When you are ready to buy something, I’ll bet you look at the reviews.
I do 100% of the time now.
And by now all of us have made a decision based upon these reviews, only to find we were in error.
Where do you start when looking at the reviews?
As for me, I start with the 1-star reviews. Looking there exposes the downside of what I am considering very quickly.
Then I look at the 5-Star for a perspective.
Combining the two ratings gives me a fair picture of the +/- of the product.
But in many cases, Google has already done the hard work for me with the 3-star rating.
As a reader of these emails, you undoubtedly know how important Google Reviews are for a business. Especially, a huge number of 5-star reviews.
Lots of 5-star reviews is an incredibly powerful marketing statement.
But what about as a management tool?
The most helpful reviews we can receive are the 3-star reviews. Those reveal opportunities to improve our business.
It is also true that 3-star reviews are not particularly helpful to our marketing efforts, even though we can learn a lot from them as they expose both our strengths and weaknesses.
Despite the rating, Google Reviews are very public and how we manage them is as important as the actual rating.
The solution, and perhaps the most important thing about a Google review, is to respond to them and let the contributor, and in turn the public, know that you appreciate the rating and are addressing the problem and/or are very appreciative of the feedback.
Following this plan presents your business as responsive to its customers, regardless of the actual rating.
People understand, respect, and trust a responsive organization.
Remember, trust is the basis of a buying decision on the part of your prospect.
Remember, you only get results when you take immediate action on your ideas.
