No one’s going to argue that online customer reviews are essential for any business – whether you are selling a product or providing services. It is given that consumers trust their families, friends, and even strangers when it comes to feedback and recommendations for particular products and services.

Word of mouth is undefeated when it comes to product reviews. Once your business received terrible and negative reviews online, it will hugely affect the reputation of your brand. Consumers use the internet before anything else, especially before buying a particular product.

Because of technology, many consumers these days are becoming wiser compared to before. They search for what other people say for a particular brand and sees if that product or service is worth their money and time.

Customer Reviews and Search Engine

The digital world is so broad, and information can grasp so quickly. There are some applications and websites that are fully dedicated to giving reviews for brands that can be searched for on the internet.

These applications enable consumers to scan the barcode on their camera and will generate feedback immediately. They use this because they want to know what other people are saying about your company or brand.

Moreover, reviews are not only good for the customers; it is also suitable for your brand’s overall online reputation and presence. Online reviews are drastically affecting every brand and company today, and leave a massive impact in search engine result. Customer reviews can positively and negatively impact your search engine placement in the local listings.

In fact, there are reports which can serve as a piece of evidence that customer reviews can boost your website’s click-through rate. This is utilized to enhance your geographic listing, which is why local customer reviews often increase a local search placement.

So if you want to add customer reviews as your marketing strategy, be sure to hire a digital marketing agency or SEO agency partner like Rise Marketing SEO Company Hong Kong to manage your online presence and establish a good reputation in the digital world.

Steps to Get Customer Reviews

First things first, ensure that you have a profile on the following review websites:

• Google+ Local
• Foursquare
• Merchant Circle
• Yelp
• Yahoo! Local Listings
• Angie’s List

Once you’ve created and completed your business profile, the next move you’re going to do is to create a strategy on how to establish a customer relationship. Creating a good customer and business relationship, making them feel that you really care for them as your consumer.

Here are the following ideas that you can place on your profile:

• Ask Them to Leave a Review: Probably, you’ll be shocked that there are still customers who are not aware of how valuable a review can be. Create a well-detailed instruction on your page on how will a customer leaves you a feedback
• Establish a Review Station: If you have extra space in your physical store, you can set-up a laptop or station where your customers can submit a review every time they visited you. However, be aware that some review sites can penalize a business by using the same IP address
• Respond to Reviews: This is an essential part of a business owner to grow your business. Replying to your customer’s reviews, whether it’s good or bad feedback is a wow factor for every business. Meaning, you’re responsible and professional that you acknowledge their feedback.

Remember, a brand or a company that stands out in the mind of people will always acquire customer’s loyalty. Thus, giving you more enormous profit in return.