Imagine being in a foreign city and looking to grab a quick bite and a cup of coffee. Reviews impact SEO, and online reviews are the first thing people notice when searching for places to go on Google Maps.
Reviews are a key part of a business’s online reputation and visibility today. Whether you’re a local business or a global brand, customer feedback can impact your SEO.
So, let’s examine how good reviews affect your SEO, why they matter, how you can use them to boost your rankings, and why adding Hostopia’s Reviews Promoter to your value-added service stack can boost your customer’s business online presence.
- The Importance of Reviews for SEO Rankings: 11 Crucial Points
- Put User-Generated Content First
- How to Add Reviews to the Site
The Importance of Reviews for SEO Rankings: 11 Crucial Points
Reviews are part of your SEO, not just feedback from your services and products. Search engines like Google see reviews as a trust and quality signal.
Reviews impact your search rankings, click-through rates, and online visibility. Positive Google reviews, for example, bring in more customers, while negative reviews scare them off. Below, you’ll find many things to look for when it comes to asking and reviewing customer feedback.
1. How Search Engines Rank Content
Search engines use complicated algorithms to rank businesses—every company besides Google does, too. While the exact workings of these algorithms are a closely guarded secret, we know that a variety of factors are considered, including:
- Relevance: How well does your website match the search query?
- Authority: How trustworthy and reputable is your website?
- User experience: How easy can users navigate and find information on your website?
- Backlinks: How many other websites link to yours?
2. How People Search Online
It’s also interesting to focus on how people search online these days. Research shows that Google is still the preferred choice for searching for places online due to the popular Google Maps and Google Business Profile. Consider them as the most significant business directories currently available!
Hostopia, knowing just how people search online, has created OneList Plus to help our partners offer the best online directory management service to their customers.
To learn more about Hostopia or to schedule a demo of our digital services, please get in touch through our toll-free number: 1-800-322-9438
Or email us at learnmore@hostopia.com.
A Google Business listing can attract as much as 81% of the people using the search engine every day to find their next place to stop. Facebook holds second place at 45%, and Yelp comes third at 44%.
The complete list for this year looks like this:
- Google – 81%
- Facebook – 45%
- Yelp – 44%
- Tripadvisor – 21%
- Apple Maps – 16%
- Trustpilot – 10%
3. When Reviews Matter The Most?
Some businesses may struggle to get ahead of their competitors online. The reason is that most of the time their online presence might be the strongest, so their local Google reviews struggle to appear higher up the search ladder.
That’s precisely why online reputation management is essential to give these businesses a good SEO boost in their online presence.
A well-designed website communicates a business’s value proposition and engages visitors, increasing its online presence and credibility.
4. Do Reviews Help with SEO?
Yes, reviews do help with SEO. They add fresh user-generated content that search engines love. Positive reviews can get you higher rankings and more organic traffic.
They also increase the credibility and trust of your site, which are significant ranking factors.
5. Reviews and Local SEO
Good reviews benefit local SEO a lot. Local businesses with good reviews are more prevalent in local searches and Google Maps. This visibility is critical to attracting local customers and foot traffic.
Google reviews play an integral role in local SEO, and a single Google review can lead to multiple new leads coming to your location and choosing your store over your competitors.
Google Business Profiles with high ratings get prioritized in local searches, giving you an edge over the competition.
6. Where to Get Reviews
Getting reviews from multiple platforms, including third-party review sites, can diversify your review profile and enhance your SEO efforts. To encourage customers to leave reviews, you can offer incentives or simply ask for feedback after a purchase.
At Hostopia, we offer OneList Plus to our partners as a way to help their customers solicit reviews online. This service streamlines the process, ensuring you gather quality reviews that boost your SEO.
Schedule a demo or get in touch through our toll-free number: 1-800-322-9438
Or email us at learnmore@hostopia.com.
Other ways to get reviews:
- Google reviews while searching on Search
- Yelp, TripAdvisor, TrustPilot
- Your social media accounts
Plus, ask customers to leave reviews on multiple platforms for maximum visibility and SEO benefits, making the process as seamless and quick as possible.
7. How to Ask for Reviews
Asking for reviews can be done via a few clever methods:
- Email requests: Send follow-up emails to customers asking for reviews. You can send one right after their purchase and another one a few weeks later, assuming they have received their order (in case you’re selling physical goods). You can also include a link in your monthly newsletter.
- In-store requests: Ask customers to leave reviews during their visit or their checkout.
- Website prompts: Use pop-ups or banners on your website to ask for reviews.
Tip: Hostopia provides a service to its partners, allowing their customers to collect and display reviews on their websites and manage and showcase customer feedback.
8. How To Manage Google Reviews
Here are a few ways to help you manage your reviews online.
- Respond to all reviews (good and bad).
- Thank people for leaving positive reviews.
- Address bad reviews professionally.
- Check your Google My Business listing regularly.
Managing Google reviews will improve your online reputation and search rankings.
9. Benefits of Good Reviews
Good reviews will:
- Increase your search rankings.
- Increase your CTR (click-through rates).
- Bring in more customers.
- Improve your online reputation.
More good reviews will also get you into the Google Local Pack (aka the Google Μap pack or Snack pack), a prime spot in local search.
10. Are Negative Reviews Really Bad?
Bad reviews should be handled professionally if you receive some. But this doesn’t mean that bad reviews cannot lead to positive ones down the road.
Responding to reviews professionally and calmly will show others that you take each piece of feedback seriously and are working toward improving your image with every opportunity.
Here’s why negative reviews aren’t inherently bad:
- Acknowledge the customer.
- Apologise for the inconvenience.
- Offer a solution or compensation if applicable.
- Encourage the customer to contact you directly to sort it out.
Handling bad reviews well will turn a dissatisfied customer into a loyal one and show potential customers you value feedback and are committed to change.
11. Dealing With Fake Reviews
Fake reviews will damage your SEO and online reputation. Search engines are getting better at detecting fake reviews and will penalize your website if they think you’re being dishonest.
You need to encourage genuine reviews and not use fake feedback for your business. However, fake reviews can also be posted for malicious purposes to hurt your reputation, SEO ranking, and, ultimately, your search ranking.
Remember to stay vigilant, as fake reviews can sometimes go undetected by Google and other search engines. Be sure to carefully review them before making any decisions.
Put User-Generated Content First
User-generated content like reviews is loved by search engines. It’s fresh and relevant content and will get backlinks from other sites. Depending on your industry, you must encourage user-generated content, and you’ll boost your SEO efforts.
Some of the biggest companies, such as GoPro and Apple, use user-generated content to power their marketing machines. Their devices, in users’ hands, can become marketing material—and more precisely, video marketing material.
Encouraging Customer Testimonials
Customer testimonials are another form of valuable feedback. They can be featured on your website, in marketing materials, and on social media. Testimonials add credibility and trust, encouraging more potential customers to choose your business.
Online Reviews and Click-Through Rates
Positive reviews make your business look more attractive in search results. Higher CTR tells search engines your site is relevant and valuable and can boost your rankings.
Star Ratings and SEO
Star ratings are shown in search results and can impact your SEO. High star ratings get more clicks and convey trust and quality to the customer. Go for high star ratings consistently to boost your search rankings.
How to Add Reviews to the Site
The process is easy for most businesses. Depending on the website builder or platform of choice, a business needs the following:
- Collect reviews from online directories like the business’ Google Business Profile
- Find a nice spot to add reviews. It might be a product page or the site’s homepage
- Embed Google reviews onto the website
- Use this content in the marketing strategy and on social media
Conclusion
In the digital marketing world, reviews are a powerful tool for improving your SEO and online presence. Positive reviews will get you higher search rankings, local SEO and more potential customers.
By managing and asking for reviews, you can build your online reputation and beat the competition. Check out our FAQ section below.
And remember, for more information about partnering with Hostopia or to schedule a demo of our digital services, please get in touch through our toll-free number: 1-800-322-9438
Or email us at learnmore@hostopia.com.
FAQs
Do reviews help in SEO?
Yes, reviews give you fresh content and increase user engagement and backlinks, all of which are SEO factors.
How do reviews impact local SEO?
Positive reviews will get you more visibility in local search results and Google Maps, resulting in more local customers.
How do you ask customers to leave a review?
Ask via email, in-store, or website prompts. Give a great customer experience, and you’ll get more positive reviews.
What to do about negative reviews?
Respond quickly and professionally. Acknowledge the feedback, apologize for the issue, and offer a solution to fix the problem.
Are fake reviews bad? Yes, fake reviews can harm your SEO and online reputation. Search engines can penalize your website for dishonesty.
How do star ratings impact SEO? High star ratings get more clicks, convey trust and quality, and boost your search rankings.
