The importance of customer reviews, feedback and rating is paramount when it comes to ranking your business in the top 3 on Google My Business. Let’s face the truth – in this day and age of “digital everything,” a strong online presence is more than essential for every business out there that are trying to attract local consumers.
One of the most effective tools to achieve this is GMB or Google My Business, which is often called Local Pack, too. A well-optimized Google My Business profile can boost your online visibility in the local search results, and consumer feedback plays an important role through the process.
If you’re an entrepreneur, looking to take your business to another level with the help of a Frisco web design company, you should first understand how customer reviews can impact your ranking. Read along to glean an understanding on how you can effectively leverage them to steer your business towards the Top-3 ranking on GMB.
Why Does Google My Business Matter the Most?
Google My Business refers to a cost-free tool, which enables businesses to manage their online presence across Google such as Search and Maps. A thoroughly optimized Google My Business profile will help your prospects find your business’ crucial information like your address, operation hours, contact details, customer reviews, etc.
Appearing on the top 3 results of the Local Pack can significantly boost the visibility of your business and generate more traffic to your physical location or website.
Impacts of Customer Feedback on GMB Rankings
Customer feedback is an important factor in the local search algorithm of Google. They can influence ranking in the following ways –
- Customer Review Quality
Keep in mind that the sheer amount of feedback on your business can impact its overall ranking. Businesses with a very high volume of feedback tend to rank higher as they appear more trustworthy and popular.
- Review Quality
The overall quality of customer reviews, indicated by a bit average rating plays a crucial role. A business with a number of high-rated feedback or rating is more likely to get a better ranking than one with the ones with lower-rated rating or fewer reviews.
- Review Recency
The search engine giant Google values fresh and recent customer reviews. Frequently receiving new feedback signals to Google that your venture is active and continuously engaging with consumers.
- Review Diversity
Having a robust combination of thoughtful and detailed reviews covering a variety of aspects i.e. customer service, products, ambiance, etc. of your business can bring a comprehensive image to Google as well as potential customers.
Strategies to Improve Your Consumer Reviews
Given the overall importance of customer reviews, incorporating effective strategies to propel them is important. Take the below-mentioned tactics into a serious consideration to ace the deal –
- Ask for Reviews
One of the most effective ways to gain more feedback is to simply ask for them. Consider encouraging your happy customers to leave feedback by offering them direct links, easy-to-follow instructions, etc. to your GMB profile.
- Provide Exceptional Service
Providing exceptional-quality service can invariably lead to positive reviews. Make sure that your staff is trained enough to be able to provide unmatched customer experiences consistently.
- Engage with Reviewers
Responding to customer reviews, both positive as well as negative, indicates that you pay more value to customer feedback. Thank the customers for their positive responses and resolve any issue raised in negative feedback promptly and professionally.
- Count on Email Marketing
Use email campaigns for requesting customer reviews from the new customers. Consider personalizing the professional emailers and incorporating a direct link to your Google My Business profile to make it as breezy as possible for your customers to leave feedback.
- How about Incentivizing Reviews?
While you can’t really provide incentives for impressive reviews, you can encourage genuine reviews by providing an entry or a small discount into a raffle for those who leave feedback.
Manage Negative Customer Reviews Like a Pro!
Always remember one thing – no business is immune to any negative feedback! But how can you deal with them? How can you handle them to influence your ranking, reputation, etc.? Here are some of the simplest yet most effective strategies, which upon being followed, can help you manage negative feedback and stop them from wrecking your repute –
- Professionalism is the Key
Consider responding to negative feedback in a professional way. Acknowledge the (poor) experience of your customers, apologize to them, and fix the issues offline.
- Resolve the Matter ASAP
In the event that the review identifies a valid issue, resolve it. This not only exhibits your concern for the reviewer, but it also shows prospective clients that you are dedicated to growing your clientele.
- Encourage Positive Feedback
Encourage better customer reviews to counterbalance the bad ones. Negative reviews can have a lessening effect if there are more good reviews.
Time to Call It a Wrap
One of the most effective tools in your Google My Business toolbox is customer reviews. You may greatly increase your chances of showing up in the top three local search results by being aware of how they affect your rankings and managing them well. By putting policies in place to promote, monitor, and address reviews, you can significantly boost your audiences’ trust and credibility while also improving your online presence.
Customer evaluations can make all the difference in the cut-throat world of a fledgling company, whether you want to stand out as a top choice for future customers or remain obscure. Thus, begin giving your reviews top priority right now, and you will see your company move up the Google My Business rankings
