Which restaurant would you choose?
Reviews & Testimonials
Consumers are keen to read online reviews and testimonials from existing customers so they can satisfy themselves they’re making the right choice, and they trust the opinions of their peers, family and friends far more than they trust radio, TV or newspaper advertising.
“97% of consumers trust peer recommends, only 47% of consumers trust TV, radio or radio adverts”
People are talking about your business online whether you like it or not, and it would be nice to think that only good things are being said, but unfortunately it’s unrealistic to think that’s really the case.
Unfortunately you can’t please all of the people all the time, and it only takes one disgruntled customer to post negative reviews about your business, and cause other people to decide not to do business with you, even though the negativity is unjustified.
It’s human nature for people to talk to their friends about any bad experiences they’ve had, or something they feel was less than satisfactory, before or even rather than expressing the same concerns to the business involved.
The first you might know about anything is when that information appears online and it’s almost too late to do something to rectify it.
Monitoring Reviews & Mentions
It’s therefore vital that you monitor what your customers and prospects are saying about your business so you can lessen the impact of any negative comments before they affect your business, and you can highlight the good comments and reviews.
Good customer reviews and testimonials are extremely powerful in converting prospects into buyers, which is why you should encourage your satisfied customers to leave a review or give you a testimonial. This way you can help to ensure that others see the positive things people have to say about your business rather than seeing any negative comments that might have been made.
If you’re not sure what is being said about you online, simply do a Google search and see what comes up. Or use a reputation management software if you want to be alerted of any new reviews on one of many portals and directory sites out there.
Want To Talk Reputation?
Online Reputation, which includes things like “getting a steady flow of positive reviews” and “responding to online mentions”, is an important foundation for any online marketing campaign – is it the foundation of yours? Contact us today for a free initial consultation.