Reputation Matters

Request Google Reviews via Email

Use your email automation platform to fill in personalization fields, like your customer’s first name. This will make the email feel more familiar, and it will help to get your customer’s attention. This template uses a casual voice, so you may wish to make edits if your business is more professional. Don’t be afraid to use this email more than once, but make sure you don’t resend it to customers who have already left a review. In your email automation platform, you can automatically remove recipients who click your link.

Improve the Quality of Your Google Reviews

Some customers read many reviews; some read just a few. For many, it depends on what they’re looking for.

This makes the quality of the reviews just as critical—if not more important—than the number of reviews you have. When we say “quality,” we mean two things: The overall review rating (out of 5), and the information provided in the review. If you have several Google reviews but are not positive overall, here are some ways to improve them. If you have some Google reviews, but they’re very vague, here are some ways to improve the content.

How to Improve Your Google Star Rating

Before 2017, Google used a Bayesian average to calculate the overall star rating of businesses, which wasn’t wholly dependent on an individual business’s scores. Now, they use the approximate mean average of a business’s star reviews. This can make it difficult for businesses with only two reviews, and at least one is terrible.

Though you can’t delete a Google review just because it’s terrible, there are some things you can do to improve your overall score.

• Respond to reviews: Customers read review responses, and this is where you can tell your side of the story. Respond if you feel a complaint is unfair, but be courteous and unemotional. Remember that other prospective customers will read it!
• Fix the problem. If you acknowledge and fix a problem, the customer can change their review, and many do.
• Flag a review: If you believe a review is false or abusive, flag it, and respond. Though it’s difficult to prove whether or not a review is false, and Google does not often remove these, it does signal to other customers that the review should not be trusted.
• Get more reviews: Your overall star rating is average, so gaining 5-star reviews will improve your appearance on Google. Try requesting reviews via email, social media, and in-store or in-person.

How Can Customers Edit Their Google Reviews?

Customers can indeed edit their reviews. This is quite simple if you know where to look. If you’ve successfully changed an unhappy customer’s mind and they’ve agreed to change their bad review, give them these steps.

1. Go to Google Maps. You can search any location to get there.

2. Click the menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the upper left-hand corner.

3. Click “Your contributions.” Click “Reviews.”

4. Find the review in question, and click the three vertical dots near the business name.

5. Click “Edit review” and rewrite or change the review.

How to Improve the Content of Your Google Star

Rating Maybe your overall star rating is good, but your reviews don’t provide much helpful information. Remember that customers also use reviews to get a sense of your business, not just to see the quality. Short, non-descriptive reviews also raise red flags for prospective customers, since it’s difficult to tell if actual customers make these or not. If your reviews aren’t beneficial, here’s how to improve the content.

• Provide suggestions: when you ask customers for Google reviews, provide some suggestions of things a customer might say. You might suggest they talk about their most recent experience, favorite product, or a person they worked with.
• Provide examples: if you have positive, descriptive reviews for your business on other sites, use these as examples. You might include these in your review request email and your social post.
• Ask for specifics: When you request Google reviews from your customer, ask them to review a specific aspect of your business, such as your customer service, a new product, a new location, or something else.

Do’s and Don’ts of Google’s Review Guidelines

Google’s review policies outline what business owners can and can’t do to get more reviews. Make sure you understand what is and isn’t allowed before you start gathering reviews. Here are a few essential tips to keep in mind, but remember that this is not a comprehensive list, nor is it legal advice.

• Only use real reviews from real customers. Fake reviews of any sort are not allowed.

• Do not pay or offer other incentives to customers or anyone else for Google reviews.

• Do not gate reviews. Everyone, whether they are happy customers or not, should be able to submit a review if they choose. Do not discourage any customers from reviewing.

• Don’t review your business or ask your employees to do so.

• Flag reviews with explicit or abusive content.

Whether you are a new business gathering your first Google reviews, trying to improve your star rating, or wanting to stay competitive, you can use the Google Review Link Generator to get a direct link to your Google listing for review. Use your emails, social media messages, and other review requests carefully, and remember that you’ll probably have to make these requests more than once to get your customer’s attention.

And there you have it! You now have all the tools you’ll need to get more reviews. Use the Google Review Link Generator to send your customers straight to your listing, and start bringing in reviews.

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