Leave a Review!

Now more than ever, reviews are everything. Reviews for a product or service can quite literally have the power to influence buying decisions as well as contribute greatly to a company, service provider or brand. Good reviews are marketing gold as someone else’s firsthand experience is what consumers look for in today’s economy.

So, you might be thinking: “Ok, Vanessa, I know this. What else is new?” Positive reviews for businesses and/or services are not a new concept, I get it. However, the act of asking for a review is not natural for many and with so much noise and constant turbulence in today’s marketplace across many industries, this word of mouth marketing strategy may be getting lost in the shuffle and yet, could be the key to many businesses recovery and rebound strategy. 

If aggregating reviews is part of your strategy and you want to build and grow stories from your clients that paint the picture of their experience with your brand or company, than the number one way to accelerate this momentum for receiving reviews is by implementing this task:

Leave. A. Review.

Yes, this is the simple karma strategy of you get what you give. If you want to get a review, give a review. Plain and simple. And if I am being completely true to my “spiritual law” side of myself, I will go even further to say to give without the expectation of receiving and don’t make your review industry specific.

It is also important to note that you should add more than selecting a “5 star” option for a review. Leave good, clear, positive copy for your review. Tell a story. Share an example, humanize your review so that prospects/readers do not think it was a “bot” generated review.

In the spirit of momentum generates momentum, I would like to offer my suggestions for leaving a review for companies and/or individuals you would like to help and/or highlight. Ready? Here goes:

Number One: LinkedIn Recommendation

Take a moment to find a past or current colleague or professional acquaintance and leave a proper LinkedIn recommendation for them that speaks to their skills and strong work presence. I would recommend starting with anyone you know that has been laid off or furloughed. I cannot emphasize enough what a long way that will go for the person you select!

Number Two: Google reviews

Pick a business in your network that you know relies on Google searches and online reviews. Small niche community focused businesses are where I recommend to start. For example, your hair salon, chiropractor, personal trainer, dog groomer, local bank to name a few. Google their respective businesses and see if reviews show up. If you see some, chances are they want more. If you are unsure you can always reach out and ask your local service provider directly what form of review they value the most. Personally, I just left a review for our Accountant. I know they rely on “the Google” for new business and I happily responded to their email request to leave a review. In their case, they asked for a review. Kudos for them for actively requesting a review on their service!

Number Three: Your favorite restaurant

Pick your favorite eatery and leave a review on Google or their Facebook Fan Page. Tell your story about the excellent service and wonderful dishes you’ve experienced. Be specific and do your best to describe the vibe and what future customers can expect from their visit.

Number Four: Amazon

If you are like me, then an Amazon package is delivered to your house pretty much every day. From reordering my favorite beauty supplies, to back to school products for my kids, to specialty food items, water bottles, books, toilet paper, gifts, phone cases and so much more. You name it, and we have ordered it! If you ordered a product on Amazon whereby you read the reviews yourself before making a decision, then go ahead and leave your own review as well to close that loop. Recently, we ordered a new coffee machine after reading endless Amazon reviews. My assignment: leave my own review of the coffee machine to help others considering this product.

Number Five: Facebook Fan Page

If you are active on Facebook and find yourself consuming content from the same Fan Pages, then take a moment to drop them a review. This could be as specific as a Fan Page for a local news station or even your dentists office, for example. Think about the places and people you interact with the most and go out of your way to leave a review on their business page on Facebook.

In the travel industry, there is an entire company dedicated to hosting reviews of travel host agencies for professionals seeking to start a business selling travel. Thank you Steph Lee for starting Host Agency Reviews and building an exceptional business for our industry. Her business is built on the importance of reviews and the host agency I co-founded, Gifted Travel Network, attributes much of our rapid success to leads coming from her site.

Reviews are everything. Take a moment and leave an unsolicited review for a person or business this week. It will do good for your soul to know you are lifting someone up with your words. And in today's environment, you want to be part of the positive conversations happening because the world needs more happy, kind and optimistic trends to keep us tapped in and grounded for the rest of the year.