How many times have you Googled a business before purchasing a product or service? You aren’t the only one; 55% of people conduct online searches for reviews and recommendations before making a purchase.

We all know reviews and online reputation management is important. But how often do you Google your business to see what people are saying about it? If you aren’t periodically doing an online search of your company to see what others are seeing, you should start.

Welton Hong from Ring Ring Marketing shares in this video why online reviews are important and how you can ask your clients to leave a review.

According to BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey, 86% of consumers read reviews for local businesses and 89% of consumers read businesses’ responses to reviews.

What’s the best (and easiest) way to get reviews and to halt negative reviews in their tracks? Follow up with your clients. You can ask them if the service you provided was as they expected or if they have any suggestions for improvements. If someone wasn’t happy with the service received, you can address it immediately in person, instead of waiting until it shows up online. In addition to eliminating a negative review, you might be able to turn that client’s view around and make them happy with the service.

Also, don’t forget to respond to any reviews you receive. Consumers are reading not only the review but your response to that review. If the comment is less than positive, you can reply and ask to learn more about what happened. If it’s a positive comment, a simple “Thanks for sharing. I’m happy you are pleased with the service you received.” is all that is needed.