Most people now know what business reviews are, right? A business review is a voluntary assessment or evaluation of a business which usually consists of a score and a comment by the consumer to justify or support their score.
In the comment, the reviewers share their experiences dealing with the business related to the quality and delivery of the products and services offered as well as the company’s customer service.
Business reviews are now very important for both the consumers and business owners regardless of the industry they belong to!
Why are business reviews important?
1. Reviews create trust and credibility
Business reviews have become an important source of information for 91% of internet users worldwide who intend to purchase products or services and 84% trust them as much as what people they know say.
That’s why reviews are essential to a potential customer’s decision-making process. Customers trust reviews because they know that they were freely written by people who have actually used the product or service to share their experiences and not to convince the readers to buy like what advertisements intend to achieve.
Most potential customers of local businesses read online reviews. They want to know from complete strangers the good and bad experiences they had with the products and services offered by the local business.
Generally, buyers would stay away from products with more negative than positive reviews. However, studies show that even products with negative reviews sell more than a product without any review at all. Consumers know what to expect if they choose to buy a product with negative reviews but buying a product without any reviews may result to problems they could not handle.
So, if your business has no reviews, what will convince or influence the potential customer to trust your claims or ads and choose your company over your competitors?
2. Reviews connect business and its clients or customers
Reviews connect businesses and consumers. It’s reassuring for customers to know that they can get in touch with people who can act on their concerns about a product or service they spent their hard-earned money on.
A review is also a way for businesses to learn of any concerns that consumers have about their products and services. Providing a satisfactory solution to their problem would most likely earn the business a loyal customer. The readers of the business owner’s responses will also have a more favorable impression of the business.
This interaction between business and their
customers can help develop customer loyalty that will sustain long-term business
revenues.
3. Reviews improve SEO.
Improving SEO means better chances for a business website to be ranked high in the highly competitive search results pages. It means that people searching for your products and services will find you first before the lower-ranked websites.
Reviews improve SEO by making the business website more relevant and by increasing its CTR or click-through rate.
The more reviews a business has, the more often it is mentioned together with the relevant keywords used by customers to search for the product or services it offers. This improves the relevance of the business web page which is a ranking factor of the search engines.
Positive reviews increase the CTR because the reader is most likely to click the link to your business website.
4. Reviews help increase sales.
Reviews help businesses increase sales by bringing customers to the business website. This is true even for local businesses since it has become the habit of internet users to search online before making any purchase or visiting certain places. Positive business reviews in review sites would help lead interested readers to your business website.
According to studies by Fan and Fuel and Zendesk, 97% and 88% respectively of shoppers say that reviews influence their buying decisions.
5. Reviews help businesses improve their products and services.
Customer feedback through reviews can help businesses determine how they can improve the products and services they offer. The business gains a better understanding of what the customers expect.
Negative reviews also
give businesses the opportunity to quickly and satisfactorily respond to their
customers’ complaints. A satisfactory
response is the best way to show that the company cares for its customers.
Responding to positive reviews is one way to develop loyal customers.
6. Reviews are like free advertisements
Reviews
by satisfied customers are like free advertisements of the product or services
your business offers. In fact, according to Adweek, 76% of consumers are
more likely to believe in business reviews than traditional advertisements.
Traditional advertisements may create awareness of your business but positive
business reviews create both awareness and trust. Getting positive reviews is
like getting free marketing from your customers.
Today, business reviews are the most credible and influential social proof of the positive qualities of your product and services.
Even job seekers are looking at reviews of the companies they are considering to join.
Summary
Today’s buyers want to make sure that the products or services they are about to purchase are indeed suitable for their needs and preferences. They try to avoid mistakes by relying on business reviews.
