Positive reviews make 73% of consumers trust a local business more. *
We all know that having an online presence is important for visibility and establishing the legitimacy of a business, whether it’s on social media or having a professional website. But there is another awesome way to leverage your online presence which is often not used enough by businesses…
…and that is by including good old reviews and testimonials in your content.
How many of those do you have on your website right now?
Do you actively ask clients to review you after a purchase or service?
Scattering testimonials throughout your website content is an easy and effective way to increase trust and engagement with your business.
Statistics show that 85% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. *
Testimonials play a HUGE part in influencing consumer buying decisions – so they are an important tool to use within your website content.
4 easy ways to make the most of your reviews:
- Do you have service pages? Include a testimonial relevant to that specific service on each service webpage. Featuring one within your content can increase the chances of conversion.
- Have a testimonial slider or section on your homepage.
- Use a case study along with a personal review from that client to showcase how you can help/your services to visitors.
- Include them in any marketing materials such as brochures and emails.
Implement ways to increase reviews:
If you aren’t already, start thinking of and implementing ways to actively increase your reviews from customers. This is a very important marketing strategy and worth spending a little time brainstorming how you can make it work within your business.
Here are a couple ideas to start you off…
- Send the relevant review link (Google or Facebook etc.) directly to your client after they have paid you for your service – if they were a happy customer of course! Make it super easy for them and say something like, ‘if you have a spare 2 minutes…’ to let them know how easy it actually is.
- Offer a discount or gift to anyone who reviews you.
Google, Facebook and Linkedin, each of these platforms let people review you, but you can be strategic in who you ask to review you where.
For example, have you worked with a commercial company or bigger client? Linkedin might be a great place to get them to add a review – then you can create more credibility and attract more of that kind of client – since that’s where they are more likely to hang out.
Next time you are writing some copy for your website, or even a blog, look at where you can strategically place reviews to increase your credibility and conversion rate.
Use reviews to build trust in your brand online and you’ll soon reap the rewards!
*2017 Consumer Review Survey on Bright Local