Every business says, “We’re a word-of-mouth business.” And from their view, it’s true! Most of the people who come through the door say they got a recommendation from a neighbor or family member.
While small to mid-sized businesses may get a lot of leads through word of mouth, it’s a misunderstanding to say it’s all that matters. To see why, we have to go back.
In the beginning, getting a good reputation was simple. Do great work, and word will get around. Then advertising made things tougher. You had to collect testimonials and advertise how good they are. As things moved online, those testimonials got prominent placement on websites. Then, everyone had to rush to get Angie’s Super Service Awards prominently displayed on their sites.
But, like most other things, Google has taken over. Google’s stranglehold over the search market gives them an advantage over the Guild Qualities and Angie’s Lists of the world. Google can guarantee its reviews get the best placement on the web, and that makes everyone else’s reviews a lot less visible and thus valuable.
With your Google reviews placed on a search results page up to three times, it’s vital to ensure that they’re good ones. You can’t guarantee that anyone will see your Yelp reviews or Angie’s List reviews, but they will see your Google reviews.
Because of this, most businesses don’t understand the invisible piece of their sales process: the sales they miss.
- Maybe your SEO is great, and you show up on the first page for all your major keywords. If your result displays a poor review, you’ll lose sales.
- Maybe your noninternet advertising is spectacular. The people who see your commercials and then Google you because of those commercials will find reviews under 4 stars (or too few reviews) and give up.
- Maybe you have great relationships with prospects. When they tell their partners, spouses or anyone else you don’t have a relationship with about you, what do they do? They Google you, and the first thing they see is your Google reviews.
That’s why when a client tells us they’re a “word of mouth” business, we start them on a Google review management program immediately.
To learn more about our review management system, click here. Or contact us for a free consultation!