In the United States, there are over 30.2 million small businesses. And every year, over half a million new ones are started.
With so much competition, it pretty much sinks or swims. Everything you do will affect how successful your company is.
If you’re a business owner, you may be wondering if local business reviews actually matter. We’re here to answer your question, and then some.
Do Local Business Reviews Matter?
Quite frankly, yes they do. Local business reviews are basically what’s going to keep your doors open.
You see, things like Google ratings and reviews are the first things people see when they look up your business. In an instant, they can tell if you’re great at what you do, just by looking at your star rating.
Throughout history, word of mouth has been absolutely vital in boosting a business’s revenue, as it signifies not only trustworthiness but also top-notch quality. Today, there’s still the traditional word of mouth where people get recommendations from their family and friends.
However, with the advent of the internet, word of mouth’s exponentially changed and grown with review sites. This means in addition to building trust through satisfied customers recommending your company to their social circles, you also need them to add to your digital presence.
If you fail to have a solid online reputation, then you may fail to keep your business running.
How to Improve Your Business Ratings
Now that you know how important it is to have good local business reviews, how exactly do you get those numbers up? And how do you ensure you keep bad reviews at bay?
Below are a few helpful tips.
Be Proactive
Sometimes, customers can be forgetful. But all it takes is a gentle nudge for them to get into gear.
Make sure you tell them in person to leave a review for your business. Also, encourage them to do so through your emails, website, and other forms of communication.
Offer Incentives
Most likely, your end goal is to have loyal repeat customers. One way to get them is to offer them rewards for their loyalty.
Motivate your happy customers to leave glowing reviews for you by giving small discounts or free services for doing so. Not only will this bump up your review numbers, but it’ll also get customers to come back again and again.
Handle Bad Reviews Professionally
Not all negative attention is bad! If you get a disgruntled customer leaving a bad review, you can always turn this into a positive thing.
For example, handle their reviews with decorum and do anything you can to rectify the situation. Not only does this show others how good your customer service is, but that can even convince the disgruntled customer to edit their review and give you a higher rating in the end.
Improve Your Reviews for Success
As you can see, local business reviews matter significantly for your success. Without good ones, you may even see your business sink, which would cause you to close up shop.
So prevent that by putting our tips to good use. When locals know they can trust your business, you’ll see it thrive!
For more tips on running your business, please take a look at our other blog articles.