As you are well aware, your business credibility is one of your most valuable assets, correct?
And I don't have to tell you that keeping track of your reputation online will also allow you to take advantage of your competition, but also produce significant growth results.
In this article, we'll discuss, using review engine optimization to increase your cash flow. And how to take advantage of subconscious triggers to improve your credibility so you can rank higher in google searchers and start collecting ‘Review Revenue.’
This approach will systematically help you get selected by more customers and be the most influential company in your location and industry at generating and using reviews to your advantage.
Review Engine Optimization is proactively developing and taking care of customers' expectations and using this in your online marketing.
It identifies key characteristics and determines precisely how individuals perceive your business subconsciously, so when they find you on the Internet, they think it's been their choice, not a perfectly executed strategy you have tailored behind the scenes. It combines your online reviews and the feedback that individuals leave about your business or service on social media and google, and identifies their intent to buy.
And just like SEO(Search Engine Optimization), REO ( Review Engine Optimization) is the use of keywords to help with your google search and ranking. As you are starting to discover, it's a very powerful marketing strategy.
So, here’s a question for you…What is the value of your company's online reputation?
If you are like most of the companies we work with, they all say ‘Priceless’. But when asked the follow-up question…’What are you doing to protect it’? A very high percentage of businesses tell us ‘nothing’.
It is one of the most important and valuable assets a business can have. When clients think of engaging with you, they need to be sure that not only will YOUR product or service satisfy their needs, but the experience of working with you will be terrific also.
In the past, strong household names with long track records have been why the masses have paid for their products and services. These larger companies have had a monopoly on their markets, until now. Smaller, unknown businesses are breaking the mold. Perception in the market is critical, and while new technology and buyers' attention is changing, the triggers and basic human behavior that cause the client to hand over the money hasn't.
The businesses that are at the forefront of these changes and incorporating this methodology have seen higher profits by reducing their ad spend, attracting better quality, higher-paying clients, and giving them a significant advantage over the competition. This is why your brand's reputation and perception around your success in the market has a quantifiable value.
A business's track record is by no means an indication that it will continue to be successful, but it certainly does impact people's willingness to invest their money and time in your solution, and this advantage can play a powerful role in your rapid success and revenue turnover.
Ever since the dawn of commerce, individuals have dealt with companies they've felt they can rely on, so businesses have constantly aimed to reconstruct an excellent reputation online that continues to motivate trust as well as credibility.
Customers progressively started looking for the feedback of strangers who have had experience with companies they are researching. Simply put, they check out services and their online credibility and reputation. What is an example of an excellent online track record? Many businesses will undoubtedly claim high overall social proof makes their service appearance remarkable to potential clients.
Let's look at how we can rapidly take advantage of this.
"How bizarre is a female turkey: She will embrace a natural enemy just because it goes 'cheep-cheep,' and she will mistreat or murder one of her own chicks if it doesn't.
It looks like her maternal instincts are under the automatic control of a single sound.
Animal behaviorists tell us that this isn't unique just to Turkeys. Their studies have been able to identify regular, blindly mechanical patterns of action in a wide variety of species."
The study behind cross-species comparisons, including those between humans and animals, was done in my opinion as an attempt to see what we have in common and ultimately can take advantage of. When you stop and think about it, it's not that far of a stretch to compare mother turkeys' triggered response to specific stimuli to that of a potential client comparing your online reviews with your competitors and making a conscious decision.. If you instantly make a judgment about that comment or the person's feedback you are reading, then you have a strong connection with triggers.
Some people may disagree; nevertheless, take into consideration this example.
If a business has:
87 online reviews with an average ranking of 4.7 stars, you could say that business has a solid online reputation, could you not?
If their competitor has over 352 reviews and an average ranking of 4.9 , which company are you more likely to go with?
Our cash and reputation would be on the second choice... 'the competitor'.
While both companies have a great average star rating, clients commonly consider elements like the total number and how recent they are.
So what’s the moral of the story you may ask?
Your business's track record isn't determined by any single statistic like star score, but potential clients will make a subconscious choice in an instant triggered by the numbers and average. The score and average don't mean that they are the best business at all. In fact, they may be average in their chosen field but brilliant at reputation and review management. Like the mother turkey, potential clients are triggered by the evidence in front of them.
The benefits of a robust online reputation can help you bridge the gap with your competitors or take a commanding lead over them.
The only thing you need to ask yourself is…
Who do you want to be, the business taking advantage of this new way consumers are purchasing and taking the lead or the businesses left behind chasing your not-as-good competitor?
Because eventually, you know for certain, you will need to address your online reputation or be left behind.
While we can't stress enough how important your online reputation is and why it makes sense to you that people work with a business they trust, consider your own habits. If you have never heard of a potential business, think of the homework you do before purchasing. Most consumers, biggest concern is… can I trust them to deliver what I purchased or not?
That's where internet credibility can quickly stand you apart from your competitors.
If you have lots of great reviews, you can develop trustworthiness with customers, and that doesn't include the benefit of additional exposure you get from search engines. An excellent online reputation implies your business will certainly rank greater in relevant search engine results (and multiply the benefits from your REO; Review Engine Optimization). Better online credibility means review revenue.
Studies show that an excellent online track record implies much more income for your service, and we have several case studies from clients that prove this. According to the Harvard Business Testimonial, a 1- star boost in score can cause a 5-9% increase in profits.
We have a client who is saving $50,000 a year on marketing, and another confidently claims that reviews are responsible for 30% of their yearly revenue.
Online testimonials give fresh, organic content for your company and reveal the real experiences of your customers. Because Google aims to provide clients' most effective search results, reviews supply them with useful info. This is called user-generated content.
Naturally, reviews and testimonials aren't the only variables that matter for search. Search engines are the roadways that help route targeted web traffic to your website. Think of the signs on the side of a freeway that inform you there's petrol, food, as well as a rest area ahead on a freeway. If you don't have your signs up, search engines won't know that they can send out web traffic your way.
So the signals you send to the internet search engine should not simply include reviews. Your precise, as well as up-to-date contact info, is required to be found online-- such as Name, Address, Contact Number, Opening hours, as well as much more. It's additionally essential to make sure that this info is consistent throughout the Internet and assists with your REO.
So I will leave you with this, a mother turkey replies to her baby chicks as they "cheep-cheep," (a signal that the bird is healthy and balanced).
No, "cheep-cheep" and no attention from mama. But did you know that a polecat is an all-natural adversary of the turkey. So, if one cruise in the direction of the turkey, the mother bird will go nuts, assaulting the polecat and attempting to get it to vanish. You can even put a stuffed polecat on a string and pull it toward the mother turkey and she’ll strike at it right away. But ... If you put a little "cheep-cheep" noise recording inside that same polecat, guess what happens? The mother turkey will try and gather it up and embrace it as her very own. (Turn off the "cheep-cheep" tape-recording and the strike resumes!)
Robert Caldini, the author of Influence, tells us that these habits are known as" fixed-action patterns". They are a set of subconscious actions known as "triggers."
The tale of the turkey is fascinating because it helps to better understand the triggers that a consumer will engage in before making a choice to buy. And knowing that it is the subconscious mind making the decision to purchase your product or service by the individual consumers' triggers. Therefore you as a business owner address this by having many different high-value reviews before your competitor beats you to it.
About the Author
Scott Baker is the Creator of Reviewology. At My Biz Reviews, we work with business owners who don't need convincing that reviews protect reputation, reduce ad spend and increase profitability. Maybe you haven't decided to protect your online reputation and generate revenue from your reviews yet, but the more you think about it, the more it makes sense why an effortless systemic approach like this would work so well. We suggest you don't act too quickly, think about it some more before you decide it's right for you to partner with My Biz Reviews.
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