MAPS PhD Expert. Latest Knowledge Is Your Greatest Asset

Transcription

1 MAPS PhD Expert Latest Knowledge Is Your Greatest Asset

2 Customer reviews are vital to the growth and success of your business. There is no clear evidence that review ratings have any affect on the ranking of your site. However, it is very clear that reviews have a huge impact on local businesses. Any astute business owner will regularly assess online reviews and be willing to respond, whenever appropriate, by taking responsibility and offering solutions when warranted. Industries that typically do not receive many reviews can really be damaged by negative comments. Managing your local reputation is a must, and ensuring good reputations is a service that can be marketed. Here are the areas to focus attention on: Prioritizing Your Review Efforts It is to your advantage to have reviews on as many different review sites as possible. The old adage of "don't put all of your reviews in one review site" is very appropriate. Reviews have been known to disappear for one reason or another. It's more impactful, too, when people read good reviews about your business on lots of different review sites. Some SEO experts believe that business reviews on multiple review sites will enhance your Google Rankings. Achieving a diverse review profile is also thought by many experts to improve rankings at Google. While it's a good idea to encourage your customers to write reviews and to use their favorite sites (because they are likely to be members and/or logged in already), it doesn't hurt to invite them to leave reviews on other review sites as well.

3 You want to have the most reviews on sites that get the most traffic. Sites like Google+, Yelp, Facebook and Yahoo Local Listings generate more traffic. Reviews from some sites are gathered by local search engines and combined with their own reviews. If your reviews are positive, the benefit can be great. However, negative reviews on these sites can be really damaging if the reviews are syndicated. Do a Google search for your primary keywords and make note which of the profile websites - like Yelp, TripAdvisor, etc.- are in the top 10 results. If your business is in a niche that has their own industry specific directory site (like AVVO, HealthGrades, etc), they usually rank very well. Using keywords for your niche or specific to your business, it is pretty easy to discover who your biggest competitors are and where they are being reviewed. Make note of these sites and you will learn which have the biggest potential to make a difference for your business. Having great reviews on these sites may or may not impact your local ranking. But they will definitely improve your online visibility and assist in organic search results. Now that you are armed with your list of the best review sites for your business, it's time to learn the general rules for reviews for each of these sites: moz.com/learn/local/understandingreview-guidelines

4 Local Review Environment Google may be the best place for your reviews. However, it is always best to have reviews on many different review sites - for algorithims AND because Search Engines may filter out good reviews or lose them. In reality, it's important not to put all of your reviews in one review site not only for algorithmic reasons, but because Google and other search engines sometimes filter or mistakenly lose reviews. How to find good review sources in your industry While customer reviews on any platform are good to have, not all review sites are created equal. Some sites count more with Google than others, particularly websites with strong brand names and industry focused websites. Here is a simple way to determine the most important review sites in your industry. Search for: industry keyword reviews: example: plumber reviews See which websites rank for this phrase. Here you're looking for search results that do not include map pins.

5 The value of review syndication Many review sites, Google included, syndicate their reviews to other sites. This practice makes the reviews more valuable. The added benefit of this practice is that your site may show up more frequently - putting your business in front of more eyes - which is great - as long as your business has excellent reviews. It may also improve your rankings in local search.

6 Used by Permission Who syndicates reviews where? Phil Rozek has put together this excellent graphic to highlight the review sites that syndicate their content far and wide. You may also syndicate your own reviews! Thank your customers for leaving reviews (which may encourage others to do the same.) Share your great reviews via links in Twitter, Facebook, on your own website and in Google+. Creating your own Strategy for acquiring Reviews from your customers Experts agree - good and great customer reviews strongly sway the buying behavior of your customers and potential

7 customers. It's vital to the growth and success of your business to earn as many of these as possible. moz.com/local-searchranking-factors Most of your customers are not aware of how important their good reviews are to the bottom line of your business. It's time to let them know. It's time to ask for their feedback. Make sure that you know the rules regarding solicitation of customer reviews for each review site. Many do not condone solicitation of reviews or offering incentives or using contests for the sole purpose of gaining reviews. Other than Yelp - who has the most stringent rules - most other sites will allow you to create an ethical review gathering strategy. Here are some definite "Do NOT do's" Do NOT set up any review system in your business location. NEVER write reviews for your own business. NEVER pay someone to pretend that they are a customer, just to leave a review. NEVER encourage false reviews for any reason, from anyone. NEVER solicit massive numbers of reviews at one time. It is likely to trigger filters that will shut the reviews down. Things to do: DO link your review profiles to your company website. DO create a list of ways/places that your customers may leave reviews for your service. DO make sure that any of your employees who have direct contact with your customers are well trained to ask the customer for a review, once service has been delivered.

8 DO send to your customers, following the completion of a service, with links to sites where your customers may leave reviews but EXCLUDE YELP. DO follow up calls with your customers, and, at the end of the call, ask if they will leave a review. DO invite your customers to regularly post reviews about your service on their favorite review site. Darren Shaw and Phil Rozek have created a handy dandy System that may assist you in creating a strategy to help your customers leave reviews for your business: whitespark.ca/review-handout-generator/ If your plan is to be in business for a long time, you want to continually generate a stream of great reviews. Lots of business owners focus on getting reviews... and, once they have a number of them, they forget all about it and years can pass without any new reviews. This is about as bad as not having any reviews. People wonder: "What happened to this business? Are they still in business? They had great reviews a couple of years ago, can I still trust them?" ALWAYS be seeking reviews. A slow and steady trickle is far more valuable than a flood... and then... nothing. Understanding Review Guidelines Read the TOS of each review site: When you find review sites and create a listing, read the TOS of each site because they vary from site to site..

9 If a review is posted on Yelp or Google and either believes that the review is fake or, in the case of Yelp, solicited, it will be removed. Here are direct links to the guidelines of some key review platforms: Google+ Local Yelp Foursquare Yahoo! Citysearch YP.com zomato (formerly UrbanSpoon) TripAdvisor Facebook (Guidelines for Page Promotion; to our knowledge, guidelines for Place reviews have not yet been released by Facebook.) What to do if your Google My Business page or reviews are deleted: Understanding Review Filters Yelp has the most stringent rules regarding citations. Their system was set up to - as much as possible - eliminate false reviews. If you ever tried to game the system, Yelp will block these reviews, and they may also block real reviews. It is not worth it. Great reviews on Yelp can have a very significant impact on a small business.

10 Some SEO Experts say that as much as 79% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. An increase in even one star in a Yelp rating can impact the revenue of a business by as much as 10%. Why review filters exist Local and mobile searches have increased dramatically over the years, so directories are finding ways to use these to: Judge how popular a local business is Provide a clear picture of the experience that locals will have when interacting with the business Make their sites more attractive as a local "community", thus increasing the traffic to their site. Yelp had the right idea. And, sites like Yelp have always attracted people who will try to game the system. The purpose of Yelp's review filter: To make sure reviews are left by actual people (not robots) To make sure reviews are left by customers and not just hired third parties To make sure businesses don't leave reviews for themselves How review filters work The filters Yelp employs are specific to their company, and other review sites are also using filters to remove reviews that don't meet their criteria: Reviews must be real and not filled with profanity or extremes in any way Must not be loaded with keywords Must not include links to anything

11 If a business has not had any reviews for a long time, and, suddenly, there are a flood of them, that is likely to trigger a filter reaction. Other review filters will examine the behaviors of each reviewer. If the reviewer has never left a review before and never leaves another Are the review ratings equally distributed (some 5 star, some 3 star, etc.) Does the reviewer rate a variety of business niches? How often does the reviewer post reviews? The location of the IP address of the reviewer. If the reviews are posted by reviewers who are active on these sites and have left reviews for other businesses, the review is likely to be posted. Experts agree that reviews posted by active members of the community will most likely enhance the rankings and influence local shoppers.

12 Problems with review filters Avoiding review filters Yelp is probably the most aggressive at enforcing their business review guidelines. It is estimated that as many as one in five reviews written on Yelp never shows up! Don't ask anyone to review your business on Yelp. The review filters of the future Review filters are part of everyday life on the internet. Learn the rules and follow them. It does not benefit your business in any way to do otherwise. With the introduction of the smartphone, review behavior is changing.

13 Any local search platform that has implemented mobile payment processing (like Google, Apple, and any Square or PayPal Here partner) would be able to turn off the ability for a user to leave a review of the store unless the shopper had actually made a purchase. Any local search performed on a SmartPhone, such as Android or Apple could register the device ID when the review is posted and it would be tied to a real human being. Tying reviews to devices and social accounts (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) is one way to reduce or remove the possibility of false reviews. When reviews can be tied directly to a specific person and location, or connected with social media, the value of those reviews will rise higher than anonymous reviews - which will pretty much be worthless. For any industry that lives on anonymity, another option is needed to get good reviews. Facebook is well established in social networks and has extensive understanding of the behaviors of its users. Google is able to track the behavior of its users via their search habits, Gmail, and YouTube activity, and can go a long way to stop scammers. Most business owners would far rather have open, honest reviews which would give a more accurate picture online, of their business. Responding to Customer Reviews An interesting and useful addition to some of the local review sites is the ability of the business owner to respond to posted reviews. But useful ONLY if the business owner knows the most effective way to respond to an angry customer.

14 It's far too easy for people to write nasty things about you when they do not have to face you. It can be really hurtful to read some of the things that upset customers can write. It's completely normal to feel upset and hurt and angry, and want to lash out. You can NOT DO THAT. It's very important to take action... AFTER you've calmed down. Read the review - dispassionately - and see if there is anything that you can do to resolve the issue. What can you offer? Can you apologize and offer a "do over"? Think before you hit "send". Ask yourself "Will sending this message help to grow my business?" Do everything you can to make the situation right and prove that you care. Bottom Line - How committed are you to the growth and well being of your business and your relationships with your customers and clients? Your ability to "rise above" any pettiness will benefit you and your business for years to come. The space for your response to reviews is ALSO for thanking and praising your clients and customers, too. This can go a long way toward building customer loyalty. Your kindness and compassion are very important to your customers (who are also far more likely to speak up on your behalf if someone does leave a negative review). Use reviews as business improvement tools. Reviews are a good barometer of how well your business is going. If you begin seeing a pattern of negative reviews, it's VITALLY important to take a close look at the inner workings of your business. Find out where ALL of the problem issues are and do whatever

15 it takes to fix them. Remember to look YOURSELF in the mirror, first. Are YOU the source of any of the issues? Be willing to be honest and do whatever it takes. Reviews are here to stay. Are you? Disclaimer Google's algorithm (the rules and guidelines that determine which business listings they display at any given time to any given individual) may have changed since this document was published. While the steps outlined above were working for us at the time we published this document, Google may have changed its procedures since then. With MAPS PhD we constantly keep up to date with Google's latest changes. Copyright All rights reserved. Jack Hopman, You may not copy, sell or distribute this document without advance written permission from the author.