4 Major Benefits of A Google Business Profile

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4 Major Benefits of A Google Business Profile

How to get Google reviews and manage your Google Business Profile

Have you ever found yourself on vacation standing on a street corner searching for a restaurant to eat at using Google Maps? If you have, you already know the value of all those helpful reviews and the star ratings.  

Before social networks and online maps, we used to reach out to friends and family for recommendations. With the emergence of online social networks and interactive maps, we have shifted our relationships online and regularly consult with our networks about trends, products, or social discussions. 

This is what we call social proof. When people shop for goods or services, they look for reviews, recommendations, and ways others have used a product or service before making their decision.

Nowadays, 93% of customers read online reviews before buying a product or service. Furthermore, about 63.6% of consumers read Google reviews before visiting a business. Google reviews are the number one search engine for reviews.

 

In this blog,  we’ll be talking about the benefits of having reviews on your Google Business Profile, how to get them, and what to do if you get a bad review.

What are Google Business Profile Reviews?

A Google Business Profile is Google’s name for a business listing within Google Search results. It may appear on a browser like Chrome as the knowledge panel or within local results (map). You would see these on the local results (map) or within the Google Maps app on mobile. You can think of it as the modern yellow pages for those of a certain age.  

Your business will typically appear in search results based on the search words used by the customer, whether they are searching for your business name or a product or service you offer. The listing includes information such as the name of your business, location, phone number, website, hours, photos, reviews, and some offer ordering information as well.  

Creating and/or claiming your business’ Google Business Profile helps with your overall Search Engine Optimization (SEO) efforts by improving your web presence, local search and ranking for keywords related to your products and services. 

Reviews on Google are made up of two parts:

  • An overall business rating out of 5 stars (which is an average of all of your individual reviews)
  • A user can submit a written review and a rating (out of 5 stars) as well as text and photos to accompany it

*Reminder: Technically, anyone can write a review about your business. A user only needs to log in to their Google account to be able to write a review. We will get into how people can write a false review or slander your business later in the blog.

Users can see your business’ overall rating directly below your business name and how many reviews you have.

Further down the profile is the reviews section, which shows individual user reviews (star rating plus text). There is also a button to submit a review there. 

 

 

Now, let’s get into the benefits of having reviews on your Google Business Profile:

1.Improve Local Search Engine Optimization

SEO is an essential digital marketing strategy (check out our SEO services if you need help!) SEO helps your website appear higher in search engine results (as well as local map results). Therefore it’s more likely people will see your business and visit your website. 

Businesses that receive frequent and high rating (5 stars) reviews are more likely to appear in search results. High ratings indicate the trust of a brand, and Google uses this as a determining factor for the ranking. When businesses achieve a spot in the local map pack (where reviews are a ranking factor), they can expect a substantial increase in their CTR (Click Through Rate) and website traffic from local users.

 

2. Increase Trust In Your Business

Reviews made by clients about your business and products/services are helpful for potential customers when they are honest and objective. Users, both clients and potential customers, actually find a mix of good and bad reviews more trustworthy. 

To increase trust in your business, take the time to respond to any reviews to show you care about the experience customers have with your business. If they leave a negative review, you can always provide additional context and resolutions. Keep reading to find out how to respond to negative reviews. 

3. Attract More Customers

When consumers click through from your Google Business Profile to your website, you get them one step closer to converting them into buyers. If you have positive reviews and users are going to your website, they like what they saw and read in the reviews. 

Humans are somehow pre-programmed to be influenced by and copy, the actions of others. This is why reviews are so critical and could get you more clients. People will follow other people, and the more reviews you have, the more people will trust you. 

When your customers take and post photos as part of their reviews, it usually means  they are happy with your product. You get to see your products from their perspective and how they are using or consuming them.   Pictures are also another kind of social proof, allowing others to  see the details of your products or services accompanying their reviews. This is a powerful tool to convert leads to clients. 

Another aspect of Google reviews depends on your product or service; you may want to consider adding specific google reviews with customer quotes to your website. This is a form of social proof and acknowledgement of customer reviews.

4. Can Give You Customer Insights

You can gain valuable customer insights and feedback by reading your Google reviews. Good or bad, reviews deliver honest, unfiltered feedback. This information can help you improve your business and your products or services. 

Google reviews can also help you understand what products or services are more popular to create strategies to sell more. Reviews will also help you learn about what consumers don’t like. 

Negative reviews can help you understand where you need to improve and what you need to fix, including staff. Good and bad feedback about your employees and their customer experience will help you gain insights and help you focus on what needs attention. Although it is hard to receive negative feedback, knowing is better than not knowing.  Information is power, use it to your advantage. 

Frequently asked questions about Google Reviews

1.How to Get Google Reviews?

We know Google reviews are a powerful tool for most businesses and also deliver many benefits to owners and customers. However, many people don’t know how to get Google reviews. First, you need to know that your customers need to go to your Google My Business page and click on “Write a review,” as we showed in the “What are Google Business Profile Reviews?” section above. 

For people to write reviews for your business, you will need to convince them to do it. Here are some tips to help you: 

  • Ask for Google reviews every time you complete a job or sale with a client. 
  • Ask for Google reviews when you send a bill. 
  • Create a video tutorial to show your clients how to make a Google review. You can record your screen by using any screen recorder software, there are many on the internet, and you can use your microphone to voice over what you are doing during the video. Then you can post this video on your website and on social media. 
  • In your content for social media or blogs, you can also remind them to leave a review on Google. 
  • Include google review links on surveys. Add a card when you ship a product leading them to your reviews.  
  • Create email campaigns for current customers to ask for Google reviews. 

2. How To Answer Bad Reviews?

At some point, most businesses will receive a negative review. Let’s face it; we are all different and complex people with likes and dislikes. Not everyone will be a raving fan of your business. Preparing for negative reviews will help you handle them with ease and not let them become a crisis. As they say, don’t focus on the negative. 

It is better to know customers have had a bad experience versus not sharing with you. 

Here are some tips on how to respond to bad reviews:

  • Respond quickly. Bad reviews can become big problems if you don’t solve them fast. 
  • Write a professional and polite answer. 
  • If you made a mistake, be honest and apologize. People appreciate honesty. In this case, also offer a solution promptly. 
  • Don’t take responsibility for things that weren’t your fault but show compassion for the customer. 
  • Offer to talk about the situation by phone or email.

3. Where to Find your Link for Google Business Reviews?

You can share a link with customers or other people to get more Google reviews. 

  1. Log in with the account you used to sign up for your Business Profile.
  2. Search on Google for your exact business name. You can also search for “my business.”
  3. Select Customers  Reviews Get more reviews.
  4. Share the link with your customers directly or use the sharing options provided.

 

4. How to have a bad review removed from your Google Business Profile?

You can ask Google to remove some reviews of your Google Business profile by reporting this review. According to their policy, Google will always analyze the review and choose to delete it or not. 

Conclusion

Google reviews can improve your website traffic, improve your SEO rankings and drive more qualified traffic and leads to your business. Moreover, you can gain valuable customer insights by reading your reviews. Use this knowledge to improve your products and services and develop a stronger relationship with your clients.

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