3 Ways to Get More Customers in the Door

Reviews, Reviews, Reviews

Ok so that is only one way, but it is important enough to take up three spots. Online reviews are one of the, if not the most important thing you can do to get more customers through your door that found you on the web.

Customers trust online reviews. A recent study by Nielsen found that 78% of internet users trust the reviews they read. The future of the internet is in user generated content (ok that's as technical as this article is going to get). This is feedback about your business from an independent source - the most important and influential kind of feedback.

"But reviews are for restaurants, I don't own a business that people review". Wrong! While restaurants and hotels do tend to get the most reviews, every business can benefit from reviews. Think about it. If you are searching for a local plumber because your sink just exploded and you find three plumbers listed - two without reviews and one with five positive reviews from current customers - which one are you going to call?

People like doing business with companies that have happy customers. If those customers are happy, then the assumption is that you will be happy too. If you are in an industry that doesn't get many reviews you are in a perfect position to dominate your competition.

But how do you get customers to review your business? Ask them! People love to give feedback on their experiences. I'm sure that you have some regular or happy customers (if you don't, reviews aren't going to help you anyways). Ask your regulars to give you a review - and tell them where.

An important word of caution - Don't jump up and go review yourself at every site you can find! This will backfire. Remember how 78% of internet users trust reviews? That's because fake reviews tend to be very easy to spot. Don't make fake reviews - your existing customers will be happy to give you the feedback you need.

Next up - How to encourage reviews of your business