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Online reviews are crucial to the success of your plumbing business. They are a trusted source of information that your business can rely on to increase visibility and attract more customers. Statistics show that 77% of customers read online reviews when searching for local businesses, with most reading an average of ten reviews before they trust a business. Other studies reveal that 90% of customers are highly likely to convert after reading customer feedback.
Generally, the buying journey for most customers starts with an online search for the services they're interested in. As part of gleaning information about the businesses/services, they rely heavily on reviews to inform their decisions. Plumbing customers' statistics indicate that 54% of them run a search before converting, and as many as 76% do not have a company in mind when searching.
This shows that getting positive online reviews for your plumbing business is an excellent growth strategy that can keep attracting new customers. In this post, we equip you with tips on how to achieve this. But before then, let's first understand why online reviews are beneficial.
Importance of Online Reviews for Your Plumbing Business
Reviews are a handy marketing tool. As mentioned above, most customers performing an online search do not have a company in mind. Reading through the feedback of your past customers gives them a feel of your business – expertise, service delivery, customer support, etc. It makes it easier for them to pick your business from other plumbers within your service area.
Let's look at the benefits in detail.
Influences Customer's First Impression
Since positive reviews are generated by satisfied customers, they're a powerful brand advocacy tool. Based on your performance as shared by your past customers, prospects get the impression that you offer excellent service. Consequently, a good first impression gives them the confidence to hire you.
Leads to Higher SERP Ranking
The more positive reviews you have, especially on your Google Business Profile (GBP), the higher you're likely to rank on the local search results. Positive reviews give an impression that your business is credible, improving its rankability on search engine result pages (SERPs).
Attracts New Clients and Boosts Visibility
Reviews assure prospects that you're experienced in handling similar plumbing jobs. Positive reviews can significantly influence their decision to hire you, as they nurture their trust in your services. As much as writing an excellent marketing copy for your business is essential, customers looking for local service providers will likely lean more toward reviews to verify your expertise than believe your marketing pitch. When the customers search for the reviews, and it happens your business has published them on several sites, they stand a higher chance of ranking, improving your visibility.
Ways to Get Reviews for Your Plumbing Business
There are several effective ways of getting reviews for your plumbing business. Some are free such as creating Google Business Profile, while others are paid, e.g., acquiring an automatic review collecting solution like Review Generator. But even with the paid options, the return is worth the investment.
Here are ways you can gather reviews for your business.
Google Reviews
Google is the most searched site for reviews by customers looking for local businesses. According to statistics, 81% of customers used Google to evaluate local businesses in 2021, with Yelp and Facebook taking second and third place at 53% and 48%, respectively.
To collect the reviews, you require a Google Business Profile, which is free to create. When listing your business, you should provide all the information required, including business name, description, location, phone number, website, operation hours, services provided, photos & videos, etc.
Once the profile is complete, you may request your customers to share their feedback by sending them the review link. You can share the link in various ways, such as by email, text message, etc. Upon clicking the link, they land on the page where they can rate your business and write a review.
Review Platforms
Review sites such as Yelp, Angie's List, Yellow Pages, HomeAdvisor, etc., are excellent platforms for collecting reviews from your plumbing business customers. Sometimes, you might find your business listed without your knowledge and already receiving reviews. It's important to scour the web to find where your business is listed.
First, you get a chance to confirm the listing has the correct business details to avoid negative consequences. When your NAPs (name, address, phone number) are inconsistent across different sites on the internet, Google may ignore your business during ranking, considering the information misleading. You can use several tools to check your citations across the web. For instance, Moz Local is a free listing score tool that allows you to check the accuracy of your citations across top directories.
Second, checking the sites allows you to manage the submitted reviews. Failing to respond to reviews (positive and negative) can weaken prospects' interest in a business. Apparently, almost all customers reading reviews check the business response as well. Research shows that 89% of customers say they would likely use a business that responds to all its reviews.
Facebook Reviews
Customers can also review your services on your Facebook page. This is important because your Facebook page appears on SERPs when relevant brand keywords are searched. Having positive reviews on the site can boost your business credibility, besides garnering a higher ranking.
You can ask customers who follow you on Facebook to leave a review by sending them an email or a text, or you can create a Facebook ad and target the customers on your mailing list.
On Your Website
You can also have a review section on your website. One way of executing this is by installing a widget with icons linked to different review sites – Google, Facebook, Yelp, etc. The customers can then follow the links to leave a review on the sites of their choice.
Implementation
Ask in Person
Asking a customer to review your services in person isn't as desperate as it sounds if you employ a little tact. For instance, after completing the work, you could thank them for hiring you and ask them to let you know what they think about the service a week later. At this point, you could offer them a review card with details on where they can submit their honest view if they don't mind the extra effort.
After completing the job, you could send the customers a follow-up email a few days after the service, asking them about the experience. At the end of the email, you can ask them politely to write a review by directing them to your site or any of the other review platforms.
Send Text Message
Sending text messages is one of the most convenient means of communication. The open rate is higher than email, guaranteeing a higher response rate. As statistics have shown, most people read an SMS within 1-5 minutes of receiving it. This guarantees a high probability of the customer clicking the link to post the review.
After a few days of providing the service, you could send the customer a text message, emphasizing the process is short and uncomplicated to encourage them to click and leave the review.
Make a Follow Up Call
If you often make a follow-up service call after completing the job, you could use the opportunity to ask for a review. A service call gives a strong impression that your business cares about your customers, and asking for a favor in return could yield a positive response.
Something like, 'if you liked our service, we would appreciate you writing a review to help other people find our us'. If they agree to the request, you can inform them you'll send them a link to the review site (via text or email) immediately.
Use a Review Generator
If you want to automate the review gathering process and achieve better efficiency, then consider using a review generator. Essentially, the tool allows you to automate review requests on different sites such as Facebook, Google Business Profile, etc., making collecting reviews from past customers easier. For more information on how a review automation tool works, check our Review Generator.
Final Thoughts
Collecting and managing online reviews for your plumbing business should be an integral part of your marketing strategy. Any new customer seeking out your services will almost always consider what your past customers say about your services to assess your suitability.
Besides creating an excellent first impression, reviews improve SERP ranking, boosting visibility. You should be proactive in getting positive reviews by creating avenues for your loyal customers to review your business on your website, Google, Facebook, or other review sites. Then you could ask them to visit the sites and leave a review, either by talking to them in person, through a text message, email, or during a follow-up call.
Lastly, consider automating the review gathering process using a review generator to make it more convenient and efficient. To learn how the tool works, request a demo from DearPro.