Why Online Reviews Matter to Local Businesses

Fact #1

73% of consumers say positive reviews make them trust businesses more.

According to a recent local consumer survey, consumers are highly likely to trust a business more after they read positive reviews. Why is this important? Trust between your customer should be at the top of every business’s list of priorities. The level of trust between you and your clients directly relates to the amount of business you bring in. And not just new business—consistent business from loyal customers. For many brick-and-mortar businesses building customer loyalty should be the first place you start. Why not start using an already proven route that builds success like online reviews?

Fact #2

85% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.

That same survey found that more than 8 out of 10 consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. Back in the day before the Internet blew up to the level, it has today, marketing for local businesses typically involved a word-of-mouth campaign. This tried and true marketing tactic brought in plenty of business to keep local businesses going. However, thanks to the digital world, consumers are turning to their internet friends for advice on where to spend their money. Help them make those decisions with a steady stream of online reviews about your business.

Fact #3

45% of people have shared bad customer service experiences online, while 30% have shared good customer service experiences on social media.

From Yelp to Google, online reviews are taking the internet by storm. Sadly, a customer service study found that the majority of customers turn to social media outlets to vent after they’ve had a bad experience. The good news? 30% of customers turn to social media to praise a business when they’ve had a good experience. Bridge the gap by asking all of your customers to review your business through a customer review service that encourages customers to leave genuine feedback about your business online.

Fact #4

88% of consumers have been influenced by an online review when making a buying decision.

Ultimately every businesses goal is for consumers to buy their services/ product. Luckily, that same survey found that 88% of consumers were influenced by online reviews when making a buying decision. This means that online reviews influence 9 out of 10 consumers for better or for worse. Make sure that they are influenced for the better with review generating software that uses a proven process to drive your real-life customers to review your business online.

Fact #5

Legit Local helps local businesses improve their local SEO and social presence through online reviews.

It shouldn’t cost brick-and-mortar businesses thousands per year to improve their local SEO and social presence. There are a variety of online tools and software that can help your business gain the reviews you need to improve your local SEO and social presence. These include:

Compare and commit

By using services like those offered these review management tools, you’ll increase your online presence, help customers make important buying decisions, build brand trust, bring in new business, and improve your overall local SEO. Build your local SEO portfolio and jump start your business with online business reviews.

• Legit Local: Gather genuine feedback from your customers with the customizable services offered by Legit Local. This review management software simplifies the review process by targeting specific customers, sending out review invites via email or SMS, and driving new customers to your business, all for a cost-effective price.
• Grade.us: This review management software helps you amplify the best reviews with automated content.
• Gatherup: This software helps you automate the customer feedback process by capturing customer reviews.
• ReviewTrackers: Generating new review for your business, this review generation software, gives your brand higher star ratings through email campaigns, SMS, kiosks, and landing pages.