Any business can get more reviews on Google My Business.
We all know that the thing Google loves more than anything else is Google, and hey….what is there not to love?
For Google, 5 star reviews are like votes, the more reviews you have, the more votes you have, which mean that more people like you and trust you or your service over your competitor, and guess what, in a survey run by Optimum last year, results showed that 84% of people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
For Google, there’s no better platform for getting more reviews than on Google My Business.
Google My Business is a free tool that helps businesses and organisations manage their online presence, especially at a local level.
For many businesses, Google’s local search engine provides a continuous stream of incoming enquiries that turn into paying business, and I don’t know a single business that wouldn’t love that.
Can you imagine a full diary of paying work without having to make a single outbound call, and it really can be done for little or no cost at all. (Read on and you’ll find out how.)
The advantage of incoming calls is that someone has taken the trouble to look for the service you offer and is calling you because they are ready to buy, all you have to do is meet their needs and close the deal.
But the hardest part for any business is getting the enquiry!
What are reviews all about?
You might have noticed the mass of reviews that are being requested by email, text, on television and across all social media, places like Amazon or eBay when you buy something or Trivago when you are looking for a hotel room.
Hotels, Restaurants, Coffee Shops and B&B’s all ask you to look at their reviews on Trustpilot or TripAdvisor, and do you know why?
Social Proof! After all, we trust our fellow man more than we trust the companies trying to sell us snake oil, I for one wouldn’t buy something from Amazon or eBay without checking out the reviews.
I have found that when I ask a customer for a review they are more than happy to agree, sadly that seldom manifests itself into more reviews on Google My Business as the biggest problem I have come across when trying to get people to add reviews to a Google my business listing is the client finding your review page.
Bad News…One of the hurdles to overcome is that for someone to leave you a review on Google My Business, they actually need a Google account!
The good news is…that nearly 1.2 billion people have an account with Google, making this one of most amazing marketing opportunities for local businesses to market themselves.
Get more reviews on Google
If you haven’t got a Google My Business Listing yet, you can start here… https://www.google.com/business/
And if you want to work on how your Google My Business performs, see this recent blog called How to optimise your Google My Business Listing.
The Google My Business 3 pack appears below the paid for ads, but above the organic listing, as you can see in this example.
The listing shows your telephone number, website, and if you have a bricks and mortar premises… how to get to you!
Believe it or not, the top-ranked business gets 42% of all enquiries, so now you can see why a business like this hasn’t made an outbound sales call for 4 years but is still busy.
Below is one review for an Aerial Company that did a small job at my house that got 105 views within 2 weeks of me reviewing the company on Google My Business.
So, what’s the secret???
Review Cards (NB. You can do this yourself)
These personalised Review Cards go hand in hand with your business card and come complete with a unique short link that takes your customer straight to your review page. They can simply tap on how many stars to give you and type a short review and bang…the jobs all done.
If your customer has a smart phone, they can click on the QR code which will do exactly the same thing, take them straight to your review page for them to leave you the 5-star review you deserve.
To do this yourself you can use the free bit.ly URL shortener here https://bitly.com and for the QR Code visit https://www.the-qrcode-generator.com where you can create and download your own QR Code, then print using your printer.
Alternatively, get them printed professionally here use the discount code wdh1006 and get a massive 20% discount and FREE delivery right to your door anywhere in the UK.
So…Where to next?
How do you actually get more reviews on Google My Business? The simple answer is to ask for them.
As previously mentioned, the hardest part is the client-finding your review page.
I have discovered that simply by writing a letter saying “If you have been happy with the service or work provided would they mind leaving you a 5-star review using the links in the letter or the link and QR Code on the card” works and definitely helps get more reviews on Google.
Once you have sent to your previous clients that have been happy with your work or service, just continue handing out your cards as you finish a job, even helping them on their phone or PC to make sure they get to the right place.
This will be one of the cheapest and best marketing campaigns you have ever run, and if you start now, you will lead the pack.
and never rest on your laurels… A simple rule would be don’t stop asking for a review because if you do, you will open the doors for others to catch you.
One last note, getting more reviews on Google My Business is key to your local online success, if you need help with your Google My Business listing, we offer a 100% money back guarantee to rank your business in the top three within 6 months or your money back, and if you don’t rank we will refund you, and we are so confident you still get to keep your reviews on Google My Business listing.
