Online reviews from your customers/clients can do wonders for your business. That is why it is so important to know how to ask for a review and get a yes.
When you get reviews, they have the ability to build your reputation and give you the credibility that many consumers are looking for in a business they purchase from. In fact, they are often the final factor that will turn your prospect into a client/customer.
If you’re not sure how you should approach asking for more, then you’ve come to the right place.
What do the Stats Show?
When looking at the statistics, it is easy to see why customer reviews have such a large impact. This is because we see 82% of consumers out there reading online reviews on local businesses.
Positive reviews are a great way for you to get more customers as 91% of them say they are more likely to use your business after seeing them. This goes as far as 91% of 18 – 34-year-olds trusting online reviews as much as a family member or friend.
The more reviews you have will also have more reviews so that your customers will trust your average rating. The statistics show that a business needs 40 ratings for customers to believe it. Another benefit of reviews is that it will help with your local SEO ranking, as those who were near the top of the rankings had an average of 47 reviews or more.
How to Ask For a Review
Want a quick run-through of each of these points! Watch this short video:
1. Ask your clients/customers in person if they would be willing to write a review for your business. This way you are able to ask in a genuine and formal way and are able to explain to them the importance of it and walk them through how they can do it.
2. If you are unable to ask for a review in person, another way to do it is by sending over a kindly-worded email asking for one. Maybe even give them a choice in the platform they give their review on like Google, Facebook, etc.
3. If you want to make it easy for a client/customer to leave a review, send over the link for them to make a review. This way you aren’t asking them to go and figure it out on their own and save them time and make it more likely that they will give you one.
4. This one may sound simple, but do good work so they give you good feedback. When you go above and beyond with the quality of work that you are doing, your customers will be more likely to leave a review and recommend your services to their circle.
5. A great way for you to get more reviews is by adding a link to your website that leads to the page they can do this on. You can do this by making a reviews/testimonials page that displays links to multiple places for them to leave a review. This will encourage your customers and clients by giving them multiple options to choose from and hop on the bandwagon when they see all the other reviews people are leaving your business.
6. Even when you get a healthy dose of reviews, it is important that you don’t stop and continue getting new ones. Reviews don’t mean the same and are no longer as reliable if they are three or four years old. Your goal should be to continue earning new and relevant reviews from your customers and clients on an ongoing basis to get the most out of the reviews you get.
7. Respond to the reviews you have. Your first obligation should be to respond to negative reviews. How you respond to this is very important. You don’t want to be defensive and rip the bad review to shreds. You should come off as a little empathetic and understanding of the issues they had, and make sure they know that you are dedicated to improving and learning from the mistakes that are made. You also want to be sure that you are dedicating time to show gratitude for the positive ones as well. Many people feel that if they take the time to leave you a positive review for your business, it is courteous for the company to respond and thank them. When you are responding to the reviews you are getting, it shows potential customers that you genuinely care about your customers and that you are always working to make things better for their benefit.
8. Teaching your staff how to ask for a review can be a great way for your business to get more positive reviews. Now, this may work better for some businesses than others, but if it is the correct fit for your business and it won’t be an assembly line of customers coming through and you’re repeating it one after another than this could be a good route to take. If you can teach your staff members when it is appropriate to ask customers and clients for reviews, it will be a more natural way of asking for a review and seem less forced.
9. Having in-store signs like banners, flyers, brochures, and wall or window art with links and places pointing to places where they can leave feedback are great. It allows you to communicate your desire and appreciation of your customers supporting you and helping your business improve.
This should give you more than a good enough start for how to ask for a review. Remember too that you are always able to try new things and find what works best for your business. There isn’t a one size fits all approach to this. All businesses are different and require different things than others, so keep that in mind as you are making your plan.
