Do Google reviews help SEO? They do—assuming those reviews are good ones! If they aren’t, custom reviews can bring down your rankings.
Google takes into account the number of likes, shares, and positive comments when ranking your website, especially those on your Google My Business profile. While these aren’t the only, or even the biggest, factors when it comes to SEO ranking, every little bit makes a difference. Here’s what you need to know about Google reviews and SEO.
Most Reviews Don’t Just Happen
Some customers will automatically head to Google, Yelp, and other sites to review your business once they receive their product or service. However, most won’t even think to do so without prompting.
How can you get more customers to review your business? Offer incentives for them to leave a comment about their experience with your company. For example, if they write a post on their social media channels about working with you, give them 10% off their next order.
Encourage customers who are considering doing business with you to ask questions on your Google My Business profile before making an investment in your product or service and respond promptly and thoroughly to inquiries.
Your Responses Matter
Does responding to reviews help SEO? Yes, Google has officially confirmed that it does. So, you need to keep an eye on your Google My Business profile in particular and respond to each review you receive—positive or negative.
Many businesses make the mistake of only responding the negative reviews since there is usually an issue to resolve. However, this is a mistake; all reviews matter, and the more you respond to positive ones, the more you encourage people to leave their own.
Customer reviews are a great way to boost your reputation and your SEO optimization in Atlanta. It’s important that you have an online presence in order for customers to be able to leave feedback about the products they purchase from you, but customer reviews work best when coupled with other SEO strategies like blogging regularly or creating infographics.
If all of this sounds overwhelming, let us know—our team is here to help! We can create a strategy tailored specifically for your business goals so that you get more customers while retaining those who already love what you do.
For more information, read: How to Get More Reviews for Your Business.