One review can make a difference, even if it seems insignificant. Find out about the value of Google reviews and how they can contribute to your business growth.

Why do businesses care about online reviews? Well, it is all about visibility, reputation, and ROI. It is no secret that positive assessment can double the number of clients or users for any company. And Google reviews are, in essence, a form of social validation. That is why more than 90% of consumers state that online reviews impact their inclination to buy and buying habits.

Today, most prospective clients pay attention to the available customer feedback or business reviews. This way, they come to preliminary conclusions about the company and its products. What motivates them? Consumers typically want to hear about the experiences of other people. It is only natural since reviews might shield them from potentially wrong purchases.

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From a business perspective, customer feedback is one of the most powerful tools that can help companies tap into consumer motivation, satisfaction rates, shifting tastes or interests, and competitive intelligence. That is why businesses must monitor, analyze, and react to customer feedback.

Here is the deal, reviews can eventually empower or destroy any company. And through their booming popularity, they allow customers to gain almost exclusive control over the information and influence numerous management activities.

So what does it mean for businesses? Essentially, they need to start investing more in new marketing concepts and customer experience (CX). As for the latter, it revolves around a CX mindset. Without it, businesses can lose the opportunity to boost their revenues up to 8% and higher. Besides, a great customer experience might be one of the few things keeping most companies in business during the pandemic.

Today, even one poor experience can make even the most devoted customer walk away and never come back. With that in mind, we have assembled a list of the top five advantages Google reviews offer. It can come in handy if you want to dive deeper into the issue and understand the phenomenon of user-generated reviews and ways to leverage them.

#1. Increasing Customer Retention and Loyalty Rates​

Transparency is your best bet. That is the way to stay relevant, accessible, competitive, and get credit for it.

Review is essentially a determinant of the business quality. Consumers often research companies or businesses before deciding whether they deserve the time and attention. In fact, more than 80% of consumers look for reviews to determine the quality of a brand.

And where do they go for the sake of research? Well, it is obvious — Google reviews. A company receiving appraisals from its customers can not only earn more trust but also dominate search results.

#2. Boosting Online Exposure and Ranking​

The first thing you need to know about Google search algorithms is that they never stay the same. So adapting to them is the primary goal of any online business. The search algorithm sorts through billions of pages. This way, it can provide relevant search results to match the query.

But what does it have to do with reviews? Well, everything. It is no secret that the search algorithm is driven to some extent by the review signals. It means that customer feedback can add credibility, transparency, and visibility to your company. However, you need to bear in mind that review signals mainly focus on such factors as diversity, quantity, and velocity.

As mentioned before, customer feedback can be a powerful tool and effective marketing tactic if executed correctly.

#3. Gathering Customer & Competitive Intelligence​

Every user-generated review should be treated as a response to the company's survey. This form of user-generated content provides useful insights into customer interaction and behavior. Besides, it allows access to such information as CX, product quality, and how your company performed.

Another principal advantage is the feedback loop — a system aimed at improving the product, service, or business process. It requires gathering comments and reacting to them.

But bear in mind that only negative reactions can help you identify the areas that require improvements. Leaving a response is essential if you want to demonstrate commitment and resolve the issue. In this case, every comment, reaction, or response is a driving force of alteration that has to be done to fix faulty processes and ensure that your business runs smoothly.

#4. Increasing CTR​

One of the goals is to make people click on the company links. And customer feedback is the way to do that. Case in point: reviews boost your rating, and your rating is what prospects see next to your brand name in Google. In other words, a decent collection of positive reactions and comments will result in increased CTR.

#5. Boosting Your CR​

In a way, it is the end goal for any company. CR is what digital marketing is about and what businesses tirelessly strive to increase. And reviews can also help with achieving this goal.

Naturally, you cannot ignore UX, CX, or the quality of your support service. A high Google rating requires a lot of effort on your part. As mentioned before, a high rating speaks for itself and offers immense potential for businesses. For instance, it can attract a broader audience, enhance discoverability, convert more customers, and bring more sales. That is how powerful reviews can be.