Let’s learn today how online reviews can help your small business.

Most small businesses have an ambivalent relationship with reviews.

While good reviews go a long way in promoting your business, negative reviews can hurt the credibility of your business and keep customers away. While displeased customers exist and negative reviews happen from time to time, also factually if the majority of reviews are positive and help grow your business.

When was the last time you visited a hotel without going through the recommendations? 

Almost everyone you know naturally seeks opinions before trying something new.

Do you know 97% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase? Half the people looking for services will only accept four stars and above. Thus it is imperative that you take your business reviews seriously. 

But 5-star reviews don’t happen just like that, and the problem is that many businesses think it’s out of their control. Here is where a professional Full-service digital marketing agency can help you maintain and get good reviews. 

Here are some reasons why business reviews are critical: 

Reviews help your business get found online.  

When you are looking for a business, it won’t take long to find what others have to say about it, and reviews will probably be one of the first results they see. Google takes review ratings from various sites into consideration. When determining the order of businesses, it returns in local searches according to LocalSEO Guide; online reviews and specified keywords influence local search engine visibility more than any other factor.

Consumers go straight to search engines for a local business. Your ranking also depends on your rating and the number of reviews.

It is also the same for searches on Facebook, and you must know that most local searches start with Google, but Facebook and yelp aren’t too far behind in terms of People looking for your business. 

Also, thousands of apps and services utilize review data to help local shoppers decide to purchase. 

More than 100,000 developers use Yelp reviews, including Apple, Microsoft, real estate apps, and in-car navigation systems. 

The reviews on the review sites dramatically influence your web presence.

Builds Credibility Of your Business

There is nothing to gain or lose for the people who leave reviews. They share their experience, good or bad; they share it. People trust what other people say. Studies show that around 90% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal ones. 

Recently, review sites have been pushed even more significantly to keep reviews as unbiased as possible. For instance, yelp now displays a little warning on a page that they suspect to be soliciting reviews from customers.

There are various ways to get reviews without asking for them; getting guidance from a Full-service digital marketing agency can take a long way. 

Reviews influence purchasing decisions.

Most customers do their research before spending money and time on your business. It provides a sense of indemnity from reading insights from someone’s experience at a business before someone tries it themselves. Online reviews impact about 70% of consumers. People read reviews from competitors and consider them before buying a product, eating at a new restaurant, or doing business with a company. 

The better your business’s reputation online, the easier it is for people to choose your business over others. 

Very few people are willing to take risks on a business without any reviews online. 

Responses On Reviews Show That Your Business Care. 

Not only do people want to listen to what people say about your business, but they also want to see how you handle them. It doesn’t matter if they are positive or negative, but does your business care to respond? Don’t worry if you don’t have time to manage and respond to reviews online; the Full-service digital marketing agency professionals can get your job done. 

You should never ignore reviews, as almost 80% of consumers feel that a business cares about their consumers more if they respond to online reviews than if they don’t. 

At the time of responding to google reviews, you must keep in mind to : 

• In case of positive reviews, Express Appreciation, Be specific, reinforce a positive attitude, and always remember to respond on time. If you have any new service or product coming to your offering, you can share an update with your customers. Keep your responses short and crisp.  
• In case of negative reviews, find out the root of the problem, apologize concisely and publicly and try to resolve the issue in your response. 

In case you receive Negative reviews it is not the end of the world. If you respond to a negative review correctly, you can minimize the damage, preserve your business reputation, and potentially even turn it into a positive review. 

A fact to go by is that 96% of consumers expect a response to a complaint within 48 hours, and This initial response should take place right on Google; then, you take it offline. 

Reviews are an essential source of Feedback.

You can learn about your business from the reviews. The things about your business do the customers love and don’t like? 

Reviews help your business more than doing any harm. 

Keep a watch; there are common themes in your negative reviews. Sometimes people have a hard time getting ahold of you and spread wrong information about your business. You can fix this problem yourself before they become a bigger problem. 

Additionally, you can use your positive reviews to confidently to your target audience. 

Reviews acts like Word-Of-Mouth Marketing 

Generally, word of mouth happens over time, after your business has been noticed and you’ve got people talking about you. The more people talk about your business, the better the marketing and referrals you may get for your business. 

Opportunities come from reviews, referrals, and word of mouth. If you are a small business, the review can be your most robust marketing tool and the best thing about review sites.       

How Do Online Reviews Help Your Small Business? 

Online reviews influence the deciding factors between you and your competitors. Thus better not be afraid of reviews but instead embrace them and their power. List your business on social media platforms and review sites to let your customers and audience the opportunity to talk and learn about your business. If you want to grow your business and maintain a positive reputation, keeping up with the online presence of your business is essential. If you’re unsure how to get started, contact Decode Designs, Full service digital marketing agency. We’re here to help you with every digital marketing needs!

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