Online and social media reviews build trust and provide social proof to new customers. It tells potential customers that a business is genuine and deals with authentic products and services. Recent data shows that 91 percent of young adults (between 18 and 34 years of age) trust reviews as much as they trust personal recommendations. Another data reveals that before making a purchase, 93 percent of customers read online reviews. This indicates how important online and social media reviews have become for the success of modern businesses.
Many businesses are taking the help of professional social media advertising services to gain more favorable reviews. If you are looking to enhance favorable online and social media reviews, here are some strategies that will be extremely helpful.
- Enable reviews on Google My Business and social media pages
Turning off reviews on Google My Business pages and social media pages is a big mistake that some businesses make. It may spare them the pain of reading negative reviews but it also takes away the opportunity to prove their credibility by showing positive reviews. It is crucial to invite all kinds of reviews. Allow visitors to review the pages by turning on reviews.
- Enable customers to find the review pages
The next step is to enable customers to find the pages where they can leave their reviews. The best way to do this is to add the link to the Google My Business page, Amazon page, or the home page of social media platforms in email templates and text messages. This will make it easier for the target audience to visit the page and leave their reviews.
- Appreciate positive reviews by liking or rating them as helpful
Customers take out time from their busy schedule to write a review. The least businesses can do is to appreciate their time by liking or rating the positive reviews as helpful. Facebook enables businesses and page owners to like visitors’ reviews. Google My Business and Amazon provide the opportunity to rate the reviews as helpful. Rating the reviews as helpful can boost the comments and give them more credibility. Customers who search for the most informative and useful reviews will view the ones that have the highest helpful votes. It will influence their purchasing decision.
- Reply to reviews
Showing gratitude for something is the best way to get more of it. The same applies to online reviews. Businesses that reply to reviews on their Google My Business and social media pages are more likely to get more reviews. They show that they value their customers’ feedback and thank them for their time. Replying to reviews as simple as a “Thank you” create a positive relationship with customers and encourage more people to share their experience. Some businesses don’t bother to reply to any review. Make sure your company is not one of that. A trustworthy social media marketing service provides can help in replying to customers’ reviews and boost the brand image.
- Request happy customers to leave reviews
More often than not, happy customers are willing to share their experiences with a business and its product or service. The least a business can do is to request them to leave a review and most of them will be glad to oblige. A BrightLocal survey found that 70 percent of customers left a review when businesses requested them. Businesses can create a process to ask for reviews or automate their requests. Some companies also personalize their requests and approach their happy customers personally. This enables them to build a strong rapport with their customers.
- Share positive reviews on social media and website
Posting positive reviews on social media platforms enables followers and potential customers to learn about the experiences of satisfied customers. They also witness the way a business appreciates the reviews of its existing customers and makes them feel special. This encourages them to like and share the review posts and try out the products or services of the business. Apart from sharing positive reviews on social media platforms, businesses can put social media reviews on their websites and the photo section of their Google My Business pages.
- Showcase video testimonials
In the fast-moving world, most people prefer visual and aural content to text. With the former, they can watch, hear, and feel the message. As they say, seeing is believing. With the latter, however, they only can read and make assumptions. People also find video messages more credible than any other content. Videos also create an emotional appeal and provide a virtual experience to viewers. Businesses that share video testimonials encourage their happy customers to create video messages and upload them on social media.
- Help customers and provide them with solutions
When customers post a query or highlight an issue, it’s the responsibility of every business to help them and provide useful solutions. By addressing customers’ concerns and resolving their issues, businesses create favorable impressions in their minds. This increases their chance of getting positive reviews. A business that ignores its customers’ queries and concerns is less likely to get positive reviews and mostly get negative feedback.
- Acknowledge genuine reviews and use them to improve
Even the most successful businesses receive some negative reviews but they acknowledge the genuine ones and use them to improve their operations and services. The key is to remain humble and show sincere interest to add value to customers’ lives. When businesses do that, customers see their dedication and commitment and are more interested to support them.
Finally, it may be concluded
Online and social media reviews enable customers to share their experience with a business’s products or services and give social proof to prospective customers. For this reason, it is crucial to get more social media reviews. Taking the help of a professional social media marketing services provider can help businesses get more reviews.