I had the opportunity to sit in on a “Digital Drop-in” hosted by Sarah Benoit from JB Media Institute. The topic for the session was – How to Generate Customer Reviews to Grow Your Business.
This is a topic that resonates with any business owner – online or on the street. Her guest for the session was Jay Sofer, a locksmith from New York who has grown his business dramatically – into several other states, on the strength of customer reviews and a strong focus on listening to what his customers have to say. Now, you might be thinking – “my business is very different from a locksmith’s business” – and you are probably correct.
That being said, we all have – or would like to have more customer reviews for our businesses. Benoit and Sofer shared some great advice about asking for and managing customer reviews, that would apply to your business and mine.
Here are just a few of the highlights:
- Develop a process for requesting reviews. Keep it as personal as possible. “Thank you for being the best part of my company.” “We value your opinion – as much as we value your patronage.”
- Consider every touchpoint you have created for your customer – ask for reviews in more than one place.
- Make the process of providing a review as easy as possible
- Request quickly – while the service or product you provided is fresh in their mind.
- Respond to every review – positive or negative.
- Turn negative reviews into positive (whenever possible) by rectifying the situation and turning it into a positive experience for the customer.
- Look for trends in the reviews customers are leaving for your business. Use that information to make positive changes.
- NEVER pay for reviews.
- Create a list – and an account for every review site that applies to your business. Among others specific to your niche, your list should include:
This session is worth a listen. It’s about 50 minutes in length – be sure to take notes. Here’s the link to the recording: How to Generate Customer Reviews to Grow Your Business
