Are you working on your Customer Review Management for 2023? Here we look at five important strategies for customer review management that would act as a market differentiator.
The countdown to 2023 has begun, and review management shall be one of the main thrust areas in marketing. Why are we stressing the importance of managing your online reputation? The reason is simple – we live in a digitally-driven economy where your customers would constantly vet your products and services. Reviews and ratings from your customers serve as social proof of your quality.
Though most businesses concentrate on gathering customer reviews, only a few focus on customer review management. As a business that understands the importance of online reputation management, you must have a solid customer review management strategy to attract new customers and grow your footprint in the competitive market.
What is Customer Review Management?
Talk of reviews, and your customers write reviews as they wish. You have no control over how they review your products and services. Though positive reviews positive comments promote your brand and take you to greater heights, it is the negative reviews you must take seriously. Customer Review Management is the art of dealing with all mentions about your brand in a proactive manner. Your aim here is to leverage positive reviews to power your growth and mitigate risks associated with negative comments.
Most prospective customers look for social proof before using products and services. Hence, reviews and ratings have become one of the most powerful promotional tools. Placing positive reviews and testimonials prominently on your homepage and social media handles helps create a welcoming narrative about your brand in front of your prospects.
Customer Review Management requires an active approach where you stay in control over this narrative. As part of your online reputation management efforts, you must actively monitor every mention of your brand. Tools such as Google Alerts help you track all mentions in real-time.
5 Strategies for Customer Review Management
We have already looked at the impact of customer review management on your business. Now it’s time to devise your review management strategy. Here are five steps you should take to turn customer reviews into a powerful marketing tool in 2023.
1 – Take Customer Reviews Positively
Not all customers would shower rose petals at you in their reviews. For every positive review you receive, there is an equal chance of a negative review coming your way. Unhappy customers are more motivated to post their experiences on review platforms.
Never take criticism personally, as customers can have genuine grievances with your products and services. They have the right to criticize your business on an online platform. Even the most customer-centric brands get their share of negative reviews. Treat a disgruntled customer with respect and determine the reasons behind their lack of satisfaction. Take swift action to address their problems, and an honest customer would appreciate your efforts and may end up praising your services.
2 – Start Curating Online Reviews
Every business under the sun is taking a proactive step in customer review management. Leaving review management to online platforms and focusing only on your business doesn’t help. It would be best if you worked towards curating online reviews as part of your online reputation management strategy.
Curating online reviews is more than sharing them on an online platform. It is about keeping track of all reviews customers write about your business and sharing them on social media smartly. Suppose a particular product from your brand is getting positive feedback from teenagers. In that case, you must use these reviews on platforms and communities where you can engage with this audience segment.
3 – Ensure Professional Communication At Every Level
Your communication with customers and prospects should always be professional and courteous. Acknowledge every person who writes a positive review about your brand by telling them what it means to your team. Extend the same courtesy and perhaps more to any customer writing a negative review. Apologize to them for the inconvenience and appreciate them for bringing the issue to your knowledge.
Suggest to them the right course of action or what you intend to do, being professional and courteous in your language and tone at every level. Never engage in a personal argument with a disgruntled customer, even when they make false claims. Explain your position professionally. On a public platform, communication isn’t addressed to an individual but to the whole community.
4 – Get All Employees Onboard
Online reputation management or customer review management is too important to be left on the shoulders of your marketing or social media team. Businesses often make the mistake of leaving it to a small team. Your entire team should be on board when it comes to reviewing management. Everyone on your team should keep an eye on a review written about the brand.
Work on a review management process where employees raise alerts on receiving negative reviews and share positive ones with others. This synergy among the team members is vital for leveraging positive reviews for business growth and reducing the impact of negative ones.
5 – Work With ORM Experts
Reputation management isn’t the easiest task in a world where your business may receive dozens of reviews and comments. The stakes are high, as negative comments and reviews can hurt your brand and bring down revenue. Keeping track of all reviews and restricting the impact of negative ones requires attention to detail and using the ORM tools. If your in-house team lacks expertise or doesn’t have access to these tools, consider working with an ORM agency. They take care of your review management and let you focus on the core areas of your business.
Wrapping Up
Customer Review Management is one of the least talked about strategies in marketing but has immense potential to drive business growth. Positive reviews are a goldmine that your business should cash and trigger a positive response among prospects. As we move towards a more information-savvy world, customer reviews can become the biggest differentiator in a competitive market. Implement the strategies we discussed above to gain a competitive advantage.
If you need help with customer review management or your brand has been a victim of an online smear campaign, we can help. At Cyrusson Inc., we are Online Reputation Management (ORM) experts and help our clients stay in command over their online reputation. We implement proactive customer review management strategies and use the latest tools to listen to and monitor all mentions of your brand. Call us today and get complete control over your online reputation.