The Importance of Google Reviews for Business

Believe it or not, digital marketing is slowly taking the lead when it comes to advertising strategies altogether. It would be ridiculous for a serious business to pass on the opportunity to advertise online, especially when that’s where the majority of their clients will see the ads. While there are many different aspects to digital marketing, one that is often overlooked is Google Reviews.

Reviews are Frequently Read by Customers Searching for a Local Business

Google reviews are some of the integrated features you can have on your Google My Business listing, and they help establish your brand online. One of the main reasons as to why that is is simple – most people research new businesses online. And where do they go when they want to find out more about the “inside info”, well, straight to the reviews, of course. Reviews can make or break your business. They can often help distinguish you from competitors, and they can be a deciding factor why somebody chose your business over another.

Build Trust with Your Customers

Just like we said, reviews offer important information to your potential customers and are usually a reference before they visit your website. Not just that, but they help your customers build trust in you as a brand. Through reviews, your clients gain insight into the way you handle business, how good your customer service is, and how good your products are. In short – they can be a deciding factor.

Mixed Reviews Seem Most Genuine

One would think that a business with all stars and positive reviews would be the most trusted – you’d be wrong. It is actually the opposite, the brands that are most trusted are those that have mixed reviews – not necessarily negative, but both positive and those with constructive criticism. This makes your reviewers seem more authentic, because having only positive reviews seems a bit unrealistic, almost as if you are paying them to say positive things.

Responding to Reviews Gives Customers Insight Into Your Business

Don’t forget that you should respond to the posted reviews. Research has shown that most people would go to a business that responds to their reviews. This is something software like Google reviews management can help you with. This is an added bonus by having reviews – you can interact with your customers much more openly. Remember that you should always be respectful, even to the bad reviews. Respond with a solution to the problem and promise to do better in the future, and at the same time thank the customers that left positive reviews. This will significantly improve your business image online.

Get More Traffic on Your Website

Upon seeing your reviews, most of your clients will immediately go to your website, and that is what you want. Usually, someone clicks on your website with the intention to buy something from you. This is why you should also have a user-friendly website, by the way. All in all, reviews can help clients distinguish your business website from a sea of other websites, thus diverting more traffic to it. More traffic on your website will mean more new customers.

Google Loves Reviews

Having reviews will build a better appearance on Google. Not only that, but reviews on your Google My Business page will help with SEO. Google wants to help its users with better search results, and by having positive reviews that you respond to frequently, your business is much more likely to pop up higher on the search page. Reviews are, besides pictures, posts, and updates, extremely important for optimizing your Google My Business page.

Reviews Help Local SEO

Reviews are not only important for completing your Google My Business profile, but they are crucial for local SEO. To ensure scoring leads, you need to be highly visible to local customers. Let’s say they type in “roofing company near me” or “restaurant near me”, Google will suggest the top three local businesses before listing out all of the organic searches. The top three suggestions are called the “Local Three Pack”. These are the businesses that have proven to be the best in that location. If you want your business to appear high in the search results, and even be included in the Local Three Pack, then you must have an impeccable GMB profile. Aside from the number, velocity, and diversity of the reviews, what is also crucial is a positive sentiment, service keywords, and star ranking within your reviews. Google bases 17% of its search engine decision-making process on reviews alone, and their significance has grown from 12%, and will only continue growing.

You Gain Invaluable Customer Feedback

Besides promoting your business and keeping a positive image, reviews can help you learn about your customers’ needs. You can gain important insight into your business’s positive sides, and also about some of your shortcomings. Think of reviews as a sort of market research. You can find out what needs improving, how to best cater to your customers, and what you should change.

Reviews not only help you grow your business by acting as advertisements, but they also increase their chances of being recommended to local customers by Google. However, most importantly, they help you gain insight into your customer’s needs, thus helping you improve your service.

Also Read: 7 Must-Know Tips for Every Marketing Business