We have managed to work out how to get more Google reviews, and once you’ve finished reading this article, you will too.
Everybody knows how important it is to be able to get more Google reviews from people who have used your service or brand, in order to increase the credibility of your brand online.
In fact, it is one of the first things that people are going to look at when they decide whether they want to work with a brand or not.
If you aren’t making sure that you have a lot of Google reviews on your Google business profile, then you’re definitely missing out an opportunity to expand your brand’s reach.
Google is almost the end all and be all when it comes to Internet searches, which means that you’ve got to really think about this side of things for your brand.
Let’s take a look at how to get more Google reviews, so that you can set your business up success online.
Key Takeaways
- UseViral is the best way to get more Google reviews in a way that is natural and authentic. They are credible and have a good reputation.
- It is essential to make the most of Google reviews if you want your company to have a longstanding reputation online.
- It is legal to use a third party to help you with your Google reviews, as long as you are in compliance with industry regulations.
How to Get More Google Reviews in 2023
1. Use UseViral
UseViral is number one on our list when it comes to working out how to get more Google reviews, and for a good reason.
UseViral has been working hard on their features and developing them for a long time, and they have a knowledgeable team of experts behind the scenes, who are always working on being able to help you as a client.
As a client, they can help you not just with Google reviews, but they can also help you with Yelp reviews as well as social media marketing and engagement in general.
Which means that you just have to talk to them about what your goals are when it comes to your company being online, and they can take things from there.
They know the industry inside and out and they know what works for certain industries, and what doesn’t.
This means that you’re going to be able to get a customized engagement package that is going to take your company a long way, and ensure that you are getting the Google reviews that you need.
2. Ask a Client for a Review
This might be obvious, but one of the easiest ways to get more Google reviews is to ask your clients for feedback, when it comes to the service or product that you are providing them.
Requesting feedback from them is often the most direct way to make sure that your customers are satisfied, in order to increase your reputation online.
If you’re talking with a client on the phone, then just gently remind them that you are on Google, and that you appreciate their feedback.
It doesn’t get easier than this, and it is a great way to maintain a good relationship with your clients, because not only do you get boosted with Google reviews, but you also get to know what your clients like about your product, and what they don’t like, so that you can improve.
3. Make the Most of a Follow-Up Email
Once you have sold your service or your product to somebody who is really satisfied, make sure that you keep your customer in the loop, by sending them a follow up e-mail, reminding them that you are on Google, and you appreciate their feedback.
Make sure that when it comes to e-mail, you are personable, and that you thank the customer directly for choosing your business.
It is also worth mentioning that you appreciate and read all of the feedback that you received and explain to the customer why feedback is really important.
In your e-mail, you need to include a direct link, so that the customer can leave you a Google review, and it isn’t going to take them a lot of time.
If you just vaguely ask them for a Google review, they are less likely to do it because the last thing they want to do is have to spend more than a few minutes out of their day making the effort.
4. Leave a Leave Behind
You might not be aware of this, but a leave behind is a piece marketing collateral, that you can leave at your client’s property.
This kind of approach tends to be more popular with local service companies, or contractors.
For example, if you are a flooring contractor, and you just installed new hardwood floors in a customer’s home, then we highly recommend that you leave a file with them containing maintenance and care tips when it comes to their new floor, as well as a phone number in case they have any follow up questions about the product.
You will also want to leave a feedback card, a business card, and then instructions that detail how they can use the review card.
If you don’t have the time or the money to print out thousands of folders like this to give out to your clients, then you can also create a digital version, and send it through to your clients via e-mail, once the job is done.
Remember, this isn’t going to work for all industries, but it is helpful if you are able to encourage your client to have an ongoing relationship as much as possible.
5. Include a Review Link on Your Website
Another really easy way to get more Google reviews when it comes to your company is to include a review link on your website, or to create a custom review link.
A custom review link is exactly what you might think it sounds like, a custom link where you can create one that is relevant to your company, where clients can easily leave you a review.
This means that when someone selects this custom review link, a simple box is going to pop up, and they are going to be able to leave a review, without having to go anywhere else.
This is a lot of the time a lot more convenient than a link that is going to send them to Google reviews, because they will simply be able to fill out the form that pops up on their screen, and then be on their way.
When you make things really convenient like this for your clients, they are more likely to leave you reviews.
6. Follow Up with Review Requests More Than Once
Just because a client hasn’t left you a review straight away doesn’t mean that they are never going to leave one.
You might have caught them at a bad time, or maybe they wanted to leave you a review, or send through their feedback, but they just forgot to do so.
If this is the case, then we highly suggest that you create two templates for e-mail follow-ups, in addition to your first follow up so that ultimately you are limiting your follow up emails to just three.
It is definitely worth following up with clients, to make sure that they are reminded about leaving a review, but you definitely don’t want to overdo it.
Sent out a new request once a week, or even every other week, until you have maxed out your three.
The reality is that some clients are just never going to leave feedback, even if you follow up with them, but there’s absolutely no harm in trying.
If you are persistent with your follow-ups, this also keeps the name of your company fresh and in your client’s minds, and adds more lines of communication between you and your customers.
7. Keep Calm When You Get Bad Feedback
Of course, nobody wants to receive bad reviews about their business, but at the end of the day, this is just the reality of having a company in general, because at some point, somebody is going to be dissatisfied with something, and you’ve got to be prepared for this.
Instead of being on the defense and trying to justify the negative feedback that you have received, be accountable and accept responsibility for it, and then prove to your clients that you are prepared to fix the issue.
There are clients out there that will turn their one-star review into a five-star review, purely because of the positive interaction that they’ve had with the company after the fact.
When customers see that you are prepared to respond to reviews, even the ones that you get that are negative, then they are much more likely to see you as an above board company and select your services.
Responding to negative reviews positively goes a long way in increasing your credibility and building trust with your clients.
8. Add Popups and Calls to Action on Your Website
Everybody knows that people love to procrastinate.
One of the best ways to throw procrastinators into high gear is to have a lot of call to actions on your website, even by including a small pop-up that encourages somebody to leave a review.
This is a great way to remind customers who visit your website who might have forgotten about leaving you a review that they want to do so.
9. Respond to Reviewers
We always recommend that you respond to reviews online, both negative and positive. If a client has left a positive review, then say thank you.
However, if a client has left a negative review, then address the issue immediately, and apologize for the issue.
Also, it is highly recommended that you try to resolve the issue privately.
Google holds companies in high regard that respond to Google reviews, whether they are positive or negative.
As we’ve already talked about, if you’re prepared to respond to negative reviews, and resolve them, this is going to put you in good stead when it comes to Google, as well as your clients.
10. Offer Great Customer Support
When it comes to customer reviews, they’re kind of the same as the Evening News, most of the time, you only read about the bad ones, and not the good ones.
The easiest way to get a Google review is to offer really good customer support, and customer service, to every client that you are interacting with.
If a customer has a really good experience with your company, as well as the service that you provided, they’re going to feel compelled to leave a positive review.
Even if your service or product is slightly average right now, having amazing customer support can take somebody’s average experience up to an amazing experience.
11. Include a Review Opportunity in a Survey
Giving your clients the opportunity to leave feedback lets them know that you value what they have to say about your company, and you also have their best interests at heart.
If you have gotten somebody to fill out a survey or poll, then they are already in the right mindset, so that you can take advantage of this, and ask them if they’re willing to review your business on Google while they’re at it.
This is a great way to get more people who already enjoy your product or service to leave good reviews about your business.
12. Ask for Reviews Through Social Media
As well as having a Google business profile, you’ve also got your website, your e-mail system, and social media as well.
We haven’t really touched too much on social media in this article yet, but social media is an important part of being able to connect with your clients and encourage them to interact with your business on another level.
Social media platforms are really good for getting your community involved when it comes to your clients so we highly recommend that you post a screenshot of the best review that you have received, and ask your customers on social media to leave their own feedback.
You also need to include a link to Google reviews, so it is really easy for them to do this.
It’s worth at this point reminding your followers that this is a really good opportunity for them to introduce somebody else to the benefits of signing up for your business.
Just keep in mind that some social media platforms, like Facebook, have their own system when it comes to reviews.
13. Include a Google Instruction Video
One of the biggest reasons why people choose to not leave reviews is because they haven’t ever left a Google review with a company before, and they don’t really want to have to go through the boring process of doing so.
They think that the process is complicated, and they don’t want to have to put a lot of time into it.
The best way to get around this is to share an instructional video on your website that your clients can watch about how to leave a Google review.
It just needs to be a quick video, so that it holds their attention, and it’s going to make a massive difference when it comes to making it really convenient for your clients to leave you a positive review.
FAQs
What Is a Google Review?
A Google review is a review that is left on Google, which is the biggest search engine in the world when it comes to the Internet.
A lot of the time, people can leave a Google review of a company through the website, or they can just leave it directly through Google itself.
Why Do I Need Google Reviews?
If you are trying to market your brand online and prove to your target market that your product or service is worth looking at, then you definitely want to make the most of as many Google reviews as possible.
There is always the risk that you’re going to receive negative Google reviews but if you are a solid company that has good intentions with their clients, you are much more likely to get positive reviews over negative ones.
Is It Illegal to Use a Third Party to Help Me with Google Reviews?
You’ll be pleased to know that it definitely isn’t illegal to use a third party to help you with Google reviews, as long as you are using a company that has good intentions when it comes to helping you, and only wants to see you do really well.
There are plenty of companies out there that are going to take advantage of you, and try to just make a quick profit out of your naivete.
Final Thoughts
The reality is, clients trust what other clients have to say.
There are a lot of people that feel that reviews that are posted by people they don’t know are just as credible as getting a personal recommendation from a friend.
You need to definitely use this to your advantage.
You need to make a habit of asking your clients to leave you a review through Google.
As long as you are making this really easy for them to do, you are highly likely to get a lot of Google business reviews, which is going to immediately increase your reputation online, and put your brand on the map.
Now that we have talked to you all about how to get more Google reviews, you can go ahead and shape your Google review marketing strategy.
That means that you can encourage more of your clients to interact with your brand and prove to others that it is worth signing up for the product or service.