FREE “How to Respond to Negative Reviews” Checklist Included!
Simply hoping that your customers will leave a review after doing business with you isn’t enough.
If you haven’t already heard by now, online reviews are just as important to businesses as things such as quality products and a great website. Without any of these things, your business probably won’t survive in the internet-era we live in.
Gone are the days where the only way for people to find out about a new business was by word of mouth – they can now simply pick up their smartphone and type in a quick search. That is why you need to not only focus on gathering online reviews but make them a real priority in your business.
You cannot simply hope that your customers will leave a review because of your great service – you must ask them to do so.
In fact, more consumers are more likely to write a review without any prompting if they have a negative experience than a positive one – but that is why we have you covered with our checklist on how to respond to negative reviews in just a few steps!
How can you earn reviews from customers besides purely trusting that they will leave one for you, unprompted? Here are three ways of asking that you can implement in your business right now.
1. Verbally ask
This is the simplest way to start gathering online reviews!
Whenever you are interacting with a customer, whether it be during the service, after the purchase, or anywhere in between – ask them if they wouldn’t mind leaving a review on one (or a few) of the review sites where you are trying to build your online reputation. You can even print out business cards, magnets, signs, or something with visual cues to help the customer remember.
This can be on the phone with a current customer, when they are in your office, or if you are servicing their need somewhere else. The added personalization of verbally asking someone helps them realize how important it is to you, and may prompt them to go ahead and leave you a review right away.
Below is an example of a verbal ask that you can say to a customer after their appointment is finished.
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“Mr./Ms. [Name], is there anything else I can do for you? If not, I’d really appreciate it if you could leave a review on any of the review sites listed here [hand business card, magnet, point to sign, etc.]. We are always striving to do our best and it is feedback from people like you that help us improve and also help others find out about us. I appreciate it!” |
2. Leave “the ask” in your email signature
I know – you are busy at your job, and even if you are making receiving online reviews a priority, there are times that you are bound to forget to ask.
Leaving a quick blurb about asking customers to leave you an online review with a link to different review sites is a passive, but easy way to ensure you are always “asking” them to leave you a review. It’s as easy as that!
Here are a few ideas to add to your signature line right away:
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Have feedback for us? We’d love to hear it! We are always looking to improve. Please leave us a review on any of the sites below. |
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Please help us to keep delivering the best customer service possible! Leave a review on any of the review sites below. |
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Have any tips, comments, or helpful suggestions? Let us hear them! Please leave us a review on any of the following sites: [Insert Links to Your Page on Review Sites] |
3. Send an email with “the ask” in a follow-up email
Another way to gather reviews is by asking current or new customers to leave you a review soon after they have an appointment or speak to you.
This is something that you can do manually, or schedule to set up within an aggregate review platform.
If you have time to send these emails out yourself, here is an email template you can use for clients who have recently finished a service or appointment with your business.
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Subject Line: Will you review [Business Name] online? Hi [First Name], I’m reaching out today to get your feedback on [Business Name]. We are working on gathering reviews and feedback from our users to hear what you like & also help us improve from real customer opinions. Leaving a review will help us improve your user experience and will help your peers make better decisions when looking for [service or product that you provide]. Write a review of [Business Name] on any of the below sites>> We appreciate your honest feedback. If you have any questions about the review process, please let us know. Just reply to this email and we’ll be happy to help. As always, thank you for being a valued customer. Sincerely, |
Get started on your online review strategy right now! And remember – if you happen to get a few bad reviews along the way, make sure to download our “How to Respond to Negative Reviews” Checklist!
Be sure to check out our new CS Reviews platform. Speak to a CallSource representative today if you need help with your online reputation.
