In a survey done by Capterra specific to the Australian market, 56% of respondents claimed to have left an online review because the seller simply asked them to, and the remaining 44% of online reviews were given by customers without any kind of prompt. With that being said, One of the best ways to get more online reviews from customers is to simply ask.

Chances are if they’ve had a good experience with your business, they would not mind taking the time to leave some feedback. However, having a negative experience with your business can also urge customers to leave a negative review. In this case, you must try to respond quickly to rectify the situation and change the customer’s mind about you.

What are Google Reviews and why do they matter?

In this digital age, Google Reviews are one of the most important aspects of online reputation management, and it can only be acquired by having a claimed Google Business Profile. Reviews act as social proof for your business and can help influence potential customers to try out your products and services. Depending on the nature of your business and what industry you’re in, there will be other websites you can gather reviews from. However, the reviews you will get from Google Business hold a lot of weight regardless of your business’ size and industry, because they are one of very few review platforms that are directly linked to Google search results. This means that the higher your Google Review score, the more visible your business will be to potential customers since Google is one of the most used search engines in the world.

Here are some of the best reasons to start collecting Google Reviews for your business:

• Reviews provide valuable insight into what you’re doing right, what you can do better, and how to improve brand trust and increase online visibility and exposure.
• Reviews can help build trust between businesses and customers. When customers see positive reviews, it encourages them to take a chance on your business. And when businesses respond to negative reviews quickly and professionally, it shows that they care about their customers and are willing to work to fix any problems that may have arisen.
• Google Reviews can help drive organic traffic to your business website or profile and improve your SEO ranking. This is because Google considers reviews when determining how high to rank your business in search results.

How Many Google Reviews Do You Need To Get Noticed?

If you own a small business and have not yet created a Google Business Profile, you may be wondering how many Google Reviews you need in order to start seeing results. The answer to this question actually depends on a few different factors, such as your industry and your Google Review score. However, in general, you will likely see the most success when you have around 50 Google Reviews or more.

This number may seem daunting, but there are a few things you can do to make collecting reviews easier for your customers.

Effective Ways To Get Manual Reviews On Google

As we established above, small businesses getting Google reviews can be one of the most effective ways to improve their online visibility and reputation. But how does one go about getting these reviews manually? Here are some tips to get started.

Asking customers in-store or in person

When asking customers for Google reviews, it’s important to make the process as easy and hassle-free as possible. One way to do this is by having a tablet or computer set up in your shop so that customers can easily leave a review without having to go through the hassle of finding your business on Google and navigating to the review page.

Don’t have a physical shop? Don’t worry! Another way to ask customers for Google reviews is by doing it in person. This can be done by either handing them a receipt or business card with a QR code that leads to your Google Business Profile and by asking them to scan the code immediately after a pleasant and successful service or transaction.

Sending out simple yet effective emails and SMS messages (with free templates)

When it comes to asking customers to leave a Google review, one of the easiest ways to do so is by sending them a simple and personalised email or text message. The message should be brief, easy to read, and should include a direct link to where they can leave a review.

Expressing your sentiments in your own brand voice and style also adds a unique touch, so don’t be afraid to get creative, especially with emails. To help make it easier for you, we’ve created some templates that you can use when sending Google review requests to your customers.

Template 1: Requesting for A Review

Dear [Customer Name],

Thank you for choosing [Your Business Name]. We are thrilled to have had the opportunity to serve you.

As a local business, we rely heavily on customer feedback to improve and grow. We would be incredibly grateful if you could take a moment to leave a review about your experience with us on Google. Your valuable feedback will help other potential customers make informed decisions about using our offerings.

To make it easy for you, please click on this link to leave your review:

<Link to your Business on Google>

We appreciate your support and hope to have the pleasure of serving you again in the future.

Warm regards,

[Your Business Name]

Template 2: Responding To A Positive Review

Dear [Customer Name],

Thank you so much for leaving us such a wonderful review. We are thrilled to hear that you had an enjoyable experience with us and that our services met your expectations. Your positive feedback is greatly appreciated and inspires us to continually improve.

We truly appreciate your support and are grateful for the opportunity to serve you. We hope to see you again soon at [Your Business Name].

Warm regards, [Your Business Name]

Now, If a customer leaves a negative review, it’s important to respond in a way that shows you’re taking the feedback seriously and are working to improve. Here’s an example of how you could do this

Template 3: Responding To A Negative Review:

Hello [Customer Name],

Thank you for taking the time to leave a review of your experience with us! We’re sorry to hear that you had a negative experience. We would like to hear more about what happened. It’s feedback like this that helps us improve and change for the better.

Dear [Customer Name],

We are sad to hear that you had a negative experience with our product/service. We take all feedback seriously and are committed to providing a high level of service to all of our customers. With that being said, we hope to speak with you further about your experience so that we may resolve any issues and improve our services. Please contact us at [Business Contact Email] to discuss this further.

We value your feedback and hope you can give us the opportunity to make things right and have the chance to serve you again in the future.

Sincerely,
[Your Business Name]

Encouraging customers to leave reviews on social media

Encouraging customers to leave Google reviews via social media is a great way to make the process easier for them. All you have to do is post a message on your social media page(s) with a link to where they can leave a review.

You can also get creative with your messages, expressing your sentiments in your own brand voice and style. Also, adding a small reward such as a discount coupon or freebies such as free delivery or a free drink on their next purchase can help you get both a review and a repeat customer.

Working With A Reputation Management Service

If you’ve read all of the above and you’re not getting enough results, or if you are overwhelmed about not having the time to do all of that yourself, we completely understand. Running a business is already challenging as is, and requesting and responding to reviews not just on Google but on many different platforms in a timely manner can be difficult if you already have a lot of tasks that take up most of your time.

If this is the case, working with a reputation management service can be a great option. These services can help you gather, track and publish your online reviews on your website and other social media pages.

Working with a reputation management service like Complete Reviews is a great way to ensure that your online presence is always looking its best, and can help boost your business’ credibility and trustworthiness. We know what works and what doesn’t, and we have a straightforward, user-friendly interface that allows you to view all your reviews from different websites in one comprehensive inbox.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help boost your business’s online reputation.