insidelocal - reviews & reputation management for local businesses - presentation

Sept 25th 2013

‘Reviews & Reputation Management for Local Businesses’

‘Reviews & Reputation Management’

Agenda:Evidence & ammunition for reviews

Google+ strategies & advice

Strategies for getting more reviews

Best tools for managing reviews

House keeping…

Presentations and Q&A

Webinar is being recorded

Recording available on Monday

No webcam view (boo…)

Slidedeck uploaded to slideshare.net

Follow up email with all details

Speakers

Don CampbellExpand2web.com

Phil RozekLocalvisibilitysystem.

com

Hosts

Myles AndersonBrightLocal.com

Linda BuquetLocalsearchforum.com

Section 1

The power of reviews



2 sides to every review…

Ranking power of reviews is falling

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 20130

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Ranking Factor #

Source: Local Search Ranking Factors 2013

Lower # = More important the Factor

But ranking is only ½ the story

JAN-FEB 20132,100 CONSUMERS17 QUESTIONSALL ABOUT REVIEWS

LOCAL CONSUMER REVIEW SURVEY 2013

Do you read online customer reviews to determine whether a local business is a good business?

Yes regularly Yes , occasionally No0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

2011 2012 2013

Source: Local Consumer Review Survey 2013

85%OF CONSUMERS READ ONLINE REVIEWS TO DETERMINE IF A LOCAL BUSINESS IS GOOD

How many online reviews do you read before you can form an opinion about a business?

0 1 2-3 4-6 7-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51+0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

2011 2012 2013


77%CONSUMERS READ LESS THAN 6 REVIEWS BEFORE THEY FORM AN OPINION

% of consumers reading more than 7 reviews before they form an opinion about a business

Series10%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

2011 2012 2013

44%

35%

22%


How do online customer reviews affect your opinion of a local business?

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

2011 2012 2013


73%OF CONSUMERS SAY POSITIVE ONLINE REVIEWS MAKE THEM TRUST A BUSINESS MORE

How do online customer reviews influence your decision to use a local business?

0%

20%

40%

60%

2011 2012 2013


65%OF CONSUMERS SAY POSITIVE ONLINE REVIEWS MAKE THEM LIKELY TO USE A BUSINESS

Do you trust online customer reviews as much as personal recommendations?

Yes, i

f there

are m

ultiple cu

stomer

review

s to re

ad

Yes, i

f I beli

eve t

he rev

iews a

re au

thentic

Yes, f

or some t

ypes

of busin

ess, n

o for o

thers No0%

10%

20%

30%

2011 2012 2013


79%OF CONSUMERS TRUST ONLINE REVIEWS AS MUCH AS PERSONAL RECOMMENDATIONS

Full Survey ResultsWWW.BRIGHTLOCAL.COM/?P=7539

Section 2

Understanding Google Online Reviews


Don Campbell

Google Reviews

Getting In The Carousel

Google is important… but not everything

Common Questions About Google Reviews

Where did my reviews go?

How do I get my reviews back?

What should I tell my clients?

How do I get more reviews?

What should I do about negative reviews?

Understand Google’s Review Guidelines

Understand Google’s Review Guidelines

It’s great reading… really!

Avoid The Google Review FilterIt can’t see you if…

Avoid The Google Review Filter…

Avoid getting lots of reviews at once– Think “natural review profile”

Don’t use review stations

Don’t post similar reviews on other sites

Don’t put URLs in the reviews

Don’t review yourself

Don’t offer incentives for leaving reviews

DON’T BUY REVIEWS!

Avoid The Google Review Filter…

Phil’s Checklist:http://goo.gl/KWvAvS

How To Get Missing Reviews Back!

Is the listing claimed in multiple accounts?

Move them (if you’ve moved recently)

Report it: https://support.google.com/places/

What Should I Do About Negative Reviews?

What Should I Do About Negative Reviews?

Identify them before they happen!

Provide a Business Response– But what if I can’t respond!?

Flag if inappropriate

Showcase your customer focus!

How Negative Reviews Can Help Your Business

They create trust and credibility

They provide you feedback

They can improve your SEO

They are a golden opportunity!

Read Matt McGee’s Article:http://goo.gl/nVdhHf

Responding to Reviews

Take Google’s Advice:

• Be nice• Don’t get personal• Feedback is helpful• Keep it short and sweet• Thank your reviewers• Be a friend, not a

salesperson

More: http://goo.gl/RtmxXb

How To Get More Reviews Published

Be proactive and ASK for reviews– Implement a process, train your staff

– Make it easy for your customers

– Be the kind of business people want to refer


Be proactive and ASK for reviews– Implement a process, train your staff

– Make it easy for your customers

– Be the kind of business people want to refer

Read this book!

Resources

What to tell your clients– http://goo.gl/XsZd6o

Checklist for keeping out of the filter– http://goo.gl/KWvAvS

Google Review Guidelines– http://goo.gl/fcTKrr

Five Ways Negative Reviews Are Good For Business– http://goo.gl/nVdhHf

Complete Guide To Google+ Reviews– http://goo.gl/0fRcHx


64% of business owners say they get over half their business from referrals

Referrals

64% of business owners say they get over half their business from referrals

80% of businesses have no system for referrals!

Customer Interaction Touch-Points

Thank You!

http://www.expand2web.com

http://www.getfivestars.com

@doncampbell

[email protected]

Section 3

Less Resistance, More Reviews


Phil RozekLocalVisibilitySystem.com

Your Goal:LOTS OF REVIEWS ON MULTIPLE SITES- AKA DIVERSITY.

Why Diversity Wins at Reviews

Reason 1: Helps you cultivate

other visibility / customer sourcesLittle trickles add up.

Your competitors ignore them.

Can’t forget branded searches…


Reason 2: Seems to help your Google+

Local rankingsThat’s been my experience with clients.

Quantity & diversity of 3rd-party reviews are

“Competititve” factors #12 and #18 on the 2013

Local Search Ranking Factors study.

It also just stands to reason.


Reason 3: Keep eggs in more than

one basketGoogle is unpredictable.

Yelp is predictably draconian.

Easier Said Than DoneYOU NEED TO DEAL WITH3 TYPES OF RESISTANCE.

3 Forms of Resistance

Resistance 1: Review SitesFilters (Google+, Yelp).

Bad design (Google+, CitySearch).


Resistance 2: CustomersSome aren’t computer-savvy

Many are lazy

All are busy and distracted


Resistance 3: YouMight be daunted / confused.

Might have had bad experiences.

Definitely pressed for time.

It’s so easy not to bother.

How to get reviews?TAKE THE PATH(S) OF LEAST RESISTANCE.

Avoiding Resistance – and Getting Reviews

From Review SitesDon’t ask people who don’t use Yelp to

review you on Yelp.

Don’t ask people who don’t like Google

Plus to review you on Google Plus.


From CustomersDon’t make them think. Offer guidance.

Don’t make them remember. Remind.

Encourage them to use sites they like.

Say which ones accept Facebook login.


Good review sites – and which ones accept other logins Yelp

Google+

InsiderPages

CitySearch

Yahoo

YellowPages

Angie’s List

Industry-specific: Avvo, HealthGrades, TripAdvisor…


From YouAim low.

Don’t put it off. Make it a routine to ask.

Ask casually, as a favor to you. No

pitching!

Give yourself time. Lots of time.

Thanks!Phil Rozek | @PhilRozek | LocalVisibilitySystem.com

Section 4

Review tools



Overview of Review tools

Work out what you want!Get more reviews online

Drive offline customers to leave reviews

Track reviews & get alerts

Track social mentions

Vendasta

Enterprise reputation trackingComprehensive feature setReviews, social, sentiment analysisDesigned for resellers (into SMBs)

x Complex & very involved productx Expensive product

$60-$300 per month

ReviewPush

Simple & focused solutionGood single & multi-location featuresDaily email alertsReview request tool/page

x Manual set-up – lag time to reportsx Basic report visualization x Just tracks reviews – not social

$29/month

ReviewTrackers

Monitors 50+ general sites & key verticalsReview request engineSingle location & multi location reportsAgency option - white-label dashboardFree Trial for 1 location

x Just tracks reviews – not social

$27/month

ReviewsInc

Monitors over 150 review sitesCollects & publishes reviewsFeed of reviews onto your siteWhite-label platform - reseller options

x Has a set-up fee - $99-$199x Just tracks reviews – not social

$49/month

Grade.us

Simple & focused solutionFocused on getting more reviewsReview request page & funnelWhite-label landing pagesFree option (basic)

x Review monitoring costs extra ($10mo)x Just tracks reviews – not social

$19 or $59/month

ReviewBiz(from BrightLocal)

Badge for your websiteDirects customers to profilesQuick & easy set-upWhite-label badges

Bundled with package

ReviewFlow(from BrightLocal)

Simple, clean solutionTracks main review sitesEmail alertsPulls in review contentClean, simple chartsWhite-label reports

$5/month

Launches O

ct 2013

Get5Stars $29.95/month

Service Main Feature Cost/month Free Trial

Review tracking $5 Yes

Get more reviews $29.95 Yes


Get more reviews $19 or 59 Yes (basic)

Review tracking $49 No

Track Reputation $60 No


InsideLocal: upcoming webinars

Google+ Local Advanced Troubleshooting– October/November – date tbc– Linda Buquet + 2 more

Optimization for Service Area businesses– November – date tbc

Mobile marketing for Local Businesses– December – date tbc

Local Ranking Factors Debate – Panel Event– December – date tbc

Keep track here…

www.brightlocal.com/insidelocal

www.localsearchforum.com/insidelocal-webinars

That’s all folks!