I was planning a recent business trip and, like I always do, I checked the reviews of the hotels where I was considering staying. It was second nature, as much a part of making my decision as checking a hotel’s availability, pricing, amenities, etc. I do this for virtually any new service or product I’m considering buying. I bet you do, too. And according to a recent survey, 92% of consumers (e.g., your customers) now read online reviews. It is becoming increasingly critical that you have an on-purpose review strategy. It’s too important to leave to chance, which unfortunately many dealers do.

There are three things to consider when it comes to managing your online review strategy:

  • Aggregate star ratings
  • Recency of reviews
  • The diversity of review sites

Aggregate Star Ratings

That simply means the average number of stars your business receives on a particular review site (like Yelp, Google, etc.). For example, let’s say that on Google your company has ten 5-star reviews and ten 4-star reviews. That would give you an aggregate star rating of 4.5 stars. Google any business that has reviews, and you’ll see their aggregate rating listed on the sites where they’ve been reviewed.

That means that every time you have a thrilled customer, you should ask them to review your business. This is beneficial because lots of positive reviews help you get more customers. They also help eliminate the effects of negative reviews by keeping your aggregate star rating high. Occasional negative reviews are not necessarily bad for your business as long as your overall reviews are positive.

A good review management strategy will involve asking happy customers to leave a review for you.

Recency of Reviews

According to a 2016 Bright Local survey, 73% of consumers think that reviews older than three months are no longer relevant. That is another reason why it’s important to ask for reviews on a continuous basis.

New reviews are also important for SEO. Google’s search algorithms favor recent reviews, so gathering reviews on an ongoing basis will help prospects find you online. Also, a steady stream of reviews (2 or 3 a month) is better than fifty in one week. In fact, you can get penalized for acquiring too many all at once. An excellent review management strategy will produce a steady stream of positive reviews, month in and month out.

The diversity of Review Sites

Most businesses focus on gathering reviews on Google, Yelp and Facebook. However, industry-specific sites can also be valuable. Having listings and reviews on Angie’s List, HomeAdvisor and Houzz make you more visible to your target audience.

A word of caution: be careful when investing money into marketing on industry-specific sites. Many dealers have found that they tend to attract price-shoppers. If you choose to spend money on these sites, make sure you have a good filtering mechanism in place to quickly weed out price-shoppers.

For example, if your listings are generating phone calls from prospects asking for price, don’t give them one over the phone. Instead say, “Mrs. Jones, I’d love to help you with that. At Jimbo’s floors, we don’t do estimates. We give you a written, guaranteed, no surprise quote. Let me ask you some questions that will help me do that.” Your questions should lead prospects on a logical step-by-step process to an appointment for an in-home visit, or a meeting at your store.

Take a similar approach with walk-ins. If after doing this the prospect refuses to talk to you or insists on simply getting a price, you’re likely dealing with someone who will waste your time and then buy elsewhere once she finds out you’re not the cheapest. Proceed with caution.

By having an on-purpose plan to manage reviews, you can create a stellar online reputation and get a big competitive advantage over the majority of dealers who have no review strategy.

 

To Tons Of Customers!
Jim Augustus Armstrong is The “Coach”

Jim Augustus Armstrong is the President of Flooring Success Systems, a program that equips dealers to double their profits, cut their work hours in half and beat the boxes! Many dealers have totally transformed their businesses and their lives for the better after joining Flooring Success Systems.
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