A review system is great for both the business who operates it and the customers. You will get feedback about how your products and your business as a whole. Prospective customers get an insight into how the business operates thanks to the reviews of those who have already been. However, you should make sure that you are making use of the review system to the fullest advantage. Responding to the best reviews can help to build your brand in a way you have not yet considered. Let’s take a look at how to respond to positive reviews, and why you should also do so.
Start with Their Name
Responding to a customer through a positive review is a great way to start building a personal connection through the review. You should always start the response with a quick greeting followed by the customer’s name as given by the review plugin. If you recognise their story in the review, you now have a name to place to the face. Remember it for the next time they stop by the business; it could be a great way to further the relationship you are building.
Thank Them for the Review
The next step in constructing a response is to thank them for their review. Try not to make each reply just a copy and paste response as that can not look genuine. Replying to each review will help to build the authenticity of your company and make it seem like you care about each customer. Nothing will kill those intentions like a generic response. It might be more of a task to respond to each reviewer differently but it will be worth it in the long run.
This is also a great opportunity for you to also put in a little SEO work by including your company name and location in the reviews. Try to enter it as naturally as possible so you can reap the benefits through your SEO without looking to robotic from the point of view of the reviewer.
Repeat Their Positives
You ideally want your reply to be a continuation of what they said. Were they enthusiastic about your service and products? You need to make sure that you are just as enthusiastic in your response. Pick out the key elements which they mentioned; be that a member of staff they enjoyed or a service or product they picked up. This is also the perfect time to include a few more keywords from your SEO here. The more you can enter naturally, the better you will be able to use these responses in your SEO.
Add a Little Extra
They have taken the time to leave a review so you should thank them with a little tip. It could be something as simple as a heads up about an upcoming promotion or an invitation to join your loyalty program if you have one. Try to tailor it as close to the customer’s experience as possible. This will again help you build a reputation as an authentic brand who cares about their customers closely.
Close with More Thanks and a Cheery Sign-off
You have already thanked them once and take this second opportunity as a chance to really hammer home how grateful you are. These reviews are supposed to help humanise the brand, especially in an online review where there is nothing but words on a screen. The more you can make it appear that there is a genuine human replying who is grateful for this review, the better. Generic responses are not going to be able to do this for you.
End the response as you would end a message to a friend; warm, positive, and inviting them to return. This formula will always help you to construct the best response to your positive reviews!
Why You Should Take the Time to Do This
If you still think that the review plugin is simply for customers, you are missing out on some massive opportunities. By placing keywords in your responses, you are going to be able to make your website more visible to search engines such as Google. There are so many different review points you can take advantage of. From popular sites to Yelp and TripAdvisor to your own review space on your website, these are all places where you could boost your visibility through responses.
These types of responses are especially important if you have a local business. You will be wanting to drive traffic in through the door. One of the best ways to do this is through online praise. By demonstrating that you are a warm business online, you will be able to help people decide that they want to pay you a visit in real life. Make sure you spend adequate time on each review. If it is just a few lines, you can put together a short response based on the guidelines we have listed above. However, if they have taken the time to leave a long review detailing many aspects of your business, you should make sure that you spend time responding to them properly. The more effort you can put into these longer responses, the better your overall impression will be.
Take a Fresh Look at Your Reviews Today
There is never a bad time to jump in and take a look at your reviews. If you already have some recent ones to answer, you should definitely schedule in some time to sit down and reply to them. It can be just a small everyday task to make sure that you keep on top of the incoming reviews and there are so many benefits that can come from it. Not only can you boost your visibility to search engines through the use of keywords in the responses but you can also improve your reputation in your local community. If you want to work towards improving your business’ standing in the local community, your reviews can be a simple and effective way to do so. Revaluate how you handle your positive reviews and start responding to them now!