According to a survey conducted by Zendesk, bad customer service can make people change their buying habits, and it directly influences people’s perception of the company involved. More importantly, if people are unhappy with a particular company or service, they will likely share their disappointment on social media or through a review site.
Not all online reviews are authentic though. Fake reviews abound, but even if fake, they can still lower your ranking on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). A negative review can also damage your image and adversely affect company earnings. Nevertheless, if you handle negative reviews correctly, you can turn them to work in your favor and make them a positive factor rather than a negative one.
Google Reviews and Locksmith Companies
The Google reviews management system is an excellent way of identifying the reliability and credibility of a given locksmith company. Remember that some reviews can be fake, but generally, you can still use them to improve your locksmith services.
Unfortunately, some people pose as locksmiths or claim to represent a locksmith company and then use their Google accounts to offer a low price estimate for a particular service. The unsuspecting customer needing the service will agree to use a specific locksmith; once the job has started, they find the price has increased significantly due to “unforeseen complications.” One recourse for the disgruntled customer is to submit a negative review and try to help others avoid becoming victims of such unscrupulous practices.
Categories of an Online Review
The following review categories can explain why reviews are important:
1. Quality of Review
This is considered the most important review category. Google My Business Map Packs usually rank business listings organically. For any locksmith company, the goal is to get a 5 star average rating, however a 3.5 rating or above is acceptable. If your locksmith business gets a rating below 3.5 this can cause potential customers to avoid your business and negatively affect your revenue flow.
2. Quantity of Review
The quantity of reviews influences your sites ranking on SERPs. A locksmith brand that has only two or three reviews won’t have the same ranking power as a locksmith site that has hundreds of reviews. While it may seem like a good idea to have a friend or a family member post reviews for your locksmith shop, this will only produce a short-term boost and will not sustain your Google Map Listing status over the long term. For reviews to have a long-term sustainable impact, they have to be regularly submitted from individual sources over an extended period.
3. Relevance of Review
Review content is also important because it signals the Google search engine. Google evaluates the keywords/content based on relevancy and authenticity. In other words, Google focuses on the quality of content rather than the quantity. Reviews must contain relevant, quality keywords rather than being deliberately stuffed with keywords meant to manipulate the system.
How Negative Reviews Can Be Good News
Negative product reviews can sometimes be good. When appropriately handled, a negative review can positively impact your locksmith brand, overall sales, and search engine result page (SERP) visibility. Consider the following:
1. Negative reviews prove that you have an authentic SEO strategy.
Google search engine optimization rankings are influenced by reviews and ratings, both good and bad. Bad reviews serve as a balancing mechanism for the positive ones that may be fake.
When you receive too many good reviews, it can cause you to become lax in implementing your SEO strategy. A negative review can actually be made to work for you. Firstly, it gives you a chance to respond and show search engines that your site is active. Secondly, it gives you a chance to show that your business is proactive and concerned about providing quality service for customers.
2. Negative reviews can become the foundation of trust and loyalty.
Negative product reviews should be taken as a sign of authenticity on the part of the reviewers. It is important that you respond to them with honesty and sympathy, ensuring that this gets posted publicly. This should give potential and existing customers the feeling that you care and that you are ready to work with them in resolving issues.
Google’s guidelines state that “when you reply to reviews, post your reply publicly and link it to your company.” Google may not immediately display your replies, but the concerned reviewers will receive a notification that you have replied and are acting proactively.
3. Negative reviews are opportunities to improve business operations.
Negative reviews are a sign that your locksmith company needs to improve. This is particularly important in today’s highly competitive world, where one bad review may adversely affect thousands of people’s opinions of your business. That said, a negative review can also bring your attention to an issue that you might otherwise not have seen. Ideally, a negative review should be seen as an opportunity to identify areas of weakness and strive toward delivering better customer service.
4. They are opportunities to connect with customers.
All reviews, both negative and positive, should be responded to as quickly as possible. This will help customers trust you, especially when you offer a sincere apology for the inconvenience that your company has caused them.
Recognizing customer experience is key to driving sales. Getting negative product reviews means that your customers are reaching out to you so you can make the needed changes and improve business performance.
5. They can inspire you to take reviews seriously.
Receiving a bad review can be a source of disappointment, especially when you see that this has affected your online business image. Yet, you can turn this into a source of motivation and invest in various online reputation management tools. You can then use the reputation management tools to handle all future reviews.
Key Takeaway
It would be best always to appreciate the importance of customer reviews and star ratings. They are one of the easiest and fastest ways of establishing your reputation as a trusted locksmith brand.
It is important that you keep track of all your reviews and to actively aim to get more of them. There are various tools that can help you do this and help you determine if you’re locksmiths business has a good image or not. However, if you want a more hands-on approach, several reliable marketing companies are experts in managing business reputation online. Indeed, availing of their services can yield significant results.
Let Advanced Digital Locksmith Group help you develop a solid digital reputation as a locksmith expert.
Your locksmith business has to have a good reputation if you intend for it to grow and gain new clients. Customer reviews are helpful in this regard, but you need to manage them well, especially the negative ones.
Advanced Digital Locksmith Group (ADLG) has a team of experts that focuses on locksmith advertising. When you partner with ADLG, all your reviews and other company details are examined to see how they can be used to effectively promote your business. Call us today, and let’s discuss how ADLG can help maximize your online presence and generate new customers for your locksmith business.
