While the economic impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic is far-reaching, hope is not lost. By pivoting your strategy and communicating openly, you can protect your brand’s presence online and continue to thrive. Now is the time to pay closer attention to your business listings, not only on Google, but on Yelp, Facebook, and other online review sites as well. Listed below are four things business owners should know to weather the storm and help improve […]
The new year brings a new opportunity to polish your brand’s online reputation. Follow these best practices to maintain a solid standing on all major review sites and build brand trust. Respond to Customer Reviews An effective way to build strong rapport with your customers is to respond to online reviews. If you receive a negative review and respond within one day, that reviewer is 33% more likely to update or remove their review. […]
It’s the spookiest time of the year and yet the scariest thing to a business owner doesn’t come in the form of witches, goblins and ghosts. What they fear most is a drop in their profits at the end of the fiscal year. In the spirit of Halloween, we’ve listed the most common ways businesses can scare away potential customers. Avoid these 6 business boo-boos to make sure your customers feel treated— not tricked— when […]
At the very basic level, most business owners get the idea that their online reviews and overall star rating have a strong influence over potential customers. However, even the savviest business owner may not realize that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Yelp Tips, Google Questions and Photos are alternative ways consumers can share their experiences without the business owner ever even noticing. Let’s take a look at the unique features accessible to […]
Review Generation vs Online Reputation Management: Discover the Difference and Learn the Playbook that will Protect Your Brand Over the past decade, businesses of all sizes have become more and more aware of the real impact online customer reviews can have on their overall brand, and ultimately their bottom line. A recent study showed that 86% of consumers read reviews for local businesses before making a purchase. The power of word-of-mouth is greater than […]
It’s no secret— negative online reviews can hurt your business and tarnish your brand identity. Research shows that 86% of consumers read reviews for local businesses before making a purchase. Reputation management has become a necessity for business owners in order to grow, let alone survive in a competitive market. The real secret is that the negative reviews that contain fake or illegitimate content actually have a higher percentage of being removed from your online […]
Word of Mouth is a powerful thing— it’s what gets you to buy a ticket to that summer blockbuster, or into that new Italian Restaurant with the meatballs that will change your life. The more you hear about that movie, or those world famous meatballs, the greater the likelihood that you’ll actually get up off the couch and out into the world to find out what all the buzz is about. Such is the purchasing […]
“If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say nothing at all.” If only we can instill those wise words from the film Bambi into the minds of the masses of people on the internet. Unfortunately, the real world is not a Disney cartoon, and no business is safe from public criticism online. According to a survey conducted by BrightLocal, 85% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. On the bright side, people […]
What to do about negative reviews— it’s the ugly side of running a business, but one that can’t be ignored. A decrease in your overall rating on business review sites like Yelp or Google Maps becomes a drop in your overall revenue. The new year brings a new opportunity to polish your online reputation. Make it your resolution to have a better star rating by the end of the year, and if you’re already happy […]
Back in April, Google’s Review Policy update surprised business owners and marketing companies alike. Google included a new line item, “Don’t discourage or prohibit negative reviews or selectively solicit positive reviews from customers”. Also known as Review Gating, Google no longer allows businesses to only direct customers with a positive experience to leave a review while directing customers who had a negative experience to an in-house survey or review site. So what do you do? […]