When searching for a specific service or product that you’re in the market for, how do you select the company you’ll do business with?
Part of your research likely involves reading and sifting through social proof such as case studies and customer reviews to understand current and past customer feedback and customer sentiment. For example, you may read reviews that 1) are both positive and negative, 2) relate to challenges that are similar to those you’re experiencing, or 3) describe a customer’s past interactions with technicians and service reps.
This process of researching reviews is also what your potential customers and consumers do when trying to decide whether they’ll conduct business with your home services company. That’s why it’s important for your small business to take time to monitor reviews, respond to them, and learn from them.
In this blog, we explain how to do just that — below, we cover what review monitoring for the trades means, why the process is so important, how to handle reviews, and which review monitoring tools to use.
Home Services Review Monitoring
Home services review management and monitoring entails checking and keeping tabs on what your customers are saying about your home services business and brand online. This includes tracking reviews that are both positive and negative across all of the channels that the reviews live on (e.g., Google, social media, Angi, etc.).
In addition to monitoring these reviews and mentions, it’s important for home services companies to respond to and/or acknowledge the reviews in some way. This may entail writing a direct response, “Liking” a review, or escalating a review to the right member of your team.
Importance of Reviews for the Trades
Why do customers find online reviews so important? How do customer reviews impact trades businesses like yours?
Reviews for the trades are incredibly important to business success. According to a report by Trustpilot and Canvas8, 89% of global consumers check online reviews during their online buyer journey. Additionally, 49% of consumers consider good reviews one of their top three influences when making a purchase decision.
In addition to providing social proof and assurance for those customers who are considering hiring your local business, reviews also impact your reputation (both in person and online), brand credibility, online presence, SEO and search engine ranking.
The information you glean from customer reviews is very beneficial, too. It can be used to help your home services business make necessary adjustments related to various business strategies including customer service and success, reputation management, digital marketing (e.g. social media and email marketing), and customer satisfaction. That’s because customer reviews give you insight into how your customers feel aboAut your brand. They also help you understand the “why” behind those feelings.
Where Customer Reviews are Shared
There are many review sites that host past and new reviews for local businesses. Here are some locations that you’ll want to keep an eye on when monitoring your company’s reviews:
- Better Business Bureau (if you live in the United States, Canada, or Mexico)
- Google Reviews (accessible via your Google Business Profile)
- Angi
- Yelp
- Social media (e.g. Facebook)
- Trustpilot
How to Handle Positive and Negative Reviews
It’s important to monitor both good and bad reviews that your clients and homeowners write about their experiences working with your business. Here are some tips for managing positive and negative reviews (you’ll notice there is some overlap).
How to Handle Positive Reviews | |
How to Manage Negative Reviews
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Review Monitoring Tools
Review monitoring tools and software can help your local business collect and manage your customer reviews. Depending on the tool you choose, it may host your customer reviews, automate responses to save you time, track all of your reviews on a single dashboard, notify you whenever you receive a review, and track overall sentiment.
There are several review monitoring tools available today for the trades. Here are some options you may consider:
1. Google Reviews
After you set up your Google Business Profile (previously referred to as Google My Business), collect Google Reviews. A Business Profile and customer reviews improve your ranking on Google.
Monitor your most recent reviews and track clicks from search results and your Business Profile to your website through Google Analytics and its performance cookies. Also, if you’re monitoring your customer reviews on Google and notice one that’s inappropriate or goes against Google’s guidelines, report it so it can be taken down.
2. Scorpion Review Monitoring
Scorpion’s Review Monitoring tool helps your home services business constantly monitor customer reviews. You can send automated or manual responses to all happy customers and unsatisfied customers who write reviews.
Rather than having to monitor customer reviews across different sites and locations, Scorpion brings them all together in a single dashboard to make the process more efficient for you and your team. There’s also review tracking so you can understand how your reviews are trending and how they compare to the reviews of your competitors.
Monitor Your Customer Reviews
Monitor your customer reviews to engage your audience, establish trusting relationships with your customers and prospects, and ultimately drive more business for your home services company.
Want to learn how to monitor your customer reviews and engage your audience more efficiently? Click here
