Customer Review Management Tips for Plumbers.

No matter the business, every company needs a reputation management strategy to garner success these days. Your plumbing outfit might be the best around, as you provide top-tier service throughout your area. However, just because you’re the best, doesn’t mean your competition won’t have ways of squeaking out a win and taking your potential sales.

In today’s world, digital marketing is king. The internet took a foothold in our society and became the mega-giant of commerce it is today in just three short decades. All businesses must manage their online reputation or risk losing sales to a more prepared competitor.

The name of the game for keeping up a strong, positive reputation online is called online review management. You may be thinking, “It’s just reviews online for a plumbing business. Do I really need to keep track of it?”

The short answer is “absolutely!”

Many business owners think online reviews are only for product or service-based industries like restaurants and hotels. If you think about it, though, your plumbing outfit does offer products and services. With that being said, there are plenty of past customers willing to share their opinion on their experience with you.

When people share their opinion about your service online, it affects potential customers’ decision making. Research suggests that 93% of consumers’ purchasing decisions are affected by online reviews. By actively managing your online presence and implementing a digital marketing strategy, you can secure your place in search engines rankings for years to come.

You put all your time, money, and effort into your plumbing business, so you’re not about to lose out on potential clients by simply not having the online presence you should. It may sound like a daunting task at first, but it’s as easy as reading through this article.

Welcome to review management 101!

What Is Review Management?

Before you begin to conduct review management, it’s a good idea to get acquainted with that strategy! Even if your plumbing business has little to no online presence, there are most likely opinions about your business on third-party websites like Facebook, Google My Business, and Yelp.

If you’re not monitoring, responding, and trying to drum up more reviews on your website or other platforms, your credibility will become non-existent for online consumers.

Here are the three ways online reviews affect your business:

Awareness: When you generate more positive reviews online, your relevance in the search engine rankings will increase.
Trustworthy: Sometimes a project that requires new plumbing isn’t cheap. Customers need to be certain that who they choose for their plumbing project will do a great job. Without word-of-mouth spreading online about your business, it will be hard for potential customers to trust you.
Credibility: The more positive reviews you have about your business online, the more credible you will look to potential customers.

Word of mouth is probably one of the most powerful tools of marketing for any business. There isn’t anything a potential customer trusts better than a previous customer with a positive experience. With that being said, review management online will be an instant boost to your search engine optimization (SEO).

Google’s algorithm favors content heavily. Not only do online reviews count as content towards your website, but they will also keep track of positive reviews and use that factor to determine your relevant search engine rank!

How Does Review Management Work?

Now that you know the importance of review management, it sounds like a dream if everyone you serviced left a glowing review online. However, things aren’t always that simple. Luckily, there’s a way to drum up more reviews for your plumbing service!

Generating Online Reviews

Some people like to share their opinion about an experience, while others could care less. However, there are ways to encourage those customers who are hesitant about sharing their opinion about your plumbing business.

Implement the following strategies to generate more online reviews:

Create an easily navigable widget for reviews on your website.
Show off your positive reviews on its separate page.
Send a personalized review request to your previous customers.
Use direct lines of communication like email and social media and encourage customers to leave a review on your website or third-party platforms such as Facebook, Google My Business, or Yelp.
Offer incentives for reviews like a coupon or another type of discount for future service.

Remember: Reviews equal content, and Google’s algorithm loves content. So, the first step in managing your online reputation is to generate more online reviews!

Monitoring Online Reviews

Now that you have more reviews rolling in about your business, it’s a good idea to check on them daily – weekly at the very least. Online review monitoring tools like Google Alerts will help you keep track of all the reviews about your plumbing business.

To reduce negative reviews and receive more positive ones, try using professional Review Management Software that provides monitoring 24/7. With this kind of software, you will be able to respond to reviews in real-time.

Responding to Online Reviews

Online Review Management isn’t limited to just positive reviews. You will inevitably receive an unflattering review. It could be no fault of your own that a customer was impossible to please. Regardless of why you’ve earned a negative review, the proper response is key.

Take the negative review as an opportunity to resolve the situation and turn that negative into a positive one!

Here’s how to formulate a proper response to a negative review:

Thank them for the feedback.
Apologize for their negative experience.
Ask how you can achieve their satisfaction.
Try and communicate with them on a more personal platform such as email and phone to try and address the issue.
Advocate for a solution – don’t make excuses.

Receive Professional Review Management With Triton

Online reviews management takes time and effort to keep up with. Being the owner of a plumbing business, it can be difficult keeping up with such efforts. If you need assistance with online review management, call on Triton Commerce!