If you manage a home improvement contractor business, one of the most successful approaches to attract new customers is managing your business’s online reviews. That’s right – you can actually take control of how customer reviews affect your home improvement business’s online reputation. In fact, you could be seriously hurting your business by ignoring online reviews.
When conducting research for services online, 95 percent of users read online business reviews. The right digital marketing strategy can help you to cultivate more consistent and effective reviews that drive business your way. With over 12 years of providing digital marketing expertise to Monterey Bay Area businesses, I affirm that taking a proactive stance to manage your customer’s reviews online can have a positive impact on increasing sales.
How Online Reviews Affect Your Home Improvement Contracting Business
1. Social Proof
Social proof is the driving factor behind potential customers choosing your business based on online reviews. An online review is similar to word-of-mouth marketing. People trust that these reviews are unbiased and truthful, as well as written by real people.
Google and Yelp are examples of a user-friendly platforms that focus on the customer’s experience, making it easier for people to leave and read reviews. Both companies require user names and basic information before allowing users to provide feedback. These online reviews are also highly accessible to internet users – a potential customer does not even have to click a link when using Google to see reviews for general contractors in the Monterey Bay Area!
It can be tough seeing negative reviews, and a business owner cannot alter or remove these reviews in anyway. This provides more validity in online feedback for home improvement businesses and creates a trusting environment for your customers. Customers are not only interested in positive reviews, they also want to know about customer experiences that were not up to par.
2. Wisdom of the Crowd
The more online reviews, the better! Large corporations have been using this marketing strategy for years. With help, local contractor businesses can achieve this as well. The more reviews your company has online, the greater perceived legitimacy. For example, people are more likely to believe 2,000 Facebook reviews than the 3 reviews that could have been left by family members of a company owner. The belief is that 2,000 people can’t be wrong about a business.
People are even more likely to base decisions off reviews and wisdom of the crowd when they are spending more money. For example, if a customer has a major pipe issue with their home, online reviews will be a greater factor when choosing a Monterey Bay Area plumber when compared to minor plumbing issues, such as a clogged toilet.
3. Impact on Sales
Research has proven that higher online ratings have led to an increase in revenue. For example, a study conducted at Harvard Business School concluded that a one-star increase in Yelp rating led to a dramatic 5-9 percent increase in revenue for restaurant business.
Displaying reviews on your website can increase conversion rates by 270%. If you choose to not display your customers’ feedback on your website you could be losing business to other home contractors who openly post their reviews online. Showing transparency builds trust with a potential buyer before they have even picked up the phone to ask about your home improvement services!
4. Boost Your SEO
If a customer is searching for a service online, having more positive ratings can boost your SEO rankings. SEO algorithms are configured to determine which websites deserve top-of-the page search results and positive sentiment is highly rewarded. The SEO algorithm establishes positive sentiment by looking into online reviews provided by customers. The more reviews and the higher the ranking, the better.
5. Relationship Building with Customers
Online reviews provide a means to communicate with your past and future customers. If a customer writes a review describing the pleasant experience hiring your company to remodel their home, you have the chance to reply and thank them and invite them to use your services again. It’s an additional point of contact that is easy to take advantage of and can provide a high reward. When you reply to these reviews, you are also communicating that you care about what your customers think about your business. This message can highly impact a decision to choose your company over another.
The same applies to when you display reviews on your website. I have helped many local businesses publish client testimonials and reviews to their websites. This digital marketing strategy establishes trust and validity with potential clients requiring your home improvement service.
6. Your Customers are on the Internet
Consider this: three out of four people who search for a product or service online end up physically visiting a business within one day, and 28% of those online searches result in a sale. Buyers looking to spend money for more expensive goods and services spend an even greater time reading online reviews and conducting research before making a purchase.
People are relying on web-based research more and more each year to make decisions on which businesses are trustworthy. This highlights the need for your online feedback to be actively managed and prominently displayed on your website in order for potential customers to understand why they should choose your business.
How to Manage Online Reviews
1. Respond to Negative Reviews
Unfortunately, not every online review is going to be five stars. Your company will occasionally receive a low rating from an unhappy customer. The good news is that a negative review can provide an opportunity for you to change that customer’s mind!
Consider this: a customer is not happy with a recent roofing project and left a poor rating on your company’s Google profile. Once this happens, you should reply to the review online and try to clear the air, and you can even call the customer to rectify the situation. The negative review provided an opportunity to let your customer service skills shine and win back a customer as well as prove to potential customers that you are actively involved in taking care of a negative experience.
2. Stay Active
As I previously mentioned, staying active in managing your online reviews is key. By responding to both positive and negative reviews you are demonstrating that you care about your customers. In turn, this builds trust and fosters a positive relationship with your clients. Customers may not trust reviews or testimonials on your website that are more than three months old. Search engines are also looking for the most up-to-date reviews. It is important to consistently manage your online reputation or all the work you put in could be considered outdated. Ask customers to leave a review online at the completion of a service.
3. Hire a Professional
If you are like most general contractors, you probably have enough on your plate and adding digital marketing to your workload sounds overwhelming. It’s easier to reach your digital marketing goals with a successful marketing agency to guide you. I have over 12 years of experience managing online reputation and improving search engine optimization for home improvement contractors and other Monterey Bay Area businesses. My agency, Core6.Marketing, quickly grew to be the dominant highest-rated digital marketing agency in the region, which it still maintains to this day.
Improve your online reputation and build towards higher SEO rankings today by starting a conversation with us. You can set an appointment for a consultation so that we can get to know your business a bit better. From there, you can be on your way to building trust with potential customers, driving more sales, and ranking higher online.
If you’re looking for more digital marketing ideas for home improvement contractors, we can help! Core6.Marketing can answer your questions about Google Ads, Website Design, Paid Advertising, Social Advertising, and more. Please contact us today to learn more about how to grow your contracting business online.
Article by Phil Fisk
CEO, Core6.Marketing
831-789-9320
