How To Increase Your Google Review Count Beyond Your Wildest Dreams

Imagine if your Google Review number shot past the market leader’s. It’d change your whole life!

Suddenly, you’d have a stream of customers, wanting to hand over money like there’s no tomorrow.

But how do you get into this enviable position?

That’s the topic of this post. We explore various strategies you can use to improve your brand’s online performance and get ahead of the competition.

Learning these tactics matters because of the importance of Google Reviews for businesses (and on other platforms). Companies with high ratings are more likely to attract customers searching for services. Social proof is a powerful tool.

Furthermore, there may also be an SEO benefit. Google sometimes improves the ranking of highly-rated local businesses as part of its Experience-Expertise-Authoritativeness-Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T) scheme. Brands that have already proved their worth to previous customers are more likely to satisfy new users (improving Google’s recommendations).

So what can you do to increase Google Reviews? Here are some top tactics:

Encourage Customers to Leave Reviews (But Don’t Pressure Them)

Getting more Google Reviews starts with being proactive. Asking customers and clients to review directly is an excellent way to get more testimonials. (It won’t happen automatically unless you are on sites like Amazon and eBay).

However, you should always time your request carefully. Don’t ask for a review during a purchase (or before it!)

How long you should wait depends on the time required to consume your products/services. For example, you could ask for reviews immediately after:

• Restaurant meals
• Skydiving experiences
• Massages
• Teeth cleanings
• Ecommerce product delivery

Other times, you will need to wait longer. For example, you could wait two weeks before asking a customer to review a laptop or a series of driving lessons.

When ready to approach customers, ensure you craft the perfect review request message. Spend some time putting a text together that communicates with customers in a relatable way. Yes, it’s a pain. But once you have effective review request content, you can send it to your customers forever.

Alternatively, you could copy and paste our suggestion below:

Dear [Customer],

Thank you for recently purchasing from us. A [Company Name], we’re constantly striving to provide the best possible customer experience, and your feedback helps us a lot.

If you’ve enjoyed your experience with us recently, we would greatly appreciate you leaving a Google Review. When you post, you help us reach more customers and improve the quality of our services.

To leave a review on Google, please click the following link.

[Link]

Thanks for shopping with us. If there’s anything else we can help with, let us know.

[Your Name]

Incentivize Reviews (Without Violating Policies)

At the same time, you want to incentivize reviews. People won’t always leave them without a nudge in the right direction.

There are several ways to do this but avoid violating Google’s review policies. If the search engine detects foul play, it could punish you by lowering your domain ranking or blacklisting you.

The following are some legitimate strategies you can use to incentivize reviews and include:

• Discounts – Customers get money off their next purchase if they agree to leave you a review.
• Giveaways – Freebies that complement your products
• Loyalty points – Incentives encouraging customers to return in the future.

Some brands run contests to get customers to leave reviews. Instead of offering specific incentives, they enter shoppers into a prize draw. This approach eliminates the idea you are “bribing” clients in exchange for reviews and makes it more fun. (Prizes in prize draws are often more compelling than conventional perks).

Lastly, some businesses turn the review creation process into user-generated content (UGC) contests. These encourage consumers to make their testimonials more engaging while generating a higher volume of reviews.

Just be careful when incentivizing reviews. Don’t violate Google’s policies. For example, don’t offer goodies in exchange for a positive review. Any reviews must be an honest reflection of the customer’s experience.

Respond to Reviews

You should also respond to reviews, whether positive or negative. If you receive a positive review, say something to inspire the reviewer. Thank them for taking the time and, if you worked with them on something, say how much you enjoyed it.

Leverage Positive Reviews in Marketing

You can also increase your Google reviews by sharing them across platforms and your website when marketing. Some customers will submit testimonials if there’s a chance you’ll include them in your public outreach.

You could also create case studies from detailed reviews. These would go into depth about how you helped clients and the results of working with you. Again, some shoppers might find the idea of you discussing working with them on your website attractive, encouraging them to post feedback.

Deal with Negative Reviews

Lastly, you can increase the number of reviews (and customers) on your books by dealing with negative reviews properly. Getting this right can improve outcomes more than only receiving positive feedback.

If you get a negative review, don’t react emotionally. Instead, craft a response that addresses the situation. Best practices include:

• Responding quickly to negative reviews (Google will tell you if you received a review via email)
• Take responsibility for the issue if there was an oversight on your behalf
• Acknowledge the customer’s experience by being empathetic
• Remain calm and avoid lashing out
• Tell the reviewer you’d like to talk to them further about their experience over the phone and see what you can do about it

Sometimes, you can turn a negative review into a positive one. Such turnarounds are more challenging, but they often have a bigger payoff.

The best approach is to offer a solution upfront. Solving the customer’s problem quickly can build trust in your company and encourage repeat business. For example, you could:

• Give them their money back
• Upgrade them to a superior service for free
• Deliver something missing
• Provide a replacement at no charge
• Improve on an existing piece of work

Once you do, follow up and politely ask for an updated review. Sometimes you can turn one star into five!