Monitoring online reviews is just as crucial as getting more reviews. However, you can be so focused on trying to increase your review profile, that you forget to look at what people are saying about you. Monitoring online reviews is the only way you can use reviews as part of your digital marketing strategy.
Of course, digital technology should make life easier. However, in many cases, utilizing digital marketing strategies can result in more work. Online reviews are a case in point. We live in a world where everyone can share their opinions about products and services. And, this shift toward leaving reviews has revolutionized marketing. No longer are consumers swayed by the adverts on TV—they prefer to listen to the opinions of others.
For your business to have a robust online presence, it’s crucial to have a strategy for review management.
What is online review management? This process includes encouraging reviews, monitoring them, responding, and analyzing statistics. This can be a time-consuming job. However, it’s vital for your online presence, brand awareness, your reputation, and ultimately, your sales.
Let’s take a closer look at why monitoring online reviews is critical for your business.
12 Reasons Why You Need to Start Monitoring Online Reviews
1. Everyone is online
Maybe not literally, but these statistics show that the vast majority of people are online. According to a 2019 survey, 90 percent of consumers use the internet to find a local business. Furthermore, reports from 2020 found that 54 percent of consumers always read online reviews for a local business before making purchasing decisions. It’s difficult to imagine a more powerful sales tool.
2. Access to feedback you may never have thought of
When you ask people for feedback, they are likely to tell you all of the positive things, which is excellent—but you can’t learn a lot from this. When customers write online reviews, you will be able to hear the good and the bad. Before squirming about reading negative reviews, remember that it’s the bad ones that allow you to improve your service. Not only that, reviews often include specific suggestions for your product or service. By fixing these issues, you will enhance the customer experience.
3. Monitor reviews to stay ahead of the competition
With the growth of online review management tools, it is becoming much easier to monitor reviews. Because of this, more and more companies are starting to do it. This means your competition will probably be tracking their reviews and putting into action the feedback they have received, pushing them ahead in the market.
4. You have the chance to spot fake reviews
Fake reviews can do an awful lot of damage to a business’s reputation. Fortunately, many of the large online review platforms have an excellent fake review policy in place that allows you to report these fake reviews. However, if you aren’t monitoring your reviews, you won’t spot them, and other readers will continue to assume they are real.
5. You will see which reviews are new and which are old.
It’s vital to know that consumers only pay attention to recent online reviews. A study conducted in 2020 found that the majority of consumers only consider recent reviews. Other reports suggest that as much as 40 percent of consumers don’t read reviews older than two weeks before making a purchasing decision. If you have plenty of positive reviews in the last 12 months but the previous two weeks have more negative reviews, your overall rating may still be good—but readers are still likely to look elsewhere.
6. Monitoring your reviews increases your trustworthiness
Social proof and trustworthiness go a very long way in making purchasing decisions. The reviews you receive—both positive and negative—instill a sense of trust. When you reply to all reviews, you increase the confidence that consumers have in your brand. If you aren’t monitoring your reviews, you don’t know how many you are receiving. If you notice that you are getting fewer reviews, you can implement a marketing strategy to get more real reviews.
7. Online reviews increase your rankings
You must monitor your reviews to make sure you are regularly receiving new ones. The more people that mention your product or services, the more keywords the search engines can detect. This increase in content connected with your site helps your business climb higher up the search results.
8. You can turn negative reviews into positive reviews
Sometimes, unhappy customers just want to know they have been heard. By politely responding to negative reviews and offering a solution, you can encourage the unhappy customer to change their review to a positive one. There are three benefits to replying to negative reviews:
- Readers can see you are dedicated to customer care
- You help to increase your overall ranking
- If you address the issue, the customer may be inclined to change the review to a positive one
9. Monitoring reviews help increase revenue
Monitoring online reviews can result in a boost in revenue. For example, a study found that an increase in 1-star rating could boost revenue by 5-10 percent. By monitoring your reviews, replying to each one, and working on getting new reviews, you can increase your star rating and benefit from even more revenues.
10. You can share your reviews
Only when you monitor reviews can you use them to your advantage in a marketing strategy. For example, you can boost your online reputation and social proof when you share your reviews on your website or social media pages. Always ask permission before doing so, especially when mentioning names and including photos. Again, if you aren’t monitoring your reviews, you won’t be able to do this.
11. Monitoring reviews lets you respond quickly
A Harvard study showed that if you respond to reviews within one hour, you are 60 times more successful than those who respond after 24 hours. Speed is of the essence, and although replying within an hour isn’t always possible, you should aim to respond within the first few hours.
12. A boost in self-confidence
Online review monitoring tends to focus on the negative reviews and what we can do about them. Nevertheless, running a business can sometimes be a never-ending uphill struggle. Positive reviews can reinforce what you are doing right and provide excellent motivation.
Monitoring reviews can be a time-consuming job, especially if you choose to monitor your reviews manually. That’s why many businesses choose an online review management solution such as Starloop. This online app allows large and small businesses to get more reviews, reply to reviews, and manage them—everything you need to monitor online reviews successfully.
Here are a few advantages of using Starloop’s automated review management software:
- Save time—You don’t have the difficult task of monitoring reviews manually. You can dedicate more time to providing excellent customer service.
- Ease of use—Online management tools take the hard work out of monitoring your reviews. You can also generate insightful reports and statistics so you can manage your time and resources better.
- Instant notifications—Set up notifications, so you know when new reviews come in.
- Respond to reviews—With helpful alerts, you can quickly respond to every review—both positive and negative ones.
- Improve your business—Because you monitor what others are saying, you can use their feedback to improve your business. This allows consumers to see that your customers’ opinions matter.
- Strengthen your online reputation—Report any fake reviews as soon as they appear.
For more information, please contact a member of our team to see how you can Starloop can help you get more online reviews today.
