Google Reviews – Five FAQs
Google reviews are the word-of-mouth referrals of the digital age. They build trust in your business and influence others to become patrons. If you haven’t already done so, it is very important to have a Business Profile on Google. If you haven’t set it up yourself, chances are someone else has, and there could be reviews that you don’t know about. Get the info you need to verify your profile from Google.
How do I know a review has been posted?
In your Google Business Profile, you can go to “manage your notifications” and select the options you want to be notified of. For example, you can have an email sent to you when a review is posted.
Should I respond to every review?
You don’t have to respond to every review, and certainly not to someone who has just posted 4 or 5 stars without comment. However, you should respond to a lot of them. Responding to new customer reviews, for example, shows your appreciation for their business and builds loyalty. A friendly, “Thanks Sarah. It was great to meet you!” or something similar will suffice.
Responding to accolades directed at specific staff can also be helpful in getting more info out about them. Like, “Shaun has 10 years of experience and always manages to figure out the problem. Glad he was able to help you.” And you should almost always respond to a negative review.
How should I respond to a positive review?
Consider how you can respond with a purpose. That is, showing you care, building loyalty, giving more information about your business, products, or services, etc. Keep it friendly, brief, and relevant. Some examples:
- “Thanks Tina. I just ordered more of that hot pink colour you love!”
- “Thank you, Tom. We understand that emergencies happen, and always do our best to fit people in.”
- “Thank you for this Ron. It’s always nice to hear great things about our staff.”
You should also sign off with at least your first name or initials, to make it more personal, but do remember that you are speaking for the business or owner, and your response is published publicly.
What should I do about negative reviews?
Well, first, don’t panic. Take a minute to think through what is actually being said. Then, start gathering information. If that’s going to take more than a day or two, respond with a message that shows you care and will take care of it. For example, “Oh my! I’m so sorry that the widget was discoloured. Please call us and we’ll make it right.” When they call offer a replacement or refund. Make them a happy customer and ask them to update their review. Then you can figure out what went wrong, and also update your response if appropriate, “We went through all of our inventory and found several other discoloured widgets. We have switched to a new supplier so this never happens again.”
If the negativity is directed at staff or overall experience, you should also do some investigating. When were they there? Who did they deal with? What can staff tell you about what happened? The purpose of responding is to let them and everyone else who sees the review know that you are concerned and dealing with the issue. “Thank you for letting me know. I’m speaking with staff and will get back to you via email,” or “I’m so sorry about your experience! Please call me so I make this right.”
The other purpose of the call is for you to get more information if you need it. If it’s a case of a Karen who complains about everything, simply apologize and leave it at that.
What should I do if I think a review is fake?
If you suspect a negative review is fake or doesn’t meet Google’s standards you can ask for it to be removed. See what you can do to prove that the customer is fake; i.e., no appointment in the last three months under that name, no payments in that name, etc. Google’s process is here.