How To Get More Google Reviews

By now, most business owners are aware of the importance of a Google business listing and Google reviews. Three out of four internet searches are completed using Google search and the first thing that potential clients see is the number of reviews a business has and their star rating.

It only makes sense that you would want to have the highest number of reviews and the highest star rating possible. Having several 5-star reviews immediately tells those searching two things: your business is popular and your customers are satisfied. Having reviews can really help your business stand out.

Google reviews are important to not only clients who are interested in your services, but they also play an important role in your local SEO ranking.

I’m often surprised when I meet with business owners and learn that they only have a handful of reviews. Most are really great at what they do and you would think that their happy clients would want to help out by leaving a review. What’s going on?

The first question that I ask is whether or not they are asking their clients for a review. The answer is often “no”.

Asking your clients to leave you a review is the quickest and easiest way to get on the fast track to increasing your review count.

It goes without saying that you should ask only clients who you are certain are happy with your services to leave a review. If you have any doubt that they may leave anything less than a 5-star review, you should pass on the opportunity to ask.

Simply asking for a review is however not enough. When asking for a review, tell them that you will follow up with a direct link to your Google business page so that they can easily leave a review.

People are busy. You want to make the process of leaving a review as simple as possible. By providing a direct link to your review page, all they have to do is click on the link and start writing.

Before your client leaves, simply mentioned that you will be emailing them a link to your review page and you would appreciate a review.

How To Generate A Direct Link To Your Business Listing

Generating a direct link to your review page only takes a few seconds.

  1. Use this tool to look up the place ID of your business.
  2. Copy and paste the Place ID into the following formula:
    https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=EnterPlaceIDHere

For instance, the direct link to the business below would be:
https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=ChIJU8IrTpn0rIkR9MCiX5dqc-Q

The Place ID will be located underneath your business name

When To Send The Email Asking For A Review?

So when is the best time to send out the email with a link to your review page? The answer to this question depends on the industry that you are in. If you are selling a product, give your customer a few days to try it out so that they can form an opinion.

If you provided a service, you will want to send the email the same day or perhaps the next day after the service is rendered, this way, their experience will be fresh in their mind and they will be more willing and able to recall and share the details.

When you send an email, keep it short and to the point. Thank them for their business and tell how important reviews are to you. You should then offer a direct link to your review page.

If you don’t have their email address but do have their phone number, consider texting the review link to their phone. This works in some cases, but be sure to ask if it’s ok to text them before doing so.

How Many Time Should I Ask For A Review?

You are asking all of your clients for reviews but you are not receiving as many as expected. Should you continue to email your clients and ask for a review until they give you one?

Some marketers would say send out followup after followup email until they leave a review. Doing so will however irritate your clients and they may even leave you a bad review.

Instead, we suggest asking them for a review when you meet with them and then send out only one email with the review link. Any more may be excessive and you don’t want to come off as pushy.

Google does require that you sign into your account in order to leave a review. Some clients, for a number of reasons, may be reluctant to create a Google account just to leave a review. This is also something that you should keep in mind.

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