Using online reviews as a marketing opportunity is an approach that I’ve been pushing for years. In that time, I’ve personally responded to thousands of reviews on behalf of my clients, with a unique response every time.
These thousands include primarily positive reviews, four- and five-star. Without doing an extensive audit, I’d estimate they have been about 97% positive, 3% negative or mixed. They include reviews as long as multiple paragraphs or as short as stars with no comment at all. They are on platforms that range from the general (Google, Facebook, Yelp) to the more specialized (Expedia, TripAdvisor, Zillow).
I’ve established ground rules for providing strong responses that reflect well on the brand:
- To the reviewer themselves, who will receive a notification that a response has been posted and be able to read the text.
- To outside observers — people who are reading the brand’s reviews before buying.
In this article, I’m going to focus on responding to positive reviews, although many of these principles are equally applicable to negative reviews. In tomorrow’s article, I’ll present a few more that are specific to those. If it’s been posted, this link will be live: 6 Tips for Stronger Responses to Negative Reviews
Here are the 12 guidelines I follow every time I go to work on this task. I hope that they can help you respond with confidence!
1 Be genuine
Everything else is secondary to your real voice shining through.
2 Don’t copy and paste
Make each response unique. It’s likely that I’ve used the exact same words and structure in multiple responses, but it’s never been because I copied and pasted the text. Avoiding this shortcut causes me to approach each review like a new project and evaluate each experience and piece of feedback on its own.
3 Write well
Check your spelling and grammar before posting. Use complete sentences. Have a beginning, middle, and end. Use proper punctuation. You wouldn’t send out an ad or flyer without checking these things, because it could damage your brand’s reputation. Treat your responses with the same dignity.
4 Use their name
Include the guest’s first name in the response, especially when you’re expressing gratitude or inviting them back. Make it personal. If a real first name isn’t available, you have permission to skip this tip.
5 Use superlatives
Terrific, fantastic, wonderful, amazing, etc. These words show enthusiasm, like every review you read is an enjoyable experience and customer feedback is the highlight of your day.
6 Match words/phrases that the guest used
Show that you actually read and understood their review by including in your response a specific word or phrase they used first. For instance, if someone describes my client’s services as “amazing,” I’ll thank them for their “amazing” review.
7 Include an invitation
The reviewer receives a notification when their review is responded to. Take the opportunity to ask for a referral, or invite them back to your business. I always think of the iconic Pokemon Center line: “We hope to see you again!”
8 Reference what they said
Similarly, pay attention to the specifics of the review and reference them in your response. If they loved a specific employee, thank them for that shout-out. If it was the location, talk about how glad you are, too, that you have such an awesome location. If they said they’re coming back, change your wording to reflect that. Again, show that you read and understood. This is a dialogue.
9 Give credit where it’s due
If the reviewer praises someone specific on your team, echo those praises — by name if possible. A lot of times, I’ll use something like, “We are so proud of ______ for going above and beyond to make the experience memorable for you.” Brands that value their employees’ contributions are well-liked.
10 Use variations
Alternate between “thanks” and “thank you.” Occasionally, go from “We hope to see you again!” to “We’ll be looking forward to seeing you again very soon!” Thank them for their recommendation rather than their review. Switch the order and wording up up every once in a while to keep things fresh. We’re trying to avoid anything that looks boilerplate or copy/pasted.
11 Don’t be afraid to joke
These are positive reviews from people happy with your business, so you’ve got a lot of goodwill to work with. Show some personality. A pun or reference shows that you’re enjoying the opportunity to interact with your customers and mixes things up. Remember, though: Don’t make fun. Have fun.
12 Thank them for the service they’ve provided you
Reviews are valuable. Thank the guest for taking the time to share their experience. (Often, I’ll even use that exact phrase.) If they provided feedback, thank them for helping make your business better. If they are really enthusiastic, call that out and say how glad you are that they’ve become a fan. Show that you value their opinion and the time they spent to put it in words.
90% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase. 56% of consumers read at least four reviews before buying. 97% of those who read online reviews also read the responses.
Any of your responses could be among the ones they consider. When you realize that, it becomes clear that the quality of your responses really matters. You aren’t only speaking to the customer who left the review. You’re sending a message to the world about who you are as a brand.
Use my 12 tips as a starting point, then develop your own rules that will shape your unique voice. Make sure that the message you’re sending is WE CARE.
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Acknowledgements for this one go to my source for the review statistics in the conclusion: 10 ONLINE REVIEW STATISTICS YOU NEED TO KNOW IN 2021
