Some Strategies for Generating Authentic Reviews for Our Clients

Jessica Foster ^🎓
What are some of your best strategies for generating *authentic* reviews FOR your clients?
11 👍🏽 11
[filtered from 39 💬🗨]

👈📰

some strategies for generating authentic reviews for our clients

🔗🏹

💬🗨

Michelle
This isn't easy for an Search Engine Optimization (SEO) pro to do, but one of our clients told us what we thought was a pretty brilliant strategy for getting reviews:
They make custom countertops, showers, faucets, etc. They go back to the clients' homes to take pictures and, while there, they sit down with their own iPad and ask the client to leave them a review.
Could be worth suggesting to clients in local services businesses.
Otherwise, texting the link and instructions for a Google review works pretty well.
_{💟👍🏽2}

Jessica Foster ^🎓 » Michelle
I have one client that I'm trying to get reviews for and even getting an email list from them is like pulling teeth. I want to send them some ideas of super simple things to do. Or, ideally, I can do it remotely but it's been pretty difficult.

Michelle
Also, my former (attorney) boss would include an ask for a review and directions in his wrap-up letters to clients. These letters were sent along with their settlement checks from their lawsuits. If the client came in to pick it up, he'd come out, no matter what he was doing, and talk to them personally and ask for the review.
The face-to-face ask is the most powerful but, again, that's all on the client.
_💟1

Jessica Foster ^🎓 » Michelle
It's the "all on the client" bit that isn't working out lol
Michelle
LOL – I know how that goes.
We've got one home health care client (relatively new on the scene) whose website just wasn't ranking no matter what we did. He had NO Google reviews. No matter how many times we told him that was probably holding back his SEO given the trust factor, it still didn't seem to make an impression or a change to behavior, at least not significant enough to get a decent amount of reviews.
Jessica Foster ^🎓 » Michelle
That's pretty much the case here. I'm creative though… I'll come up with something I'm sure.

Andrew
Just asking for reviews, and providing a link for people to easily leave the review. Follow up 2-3 times w/ super nice but guilt-trippy emails.
_{🤭👍🏽6}
Jenny
I've had the most success with texting or emailing a to ask for a review link. Most of my clients are on bird eye at the moment and seeing great success… which is just texts and emails ha.
I've also done branded short links which was easy because the client could tell someone the link on the spot and they printed the link on their business card asking for a review.
One client I had did geofencing… but that was pretty freaking niche.
Be careful asking for them to do reviews on a business owned device. I had a bunch of reviews removed because they all came from the same place. It sucked.

Jenny
Oh and I have one client that despite my belief it's archaic is using a QR code that's on a little sign by the door and at the point of sale. Surprisingly it's working for them.
_🤭1
Brian
^^^ QR Codes are surprisingly effective.
"Here's a cool way to leave us a review. Simply scan this code with your phone and let us know how we did.
If you need an app to scan the code, try this one (link). It's fast and easy to use. Thanks!"
Mike
…in 2013
_{🤭👍🏽2}
Brian
Sometimes…
https://www.Youtube.com/watch?v=OuxCIaczUa0
😉

Gillian
When my client is telling me how happy they are, I ask them, right there in that moment. I also do workshops and ask at the end of the workshop.

Jessica Foster ^🎓 » Gillian
This post is about generating reviews for your SEO clients, not your own business. It can be more difficult because you don't have as much access and control
Gillian
Ah, sorry, only partially read the post 😬. I'm an SEO coach so I have a different level of access I suppose. At the moment I have a competition running for a wedding photographer for her 2018 brides. We've asked for 30 second video reviews and have offered a $300 prize for the most original. At the bottom, in a P.S. section, we've asked for a Google review separate and not related to the outcome of the competition. I stress the importance of reviews to all my clients and write them templates asking for reviews if they're not comfortable wording it themselves.

Relyveld
Do a run thru of your work, show them the final results, judge their satisfaction and before they sign off on the completed project ask them to leave you a quick review, then once they leave the review you'll send them the completed project paperwork and a discount for any future work.
I did customer service for a major network and this was their strategy to get a ton of reviews without an issue
Chris
Something not mentioned here yet that took me too long to learn: Sell something cheap and easy to open up more opportunities for reviews. Up your odds. 🙂

Jessica Foster ^🎓 » Chris
This question was about gathering reviews for my clients, not for my own business.
Chris
*up their odds
_{🤭👍🏽3}

William
ReviewFire.com
Review Fire | Online Reviews Management | Customer Feedback
Brian
The easiest way is to just do a good/great job, then ask.
Also, whether customers do it on site (on their own devices) or off site, make it as easy for them to do as possible. Short bulleted directions work well.
If you have field people or sales people, incent them with a contest. We have a client who went from 17 reviews to over 130 reviews in about 5 weeks… all by revisiting recent clients who had had great experiences.
We have also had clients who just wouldn't take the time to do it. The 17-review client above started out like that until we helped them catch the fever. Then it became contagious.
Bottom line – sometimes it's just easier to work with clients who will implement what you recommend and not spend nearly as much time with those who won't.
Gerstin
Do good work.
So, doing Good Work is not Good enough to get Good reviews?
I think when you do good work, some people will give you the review. But if that is not the case, sure ask them for a written review, even better is a 1-2 minute video review. Depending on the type of work, you can do a reaction video, which can double as a review.