Customer reviews are essential to your online reputation. Having several positive feedback from clients will boost your name, gaining the trust of new customers. Nowadays, people will read reviews before buying a product or hiring a service. If they see negative reviews, they tend to stay away from the company. Also, it’s not enough that you get positive reviews and then stop working on getting more when you earn a few. You need to continuously gain these reviews since many customers only see reviews made within the last couple of weeks to be relevant.
Below are some tips on how to improve your review management system, which will also ultimately make your online reputation better.
Create an account on review sites
There are several review sites where clients can leave their reviews about your company. People looking to hire your service or purchase your product go to these sites to read what others have to say about you. Claim your account on these sites so that you can manage them. You can use these pages to give more information about your company, provide your contact details, and upload pictures or videos that you want customers to see. Plus, you can respond to the reviews on the said sites.
Use software for review management system
It won’t be easy to keep track of all the reviews on various sites and manage them in general. There are applications designed for managing your review system to make the process more convenient and effective. Look around for the best software that will match your needs. However, most of these programs offer the following features:
- Generate reviews from different sites and put them on one screen
- Request customers for reviews and make follow-ups
- Respond to customer reviews
- Generate and analyze report
Ask reviews from happy clients
You need to continuously work on gaining more positive reviews to minimize the effect of the negative ones. If you have more excellent feedback than the bad, customers will still choose you since they will see the negative reviews as isolated cases, or they may come from clients who are in a bad mood. Plus, as mentioned, many clients consider recent reviews to be relevant. The older the feedback gets, the less relevant it becomes. Request for reviews right away from clients whom you know were happy with your products or services. Make it easy for them to leave a review on your site.
Respond to reviews professionally
You will get your fair share of both positive and negative reviews. While you may want to respond to nasty comments harshly, it will do you more harm. Others will see you as unprofessional, which will turn them off. On the other hand, not responding at all is also not recommended. Those who left the review may feel that you don’t care about their concerns. Instead, be calm and respond with humility and empathy. Show them that you are there to listen and do your best to solve their issues. It may even turn the tables, and they will end up giving you a better rating. Other customers will also have a good impression if you deal with these reviews professionally.
Display positive reviews
Make it easy for your potential clients to see the good reviews that you received. Create a testimonial page on your site where they can go to read feedback from your clients. You may also show some on your homepage, so visitors will see them right away as soon as they land on your site. Share them on your social media accounts too.
Improving the management of your review strategy will help you gain more positive reviews, thus also improving your online reputation.