One of the most important functions of online reviews is improving your business’s SEO. By continuously gathering and responding to reviews from your consumers, you can increase your ranking on search engine result pages (SERPs). The more you do this, the closer your business will be to getting to the first page of Google search. This means more people are able to find your business, at a much quicker rate.
An increase in SEO makes it easier to find new customers, something that can be difficult and often costly.
Google loves content that’s relevant and fresh, because it indicates people are regularly interacting with your business online. User-generated content, like online reviews, are trusted more by search engines as they’re authentic accounts posted by real consumers (as opposed to marketing copy posted by businesses).
Every time someone posts a review, Google takes note. For SMEs, utilising user-generated content as part of your SEO strategy is both a cost-effective, and a relatively easy way to increase your ranking and appear higher in search results.
Online reviews make use of rich snippets, which search engines give more weight to than normal snippets. A rich snippet is a snippet with more added information in it, such as an image, a star rating, and more.
They’re also more eye-catching for people searching for businesses like yours. As a result, they help to improve both your rankings and click-through rate. It’s a win-win, really.
One of the most effective means of evaluating a business before purchase is via a star rating. When an online review contains a star rating, it helps someone make a quick purchasing decision, compared to reviews that don’t. When you make use of a third-party review platform to display and manage your online reviews, Google displays your star rating in search results.
SearchEngineWatch advises that businesses “should have at least 30 unique reviews during the past year, with an average of 3.5 stars” (at the minimum) if you want Google to take notice.
Great reviews get people talking about your business. By starting a social conversation about your business, you increase your brand awareness and in turn, sales.
The more reviews there are, the more content search engines have to work with, resulting in higher search engine rankings. You can use online reviews in your social media strategy too, posting them on Facebook and Twitter, for example, to make sure their reach is as wide as possible.
Online reviews ultimately influence whether someone makes a purchase or not. When utilised properly, online reviews increase the visibility of your business, provide shoppers with social proof, and instil consumer confidence in your offering.
Great online reviews nudge people to visit your website, therefore increasing your SEO by way of increased traffic. It’s one of the more quick ways to get your SEO strategy in the bag.
Reviews on Hellopeter have helped over one million consumers make better choices. Had an experience you’d like to tell us about? Leave us a review here.
Hellopeter has come a long way from being just a complaints platform. Today, the ratio of negative to positive reviews…
Are you curious about how Hellopeter works or how to write a review? Well, we've got you covered with answers…
*THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED* Love is in the air, and we're spreading it far and wide with the Hellopeter…
Online shopping has made life so much easier, hasn't it? With just a few clicks, you can have almost anything…
*THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED* Black Friday is all about finding the best deals – and we’re here to make…
If you love filling that virtual basket when shopping online, put a figurative hand in the air. Whether it's the…