Third-party reviews provide indispensable insights from an unbiased perspective about your business. They help build trust with potential customers, potentially influencing their decision to buy your product or service.
In fact, nearly half (42%) of internet users in the U.S. say that reviews from other customers significantly increase their likelihood of purchasing a product.
When compared to first-party reviews, third-party reviews can often appear more credible. After all, a business is unlikely to showcase negative reviews on its own website.
Whether your goal is to convert searches into sales or improve your search ranking, focusing on improving your reviews’ search engine optimization (SEO) can help achieve both. Reviews are a significant local search ranking factor, accounting for 16% of the Local Pack ranking.
How can your business better highlight the sentiment found in your reviews to searchers looking for your product or service? And what are some proven strategies for surfacing this valuable content through SEO?
You’ll learn both in this post as we discuss five foolproof tactics to boost your SEO with third-party reviews and stand out among your competitors.
### 1. Improve Your Review Score
The GMB help guide states that local search results are “based primarily on relevance, distance, and prominence.” Prominence refers to how well-known a business is, which directly correlates to the number of reviews a business has and what customers think about it.
The help guide also mentions: “Google review count and review score factor into local search ranking. More reviews and positive ratings can improve your business’s local ranking.”
To improve your overall review score, start by asking customers who have had a positive experience with your business to leave a review. These customers are already motivated by their positive experiences and are more likely to leave favorable feedback, boosting your rating.
It’s also beneficial to respond to all of your reviews, both positive and negative. When reviewers see that you’ve taken the time to respond to their praise or complaints, they’re more likely to have a favorable view of your business, leading them to recommend it to family or friends.
It also allows you to control the narrative and incorporate your targeted keywords in your responses.
Your overall star rating can significantly impact your SEO as well as your sales. According to a recent study, 52% of consumers wouldn’t consider using a business with fewer than four stars and cite star rating as the most crucial review factor.
### 2. Factor in Review Velocity
Review velocity refers to how often your business receives new reviews. According to Moz, review quantity, review velocity, and review diversity account for 15% of Local Pack ranking. A regular flow of new reviews also provides fresh content for your business.
Along with its SEO value, consumers prefer recent reviews to learn about your business. Forty percent of consumers say they only look at reviews of local businesses written in the past two weeks. Additionally, 85% say reviews older than three months are no longer relevant.
Encourage happy customers to leave reviews often and make it part of your purchasing process to keep a steady stream of up-to-date reviews.
All these tactics can solicit new reviews and remain within Google’s review guidelines:
– Send your customers an email.
– Print a QR code on every sales receipt.
– Send a follow-up text after an appointment.
– Simply ask for a review during the transaction process.
### 3. Focus on the Volume of Your Reviews
Consider this scenario: you’re in a new city and looking for a restaurant for dinner. Would you choose a restaurant with 10 reviews or one with 100, both having a similar star rating? You’d likely pick the restaurant with more reviews, as it appears more credible. A solid review-gathering strategy can help bridge the gap of having too few reviews to encourage new business.
It can also help legitimize your business with search engines as well. The GMB help page states: “High-quality, positive reviews from your customers will improve your business’s visibility and increase the likelihood that a potential customer will visit your location.”
The best way to get customers to leave a review is to ask them to do so. If customers have opted into your email or text marketing campaigns, it’s ideal to ask them to leave a review as soon as possible while your business is top of mind.
For service-based businesses using online booking systems, after the customer completes their appointment, they should receive an automated message (text, email, etc.) asking for their honest feedback with a direct link to leave a Google review.
Brick-and-mortar stores may benefit from a QR code on receipts directing customers to leave a Google review.
While all review platforms encourage businesses to ask customers for reviews, it’s important not to violate any policies. For example, Google forbids “selectively soliciting positive reviews from customers.”
Additionally, Google prohibits:
– Reviews left by employees.
– Soliciting reviews in bulk.
– Paying customers for reviews.
– Discouraging or prohibiting negative reviews.
– Posting fake reviews for your business.
### 4. Respond to Positive and Negative Reviews
Responding to feedback not only shows consumers you care but also plays a role in SEO. Google shared, “Respond to reviews that users leave about your business… Responding to reviews shows that you value your customers and the feedback they leave about your business.”
Responding to every review may seem daunting for a business with many locations. A good workaround is to create corporate-approved templates based on your brand guidelines and voice.
Your business should also establish a process for escalating reviews that require more in-depth responses and assign a point person to respond quickly.
If your business is just starting with review response efforts, focus on responding to negative reviews first, especially recent ones. Recent reviews are more visible to searchers. Once you’ve addressed all negative feedback, move on to responding to positive reviews.
### 5. Consider the Content of Your Reviews
Google continuously evolves to meet searchers’ needs to provide accurate and timely results. To deliver top-tier results, Google relies on business information, some of which can be found in review content. Mentions of city names or street names in reviews send powerful signals to Google, improving your business’s relevance.
Additionally, a review with positive language from a local customer signals trustworthiness to Google. This applies to reviews left directly on your GMB listing and on other third-party platforms.
Reviews on third-party sites increase your exposure, drive traffic to your website, and add legitimacy to your business. While you can’t dictate what consumers write, you can ask them to mention the location where they did business in their review.
These mentions can help your brand achieve the authority that Google seeks in its search algorithm.
### Conclusion: Why Implement a Third-Party Reviews SEO Strategy?
Consumers’ expectations are constantly evolving, reflecting in their reviews. If your business keeps up with current trends and maintains a robust reputation management strategy, your path towards SEO success becomes clearer.
Following these tactics will help improve your third-party reviews SEO efforts, providing an exceptional experience for your customers.
