To boost visibility for business and amplify conversions from search traffic, Small and Medium Size Enterprises (SMEs) need frequent and genuine online reviews from their new as well as old patrons. Interestingly, SMEs have a more flexible business model, than established brands, which enable them to conveniently serve their customers’ personal needs. The primary challenge, however, SMEs have to tackle is generating sufficient number of reviews from their scanty customer base.

Be Smart… Digitally!
SMEs need to be pro-active in every way to scale-up their business reviews count. One such business-critical initiative for them is to get an impressive online digital profiling done for their venture. With Google being a dominating online search engine, it surely makes sense that SMEs should sincerely focus on getting reviews by developing a Google My Business page.

According to ReviewTrackers’ “2018 Online Reviews Survey”, nearly 63.6% of consumers check reviews on Google, more than any other review site, before visiting a business. This is another reason that SMEs should first-rate Google for gaining business reviews.

I have Six smart tools for SMEs, that can help them not just enhance their business reviews count, but also let them further improve their overall business potential:

1. Reach Out to Them… Straight!
SMEs can effectively engage with their patrons by directly asking to leave business reviews, rather speculating about any right or wrong. Moreover, asking customer’s feedback will not show-up like contradicting any of the Google’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), unless you are sincere to proficiently induce your shoppers for leaving a service-worthy positive review.

Apart from directly prompting for online feedbacks, another quietest yet straight way for generating customer’s reviews is to paste printouts on business’ walls. A printout, however, needs to have clear-cut instructions to persuade the offline shoppers for providing their comments online.

2. Reward Them… More!
Rewarding the consumers is another way that SMEs should look-in for generating genuine business reviews. Inducing shoppers with lucrative perks for leaving feedbacks is fine, as long as, you are not convincing them just for any positive review. The key is to keep your patrons involve as well as let them understand how critical their reviews are, for scaling-up the customer experience and winning new potentials.

Provide a definite reason to the shoppers for re-visiting your business more often. You may offer discount coupons for their future buys in exchange for their un-forced positive comments.

3. E-Mail them… Frequently!
Another best way to augment the count of business reviews is by regularly e-Mailing your existing and potential buyers. Always seek-out for shoppers’ experiences while using the offered services and encourage them to share a genuine review. Also, ask for customer’s feedback during an e-Mail marketing campaign.

SMEs can even integrate a Call-to-Action (CTA) feature in the e-Mail signatures with a link re-directing the readers to their Google My Review page. The sweet part of using a CTA – it can be standardized in all the e-Mails without letting customers feel any stress for writing a positive note.

4. Make Things Easy!
Always be crisp and clear while attempting candid comments – for any service or product – from your shoppers. SMEs should seek for shoppers’ reviews especially on the offering which they are sure can easily influence their existing and potential buyers.

There are numerous ways which SMEs can execute on their Google My Business page for seeking business reviews on a specific service feature or a product element.

5. Induce the Staff with Perks!
Instead of rewarding customers, SMEs can offer lucrative bonuses to their staff for generating more reviews from their patrons. This strategy works best for the SMEs, who are engaged in the services industry, like travel, hotel, restaurant, and others. The tactic reverses the whole process of collecting business reviews from shoppers. Moreover, SMEs need not worry about what incentive they’d offer to customers for their feedback, but clients have to think whether to deprive a small reward for the friendly staff.

6. Do Active Digital Marketing
SMEs should always pro-actively Tele-Call clients, for their feedbacks and even remind them timely through SMS or e-Mails, so they do not miss. Try indicating customers how critical their review is. They can also incorporate shorted URLs on your Google My Business pages, web-portals, as well as in your e-Mail signatures. You can even create an attacking CTA button for clients to click.

To Sum-Up
Essentially, SMEs have to rely on local search traffic for generating more business reviews. Whether positive or negative, customers’ reviews have become extremely important to influence the purchasing and business decisions modern-buyers make online every day.

Author's Bio: 

Pawan K Malhotra is a creative writer, who has written numerous articles, blogs, web content, research studies, and much more for diversified genres. He is passionate about creating revolutionary content yet making sense to his readers.

Pawan has been writing since he was just 15, that's when he grasped the fact about the power of his expressions through his creative words.

Pawan loves to make friends and his best one is his brain... he calls him brainey... techno music and learning anything new also interest him...

He is a commerce graduate. a certified Content Marketing by HubSpot, and a Certified Google Digital Unlocked.