Google reviews have become paramount today for the survival and excelling of any business. Customers rely on online reviews on word of mouth and personal referrals. Around 90% of customers search for online reviews before shopping. How can you use it too to boost sales? Let’s find out.

Improved Search Rankings

SEO holds utmost importance in retail reputation management. To enhance your ranking on the search engine, the uniqueness and relevancy of keywords play a crucial part. You will be surprised to learn that these depend not only on the content you are putting out but also on the content being written about you by the customers. The SEO rankings factor in your keywords in the comment section. Google prioritizes higher-rated websites and makes them appear higher in the search results. It automatically increases the chances of customers picking your business over the rest.

Think about this, when was the last time you opened the fifth or sixth link that showed up with your query? Users going to the second or third pages is very less probable. Hence, you want to be among the top three, so try engaging your customers as much as possible.

Make The Review Process Easier

Customers today use online reviews as an accurate indicator of the credibility and quality of a business’s offerings, and why wouldn’t they? With transparency on the internet, it has become easier to compare and contrast different substitutes. Customers want the best value for their money and do a thorough investigation to find a solution to their problems.

A filled-out review section is significant for personal reputation management and prospects to turn into real customers. One way you can do so is by making it easy to leave a review. Customers usually perceive it to be a hectic process and opt out of doing so even when satisfied. You cannot afford to miss out on the valuable insights of these customers.

Heighten the chances of these customers to rate your business by:

• placing clear CTA buttons on the web page and emails
• Easy to follow instructions
• include an easy instructional video
• provide an option to attach pictures

Ask For Reviews

Sometimes customers need a push in the right direction. They might be completely content with your business and its offerings, but adding a review might never cross their mind. You highlighting the importance of their feedback can be an easy way to get them going. Customers that are satisfied and loyal tend to rate your business highly.

Reach out to them, and let them know that their feedback is valued and will help you continue the service with utmost dedication. Take your personal online reputation management up a notch by bringing in a touch of customization. Follow up with the customers with a tailored email or a one-to-one call. Convincing a customer directly increases their chances of agreeing to give a review. Nonetheless, ensure that you are not being pushy in any way.

Add Pictures

A picture speaks a thousand words. You can get customers to write paragraphs upon paragraphs about how amazing your product is, but it can never match the impact a standalone picture can bring. Encourage customers to attach pictures with reviews so that future potential customers can look closely at what they will be getting. Customers are still skeptical about online purchasing as many sites are scams and provide pictures of their products that look nothing like what gets delivered. Hence, having a picture of your products on your website is necessary, but that alone might not suffice. Customers will be more convinced when an existing user uploads a picture in the reviews. Always add a section for picture attachments in your review section. It is a very effective tip for personal reputation management online.

A Referral Campaign

Kill two birds with one stone. Incentivize customers to leave feedback but do so that they are encouraged to come back to you in the future. For example, providing them a certain percentage off on their next purchase as a reward for a review will tie them up with your business, and they are more likely to make a purchase again later to avail of the discount. This way, you get to manage google reviews as well as boost sales. Other ways of incentivizing can include providing customers with a referral code for their friends and family. If they make a purchase using it, the person of reference gets a discounted price. Again, more sales!

More and better reviews lead to enhanced SEO rankings, which help a business stand out among the sea of competitors. Google reviews are one very effective tool that, if utilized correctly, can change how customers engage with your business. The aforementioned tips should be great to start with.