posted by other customers whenever someone clicks on it.
The URL version with a three at the end makes sense to send to a client as they will not have to struggle to locate the review. We have one more trick up our sleeves. Adding a 5 after the final comma in the URL will open the review box, but this time, all the five stars will be highlighted!
https://www.google.co.uk/#q=excellent+marketing&lrd=0x34567c32cd8ff36d:0x9a6103cc070a8c6e,3,5
4: Consider Shortening the Link
As you can see, this link is long and contains much clutter; you can shorten it by levering Google URL shortener. All you need to do is visit https://goo.gl/, copy paste the URL, and then click on “shorten URL.”
Send this shortened link via email or message to all your customers to start getting reviews.
Bonus Tip
Don’t shy away from asking clients to review you over the phone or reminding them if they forget via email. Explain to them how important their review will be to your business. You will not always get positive reviews from clients. Respond to the negative reviews professionally by liaising with the client to resolve the issue. Once the issue is resolved, request the client to answer to their initial review and indicate that the problem was resolved to show other customers that you are keen on providing nothing but the best services/products.
