12 ways to get more value from your 5-star reviews
You’ve done the hard work securing some great customer reviews. Now what?
It’s tempting to think that you’ve done the hard work and now you can put your feet up, and let the sales roll in. Surely customers will see your 5 star rating on Google (or Facebook) and start buying right away??
Nope, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, getting a load of five star reviews is only half the job. Now you’ve got to make sure that the right people see them at the right time in their buying journey.
There is. That’s by turbocharging your great reviews into new customer conversations.
Turbo Charge Your Reviews
A turbocharger takes the energy from your car’s exhaust to compress more air into the engine’s combustion change, creating more power, and more exhaust…a positive feedback loop. Your reviews can do exactly the same thing for your business. Sharing these reviews from current customers with prospective ones at just the right time in the buying cycle boosts confidence and trust, and ultimately sales, leading to more sales and eventually more reviews.
The ultimate goal of marketing is to win the hearts and minds of consumers. Consumers trust the word of friends and families over advertisements any day of the week. If you get great reviews online, this word-of-mouth “free” marketing messaging is a gold mine.
“92% of people will trust a recommendation from a peer, and 70% of people will trust a recommendation from someone they don’t even know.”
Nielsen Research
Here are 12 easy ways to use great reviews to generate even more business.
Our Top 12 Ways to Use Great Reviews
Take those great reviews and repurpose them into winning the hearts and minds of your customers.
1. Display Reviews on Your Website
We all know how important it is to display testimonials on your website. Testimonials give potential customers confidence you’re the right company to do business with. Instead of only using testimonials on your website, use your great reviews.
Great reviews should be visible on every page of your website, not just one. Rather than muddy the marketing waters, choose one review for each page. That’s easy when visitors are going from one page to another; they don’t feel bombarded with a string of reviews that become intrusive.
By using a different testimonial or review on one page at a time, it’s a subtle reminder to visitors that you are a great company to do business with. One testimonial or review per page is better than many testimonials on one page. It’s the frequency of great reviews that dives deep into the consumer’s subconscious mind.
2. Use Reviews as a Market Research Exercise
Feedback and market research is how you make sure what you offer is what consumers want and need. It can cost a fortune to employ a market research company and for most small businesses conducting a survey is just another job on an endless to-do list. Reviews and testimonials are an easy effective way to ensure your product and service offerings are hitting the mark.
Think of reviews as feedback as they give you insight into what you are doing well and what may need to change. For instance, should you get constant poor reviews about a particular product or service, this indicates a problem. These insights are vital to keeping your product and service offering fresh and relevant.
3. Use Reviews as Case Studies
When you get great reviews, it means you’ve done something right. You’ve made a difference in someone’s life, personally, professionally, or in business. By taking a great review, you can turn this into a case study as social proof that you offer solutions that work.
Consumers love case studies. It’s because they can then see what problems your solutions resolve or what opportunities your solutions provide. A case study is simply an analysis of a problem or an opportunity and how your products and services offered the right solution for that customer.
Consider every review as a potential case study as a great way to showcase what you do well.
4. Use Reviews in Your Marketing Material
Never let great reviews pass without considering how to use them in all your marketing efforts. Add the review or testimonial in brochures, sales sheets, along with other marketing collateral. Anytime you give out a brochure or sales sheet, you are reaffirming to potential customers, your products or services helped others with the same problems or opportunities they are seeking.
5. Print Reviews on Your Business Cards
When you include one of your top reviews on your business cards, it makes a lasting impression. According to Social Media Today, 88% of consumers trust online reviews and regard them as personal recommendations. Reviews give your business card an extra level of credibility. That means instead of tossing the business card in the trash, consumers will keep the card as they will see it as having more value.
6. Attach Reviews to Your Pricing Packages
You want consumers to see the value in your product and service offerings, not just the price. When you attach reviews to your pricing packages, you are essentially building trust and confidence that your pricing structure means value for money.
8. Use Reviews To Drive Conversions
Anytime you send out an email or have a lead magnet download on your website, use reviews to help consumers take action. All your Call to Action (CTAs) should include a short review to help drive conversions. If someone is sitting on the fence and not sure if they want to push the button, a great review near the CTA is what might get them over the line.
Ensure that you use a testimonial or review that’s relevant to the product, services, or download you wish to promote.
7. Showcase Reviews on Your Blog
Every time you write a blog, consider if you have a great review hidden away that is aligned with your blog title and content. By incorporating reviews and testimonials or even a mini case study, builds your credibility. Reviews and testimonials weaved into a blog article give social proof you are a great company to do business with.
9. Highlight Reviews Via Video
As promotional videos are becoming increasingly popular, why not use this as another opportunity to showcase why people are happy with your products and service offerings. Live video reviews are more engaging and resonate with potential customers.
Consumers relate to people giving live testimonials on video more than just in print. That’s because consumers can relate to a real person as opposed to words on a page or website.
Like written reviews, be sure to scatter video testimonials throughout the website – not just on a single page. Avoid using more than one on each page to keep up consumer interest.
10. Include Reviews in Your Email Communication
Never let an opportunity showcase your business, especially when it comes to email communications. Choose a favorite customer review and add it to your email signature.
Change them up from time to time, especially when sending out emails to your subscriber list. This is a gentle reminder that you are the right company to keep on doing business with.
Ensure that the testimonial message is aligned with your mass communication objective.
Check out the Google Marketing Kit which will help you create social ready posts using your Google Reviews…
11. Share Them on Social Media
Remember any time when preparing social media posts, include the great reviews and testimonials you’ve received. This is just another way to boost credibility. In addition to looking at the number of followers or likes your page has, consumers will naturally look at your reviews. Make sure any reviews are readable and prominent.
12. Reviews are a Great Morale Booster
Positive reviews are great for morale. There’s nothing having your people acknowledge with fantastic reviews. It helps them to work harder at getting even better reviews by delivering exceptional service.
In Conclusion
Using great reviews as a marketing strategy is vital to the continued success of any business. When customers are looking to finalize a purchase decision, it is often a great review to persuade them to push the purchase button.
Managing your reviews forms part of an overarching reputation management strategy. At Rethink Marketing, we understand the power reviews have on bringing credibility to your business. We also know the damage poor reviews can have. Contact us today to find out how best to manage your online reputation and turn every great review into a new customer magnet.
