01/01/2016
Six Ways Google Reviews Help Small Businesses Attract Customers.
NOTE: Many small businesses have chosen to request Google reviews and many others have chosen to not request them which creates a marked difference between the two groups. This difference allows the following six factors to come into play and is why most small businesses are smart to be in the group with Google reviews.
1. Google REWARDS BUSINESSES with five or more Google reviews by displaying their "star" rating on the search results page (SERP) next to their name and phone number. This allows them to STAND OUT VISUALLY from those that don't and results in their showing 33% more information than their competitors that choose to not request Google reviews. More information means more value. (NOTE: Only Google reviews show on the SERP. Yelp, Bing or Yahoo Local reviews don't help until the someone deliberately goes looking for them.
2. Google reviews PROVIDE SOCIAL PROOF that a businesses is pleasing its customers and people want social proof when evaluating a businesses. Businesses that choose to not show social proof are saying they either don't understand social proof, don't have it or just don't care about it.
3. Businesses "with GOOGLE reviews" can APPEAR HIGHER IN SEARCH than those with "few or no reviews" and businesses with "good reviews" often appear higher in search rankings than those with "poor reviews".
4. Businesses that show Google reviews APPEAR TO BE HONEST, ENTHUSIASTIC AND TRANSPARENT about how they do business.
5. Businesses that show Google reviews are saying they VALUE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES and they ALLOW CUSTOMERS TO TELL THEIR STORIES. Those without reviews are saying something different.
6. Businesses with Google reviews APPEAR TO BE ACTIVELY LOOKING FOR CUSTOMERS while those with few or no Google reviews appear less active and maybe not as interested.
