Google Business Profile, also known as GBP and formerly known as GMB, is perhaps the internet’s most widely seen business listing and reviewing platform. Having a strong GBP presence can be essential for a business’s online reputation and can allow them to acquire more customers at a lower cost. As one might expect, the more quality reviews your business’s account has, the more your GBP account will work in your business’s favor.
In this article, we’ll review the benefits of Google Business Profile reviews, how to use them to shape your business strategy, and how to effectively solicit more reviews from customers.
Getting a Google Business Profile Account
If your business doesn’t already have a Google Business Profile account, create one immediately at this link, or you can contact us and we will help you. In most cases, Google will send a postcard to your business’s address within 5-7 days. The address of your business usually must be a commercial, not a residential address. This is because Google generally does not want to promote home-based businesses through the GBP platform. Businesses headquartered at co-working spaces are generally allowed but not spaces that are an address for rent.
Once you receive the postcard, you will either scan a QR code or enter a specific code to confirm your business’s physical address.
Google Business Profile, Local SEO, and Reputational Awareness
Google Business Profile’s primary benefit for businesses is local SEO. With all other factors held even, a business with a strong GBP account with many good reviews will lead to a business’s website ranking higher for relevant search terms. In addition, any good reviews your business receives can also be used as testimonials on your website.
Perhaps more importantly, a strong GBP account will rank highly on Google’s “Map Pack,” which shows searchers relevant businesses near their current location.
The “Map Pack” will show a logo or image (sometimes), the name of the business, the business’s overall rating and the number of reviews, and the business’s address. The “Map Pack” will sometimes display other business-specific information, such as the price of a restaurant, denominated in dollar signs, or the number of years a law firm has been in business.
Example: Google’s top “Local Pack” results for the query “pizza new york city”
In addition to helping local businesses, a strong GMB profile can also be highly beneficial for national businesses. For general searches, your business typically will not show up unless the searcher is in your business’s local area. However, when a potential customer searches for your business’s specific name, having a great GMB profile will typically increase your reputation in their eyes. Therefore, having great GMB reviews is still important for maintaining your company’s online reputation.
Google My Business Reviews Can Show You How To Improve Your Business
Google My Business reviews aren’t just good for promoting your business and attracting new customers. They can also teach you a lot about what your business is doing well and where it may need to improve. While a negative review may seem like the end of the world, if addressed properly, it can actually be turned into a positive, provided that you learn from it and take corrective action.
Negative reviews can generally be sorted into a few different categories, including:
- Issues with the product or service itself (i.e. quality, consistency, speed of delivery)
- Customer service problems (i.e. politeness, accessibility, effectiveness)
- Other issues (i.e. disgruntled employees, angry competitors)
If your company offers a variety of products or services, you can use negative reviews to understand the shortcomings of a certain product or service. As with any business issue, understanding the problem will allow you to take steps to improve it.
What to Do About Negative Google My Business Reviews
You should always attempt to respond to negative reviews and resolve the issue as quickly and competently as possible. Sometimes this means getting in contact with the customer to issue a personal apology over the phone or via email. In other situations, you may wish to refund the customer or offer them free or reduced-cost services in order to compensate them for their bad experience. Dealing constructively with a poor review can also limit negative word of mouth if a customer has had a poor experience dealing with your business.
It’s important to understand that you cannot directly delete reviews from your GMB profile. Therefore, if you believe that a negative review is fake, the best you can do is “flag it” as inappropriate. Google will decide what to do with the review. However, it’s not a good idea to flag negative reviews that are from (or likely from) real customers.
Google sees this as cheating the system and may penalize you by downranking or even suspending your GMB account. In this situation, the best you can do to raise your overall ranking is to solicit more positive reviews from satisfied customers.
Google My Business Reviews Can Increase Conversions and Click-Through Rates
If your Google My Business account has a substantial amount of positive reviews, it will significantly impact your company’s online reputation. In the end, this will likely lead to improved conversions and click-through rates, particularly if you rank highly in Google’s “Map Pack.”
A strong GMB account can also improve the effectiveness of paid advertising, as customers who are exposed to your business through a paid ad are more likely to convert if they search your business and like what they see.
How to Get More Google My Business Reviews
There are a variety of ways to generate more Google My Business reviews. If you deal with customers personally, you can ask them directly to review your business. If your employees mainly deal with customers, you can instruct them to ask for reviews.
You can also add copy on your website asking customers to review your business. Alternatively, you can ask for reviews via your weekly or monthly email newsletter, or through a specifically focused email blast. You could also offer a product discount, a $5 gift card, or participation in a raffle to further incentivize reviews.
For most types of businesses, Google My Business is currently the most important type of business listing and customer reviewing platform on the internet. However, this doesn’t mean you should ignore acquiring reviews on Yelp, Facebook, or other platforms. Having excellent reviews on multiple platforms can have a cumulative effect on your SEO. This can help you rank higher and improve your overall online reputation. That leads to more exposure, more leads, and more customers.
If you want to maximize results for your business, contact the marketing experts at Chriss David & Associates today. Our team of digital experts has decades of marketing and advertising experience. We specialize in helping both local and national businesses affordably acquire new customers with as little friction as possible. Call 561-358-1119 or email us today for a free, no-obligation consultation.
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