How to Request a Review as a Small Business Owner

Business owners usually focus on developing their products and services. But how can they know if customers are happy with their brand?

Feedback is essential for making improvements and understanding what’s working well. This is why it’s necessary to learn how to request a review from your customers.

But reviews aren’t just critical for business owners. Customers use the feedback to research brands. Up to 98% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase.

In this article, you’ll learn exactly how to request a review from your customers.

We will look at why positive reviews matter and best practices in requesting them. You will also learn about the tools that make that process easier. We’ll then end with ways to respond to both positive and critical feedback to build a stronger brand.

Ready to generate high-impact customer reviews for your business? Let’s dive in.  

The Value of Positive Reviews for Your Business

It can feel good to get positive feedback from customers, but you shouldn’t just look at it as kind words.

Reviews are essential tools for business growth. And the benefits go far beyond a pat on the back for a job well done.

Here’s what they can do for your business:

Build Customer Trust and Loyalty

Think of online reviews as digital word-of-mouth advertising. Customers are likely to trust your business if they read about others’ positive experiences. This type of social proof can be critical for small businesses with small ad budgets.

Improve Local SEO Rankings

Search engines like Google often favor businesses with consistent, high-quality reviews. In fact, having reviews on your Google Business Profile can increase search ranking.

Influence New Customer Decision-Making

Online reviews impact the buying decisions of customers. A notable 49% of people trust online reviews as much as recommendations from friends or family.

Online reviews are a cost-effective way to grow your business’s profile. Customers and search engines value them. And they can help attract new clients even if you have a modest marketing budget.

RELATED ARTICLE — Google Ratings and Reviews: How They Work and Why They Matter

Step-by-Step Guide to Requesting Reviews (with Best Practices)

To get these benefits, you have to know how to request a review.

Do it right, and you can turn your happy customers into advocates. Get it wrong, and you can annoy customers and keep them from returning.

These steps show how to ask for reviews in a positive way:

1. Choose the Best Timing

For small businesses, timing is essential. The best time for you to request a review is immediately after providing service. A quick request ensures the experience is still fresh in the customer’s mind.

2. Make It Personal

Reviews often focus on customers’ personal feelings and experiences with your services. Make the request for the review personal by including the customer’s name. Also, mention the specific service they got from you.

People will be more likely to respond to this type of authentic request. On the other hand, they’ll be wary of generic form emails or texts asking for feedback.

3. Keep Your Request Short and Simple

Be direct when asking for a review. A short request like, “We appreciate feedback on how you feel about our service.” Limit it to a few sentences, at most.

4. If You Can, Ask in Person

If you’re face-to-face with the customer, ask for a review directly. Teach your teams to request reviews after each service visit. Be sure they know to ask once and not be too pushy.

5. Choose the Right Review Collection Platform

Ask customers to place reviews on popular platforms. Choose a platform that your customers trust. That could be Yelp, Google Reviews, or others.

6. Provide a Direct Link and Follow Up

Make it as easy as possible for your customers to leave a review. You can do this by giving them a direct link to the review sites. You can send the links via text messages or email.

7. Don’t Link Reviews with Customer Appreciation

Be sure to show full appreciation to your customers, whether they leave a review or not. Some will simply forget. Others will be too busy to write a review. Treat them like potential repeat customers, regardless.

By applying these steps carefully, you can increase the number of reviews you get.

RELATED ARTICLE — Customer Testimonials: 6 Examples and How to Get Them

Top Review Sites for Small Business Reviews

Many people use online review sites when researching businesses. It is important for you to know these sites. It can help you tell your customers to post reviews.

Yelp

Yelp is the most popular review site in the United States. It is widely used by customers to find local businesses. People go to Yelp to find reviews of retailers, restaurants, and home repair services.

Yelp values authentic reviews. It disapproves of businesses that offer incentives to customers for positive feedback. This position enhances its credibility with consumers.

Google Reviews

Google Reviews is another extremely popular site. The reviews posted here show up in other apps like Google Maps and Google Search. This can make your business much more visible and improve your SEO.

Pro Tip: If you’re an Invoice Simple user, the Premium plan lets you automatically ask for a Google review after each transaction. This streamlines the review request process. Additionally, you can manually send review requests through the app on the fly. That way, you never miss an opportunity for a five-star review.

Trustpilot

Trustpilot is a review platform that helps customers find reliable companies. It is ideal for freelancers and online businesses because of its reputation for transparency. The platform also makes it easy for businesses to respond to reviews.

Better Business Bureau

The BBB platform has more credibility than any other review platform. It is the best choice for businesses that want to signal to their customers that they are trustworthy and transparent.

TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor is a popular review platform used in the tourism and hospitality sector. If you work in the travel sector, hotel, or food business, the reviews carry weight with local and traveling customers.

You will want to see which platforms have reviews from businesses in your sector. Also, think about which sites are most popular in your region and with your target markets.

For instance, if you had a home services company, you’d focus on Google Reviews and BBB, not TripAdvisor.

Tools and Services to Automate Review Collection

Manually asking your customers for reviews can be time-consuming. It can also make you seem pushy if you’re not careful.

Automating review requests can save time and standardize the way you ask. Plus, you can perfect the messaging, so it doesn’t sound pushy.

Here are the top platforms to help you automate review requests and get the most out of reviews:

Listen360

Listen360 allows you to see feedback in real time. You can respond quickly to customer reviews. Addressing concerns or problems immediately can help retain customers. You can also use insights from reviews for analysis.

Invoice Simple

Invoice Simple is an invoicing platform that offers automated Google Reviews requests. It sends automatic review requests to customers after issuing an invoice. You’re also able to send review requests as needed manually. This is perfect for when you’re in person with a happy customer and want to capture their positive feedback.

Birdeye

Birdeye sends automated review requests via email and SMS. It offers tools for responding to feedback. The software also has analytics dashboards and response templates.

Podium

Podium also sends automated review requests via text. The platform allows small business owners to gather leads and obtain more reviews. It enables businesses to centralize communications and send out text marketing campaigns.

These tools help businesses simplify feedback collection and review requests.

FROM ONE OF OUR PARTNERS — How to Gather Customer Feedback: Effective Techniques and Best Practices

How to Respond to Reviews (Positive and Negative)

A key part of managing and making the most of your reviews is responding to them.

A significant 88% of customers are more likely to buy from businesses that reply to their reviews. This statistic applies to both positive and negative feedback.

Here are a few best practices to follow:

Respond Quickly and Clearly

Whether responding to a positive or negative review, be prompt and direct. Aim for responding within the first 24 hours. Fast and direct responses show that the business is engaged with customers. Even responding to negative reviews shows you care about each customer experience.

Show Appreciation

Always thank your customers for choosing you, whether they leave a good or bad review. Gratitude and appreciation help to build trust and goodwill.

Personalize Your Response

Generic responses seem insincere. It is best to personalize your response to a customer’s review. You can do this by using the customer’s name and referring to the service or specific detail of their review.

Be Professional

When responding to reviews, especially the negative ones, address the raised concerns professionally. Stay calm, acknowledge the issue, and avoid being defensive. Offer a solution if reasonable. You can also offer to resolve the issue offline if possible.

Responding to all reviews helps to build trust with your customers. It can boost your brand and lead to long-term success.

RELATED ARTICLE —  How to Reply to Customer Reviews: 6 Examples for Small Businesses

Key Takeaways for Requesting Reviews as a Small Business Owner

Learning how to request a review from each customer you serve is essential. Here are the essential steps that can help you fine-tune your review requests:

• It is best to ask for reviews right after providing the product or service.
• You can make reviews easier for customers by providing direct review links.
• Personalize your review request and responses.
• Capitalize on top review platforms like Google, Yelp, and Trustpilot.
• Respond professionally to all reviews, both good and bad.