Did you know that customer reviews play a huge role in local search rankings? While Google openly admits that online review count and score are important factors in local search results, some digital marketing experts even claim that online review management accounts for up to 16% of a business’s local ranking (Google, 2024; Chatmeter, 2018). 

Additionally, while boosting local search, customer reviews also help consumers find quality products and services in a saturated online marketplace. For example, in 2023, 82% of review site users claimed customer reviews were more influential than vendor marketing, and 77% of site users claimed using reviews to avoid choosing a bad product or service (B2B SaaS Reviews, 2023).

With these factors in mind, it should come as no surprise that customer reviews are more essential than ever for local search. 

Unfortunately, many local companies still do not understand this concept. With a survey revealing that 55% of companies do not utilize review management, and 58% of C-suite professionals are unaware of the practice, many companies are missing out on valuable local optimization opportunities (G2, 2018).

With the increasing importance of customer reviews and a perpetuation of corporate ignorance regarding the practice, your business can gain a quick competitive advantage over rivals and dramatically enhance your online presence by utilizing review management, a process designed to leverage customer feedback for ongoing success.

Unlock the secrets of review management for your local business. Discover what review management is, why it is important, and how you can optimize your local search strategy in this ultimate guide to review management.

What is review management?

Online review management includes the processes of soliciting, monitoring, and responding to customer reviews. As a key component of reputation management, review management significantly influences how consumers perceive companies, affecting their purchasing decisions. Whether in business-to-consumer (B2C) or business-to-business (B2B) contexts, review management is essential for all companies. 

Soliciting reviews

Soliciting customer reviews involves making a specialized effort to gather a sufficient quantity of recent feedback from customers. In doing so, companies help themselves remain relevant in the online marketplace, and provide impactful information for potential customers.

Monitoring reviews

Monitoring customer reviews ensures posted feedback is legitimate, and makes it actionable for companies. By employing analysis strategies, businesses can discover actionable insights that help mitigate future failures, inspire product improvement, and enhance online visibility. 

Responding to reviews

Responding to customer reviews is the final, public-facing step in review management. It serves as a clear indicator of businesses’ attitudes toward customer service and can build trust with consumers, driving sales now and in the future.

Why is review management important?

It is much harder for consumers to communicate with businesses than vice versa. Historically, this has resulted in communication breakdowns, preventing customers from providing valuable feedback and hindering businesses from addressing issues effectively. Beyond missing out on local ranking opportunities, this gap has resulted in product issues, missed opportunities, and reputation harm for many companies.

Review management offers a solution to these problems. By acting as a dedicated feedback mechanism, it bridges the online communication gap between companies and consumers, facilitating direct and effective interactions. As a result, effective review management can lead to problem resolution, increased customer satisfaction, and enhanced reputation.

As a component of local reputation management, review management aims to positively impact how consumers see companies through two strategies: 

1. Improved local search rankings.
2. Enhanced online communication between companies and consumers.

These strategies compliment each other. For example, better online communication can lead to improved local search rankings, while higher rankings increase customer traffic and create more opportunities for interaction.

Step 1: Solicit reviews 

Soliciting customer reviews involves gathering a sufficient quantity of recent feedback by requesting it from customers. By timing solicitation requests appropriately, streamlining the review process, and following up with customers, your company can gather enough feedback to guide consumer decision making and set yourself apart from competitors.

Ask at the right time

The timing of review solicitation is important and must be handled with care. Asking for reviews too soon can disrupt the customer evaluation process and cause frustration, whereas waiting too long may reduce response rates. By timing solicitations correctly, you can experience higher review rates and ensure accurate feedback.

To determine the best time to solicit reviews, Harvard Business Review suggests using historical averages: 

1. Identify how long (on average) it took past consumers to leave reviews.
2. Check to see if that average time had already passed for new customers.
3. If the average time had not yet passed, companies should not ask for reviews.
4. If the average time had already passed, companies should ask for reviews.

Despite this basic framework, companies must be careful to avoid adopting a “one size fits all” timing strategy. This is because different industries require different times for product evaluation. For example, “Food, hygiene, and office supplies are examples of items that may be promptly appraised after purchase or consumption, whereas furniture and appliances need more time to evaluate” (Harvard Business Review, 2023). 

Your company should use a combination of historical averages, industry awareness, customer consideration, and professional judgment in determining how long to wait for optimal review solicitation. 

Make it easy

With the complexity of the internet, consumers can quickly become distracted and may abandon review attempts. Simplifying the review process decreases this risk and increases the chance that more customers will leave feedback.

To make the customer experience easier for the reviewing process, companies can provide:

• Review templates: Pre-made templates to help customers write their reviews.
• Review prompts: A set of questions to help gather comprehensive feedback.
• Email links: Direct links to review pages in follow-up emails.
• QR codes: QR codes in shipping documentation that direct customers to review pages.
• Other incentives: Unique letters or small, complimentary product samples politely requesting a review. 

These simple efforts will go a long way in improving customer experience and encouraging higher review rates. 

Follow-up

Companies should follow up with customers who were solicited for reviews but did not leave one. They should also follow up with customers they suspect left unusually negative reviews. 

With modern email monitoring software, companies can track who opens review solicitation emails, clicks on the links, and does not submit a review. By identifying individuals who have engaged with the email but failed to complete it, your company can craft targeted, follow-up emails that boost review rates and manifest your interest in customer opinions. 

Additionally, your business should follow up with customers who leave unusually harsh negative reviews. This can offer opportunities for problem resolution and improved customer relations. Although a revised review may result from these efforts, it is important to approach unsatisfied customers without coercive intent.

Step 2: Monitoring reviews

Review monitoring is a series of processes by which companies harness customer insights for operational improvements. Through specific strategies such as review categorization, competitive analysis, and benchmark analysis, your company can identify ways to improve products and services, capitalize on market opportunities, and shore up inefficiencies. Additionally, by actively managing fake reviews, your company can help protect customer trust and business reputation.

Review categorization

Categorizing customer reviews involves grouping reviews by specific characteristics, enabling companies to identify helpful customer trends. Various characteristics can be used for this process, each serving different purposes: 

1. Sentiment categorization: Groups reviews together based on overall satisfaction. This helps companies identify their biggest strengths and weaknesses.

2. Process categorization: Organizes reviews based on business processes such as order fulfillment, product quality, or customer service. This type of analysis helps companies identify problems in specific business operations.

3. Product categorization: Groups reviews together based on specific products or services. This allows companies to utilize customer feedback in product comparisons, aiding current and future product development.

4. Date categorization: Organizes reviews based on their submission dates. This allows companies to identify seasonal trends and the predictability of specific problems.

Through careful review categorization, your company can organize customer feedback to identify trends, recognize weaknesses and strengths, and develop actionable improvement plans designed to benefit the customer and your business.

Competitive analysis 

Analyzing industry competitors is a valuable approach to review analysis. While the reviews of your own customers are crucial, closely examining competitors’ reviews can reveal their strengths and weaknesses, providing valuable insight into additional opportunities your company can use to outperform rivals.

1. Competitor review categorization. Perform categorization of your competitors’ reviews (see: Step 4. Understand the Buyer’s Journey) to reveal insights that can help your company mitigate errors, improve operations, and exploit competitors’ neglected weaknesses.

2. Customer interaction analysis. Notice how your competitors speak with customers. What tone do they use? How do customers react to these responses? If customer sentiment is positive, try to emulate the same style of response. If the reaction is negative, read additional comments to determine why. Document your findings and modify your response strategy, if necessary.

3. Identification of keywords. Pay close attention to the recurring words and phrases competitors use in their responses to identify the keywords they are targeting. Then, use a keyword research tool to analyze the search volume and difficulty of these keywords. This will help you decide whether to incorporate these keywords into your own responses or to opt for others that might be easier to rank for. 

Benchmark analysis

Benchmark analysis involves comparing the results of review analysis against the measurements of competitors or industry averages. In doing so, companies can determine their performance relative to the industry, and determine where improvements in review management should be made. Benchmark analysis can also help companies determine where they may be outperforming, indicating unique strengths that can be leveraged for continued success. 

Manage fake reviews

Since reviews are intended to act as a decision-guiding tool for consumers, failing to flag fake or inappropriate reviews can result in severe reputation damage. As part of feedback monitoring, companies should ensure their customer review sections are safe and honest.

To identify fake reviews, it helps to understand Google’s Reviews Policy regarding deceptive content and behavior:

1. Fake engagement. “Contributions to Google Maps should reflect a genuine experience at a place or business. Fake engagement is not allowed and will be removed.”

2. Impersonation. “Using Google Maps to mislead others is against the spirit of delivering useful information to assist users as they explore the world around them. Don’t use Google Maps to impersonate any person, group, or organization.”

3. Misinformation. “False, inaccurate, or deceptive information can cause significant harm to individuals, businesses, and society. For that reason, we don’t allow users to post misinformation.”

4. Misrepresentation. “Misleading information can impact the quality of information on Google Maps. For this reason, we don’t allow individuals to use Google Maps to mislead or deceive others, or make misrepresentations.”

If you feel that a review is contrary to these policies (including positive reviews meant for other companies) or inappropriate in nature, your company should flag the review immediately. This practice ensures your company is committed to fair review practices and preserves the fairness of customer reviews. 

Note: Flagging reviews should not be done without valid reason, and should always be checked against personal bias to avoid review gating.

Step 3: Respond to reviews

Responding to customer reviews includes understanding where the customer is at in the Buyer’s Journey, identifying where the customer should be next, and implementing careful timing and personalization elements while crafting a response that meets those needs.

As the only public-facing step of the review management process, effective responses to customer reviews is an essential element of reputation management. It signifies the end of a communication cycle, the beginning of a new one, and can be the springboard (or pitfall) of future interactions and sales. 

Understand the Buyer’s Journey

The Buyer’s Journey describes the process all customers must go through to end up purchasing a product or service. Understanding the Buyer’s Journey is important to effective review management because it helps businesses identify consumer needs and craft effective responses that guide customers smoothly through the purchasing process. 

Remember: to drive sales, your company should always focus responses on guiding customers to the next step in the Buyer’s Journey.

1. Awareness

When consumers notice that there is a problem in their life worth solving, they enter the awareness stage. Without even realizing it, most consumers in these situations are looking for ways to define their problem so that they can move towards remediation. Once consumers understand their problem, the awareness stage is completed and they begin looking for solutions (Hubspot, 2022).

Example: Why isn’t our business meeting sales goals?

2. Consideration

As consumers look for solutions to their problems, they enter the consideration stage. The consideration stage is defined by those who know what problem they have, and are “committed to researching and understanding all of the available approaches and/or methods to solving the defined problem or opportunity” (Hubspot, 2022).

Example: How can we increase online visibility for our company?

3. Decision

Once consumers have clearly defined a problem and identified an avenue for remediation, they enter the decision stage. In the decision stage, consumers perform market research to find products or services that meet their specific needs and then make a final purchase decision (Hubspot, 2022).

Example: Who can I hire that will optimize local SEO for my business?

4. Post-purchase behavior

Post-purchase behavior refers to the processes customers go through immediately following a purchase decision. Post-purchase behaviors usually include:

• Satisfaction or dissatisfaction resulting from the purchase decision
• Contemplation of future purchases
• Advocacy or disclaimer of the business to other potential buyers (Reverselogix, 2024) 

Since most online reviews are written after a purchase, understanding post-purchase behavior is crucial. For example, if companies find themselves responding to negative customer feedback, it is because customers found dissatisfaction with the purchase decision. Seeking to understand why there was dissatisfaction and addressing the root concern can eliminate the need for future responses, improve operations, and strengthen customer relationships. 

Not all customers have equal needs. By understanding the Buyer’s Journey, your business can tailor its review management strategy to plan for and meet the specific needs of each individual. This personalized approach ensures that customers receive relevant solutions to problems, and is key to driving sales now and in the future.

Separate positive from the negative

Before responding to customer reviews, businesses need to separate positive reviews from the negative ones. This will affect the intent, timing, and content of the response. Although all companies define positive and negative reviews differently, consistency in application is what matters most. If your company has not defined what a positive review and negative review is, do this prior to completing the following steps.

Timing

Timeliness is critical when it comes to responding to customer reviews. According to the Sprout Social Index, the most memorable thing a brand can do, across all age groups, is respond to customers (Sprout Social, 2024). These same studies show: 

• 76% of consumers notice and value how quickly a brand responds to their needs
• 70% of consumers expect a company to provide personalized responses

To maximize the effectiveness of responses and mitigate the damaging effects of negative feedback, companies should always strive to respond to customer reviews at the ideal time.

1. Negative reviews

According to research data, 53% of customers who leave negative reviews expect a response in one week or less (reviewtrackers, 2022). 

“In the customer’s mind the clock starts when he or she posts a negative review, and your reputation drops with every hour you delay providing a response. Bad reviews that remain unanswered signal to other customers you are disinterested. It also fuels the perception that the negative report by an angry customer was probably accurate, stated customer service expert, Chip Bell in the same article.

Shortly put, your company should respond to negative reviews as quickly as possible.

2. Positive reviews

Although most companies prioritize responding to negative reviews faster than positive ones—and some companies never respond to positive reviews at all—research states that your business should try to respond as quickly as possible to positive feedback (Forbes, 2022).

Quickly responding to positive reviews can inspire customer loyalty: Out of 1,000 polled consumers, 89% responded that they were “highly or fairly likely to patronize a company that replies to every online review” (Forbes, 2022). 

Although it is not always plausible to respond within a day or two, companies who prioritize responding to customers will see exponential growth in their marketing efforts.

Personalization

Crafting personalized responses to customer reviews relies on an understanding of the Buyer’s Journey. Since customers typically leave feedback at the end of their Buyer’s Journey, company responses are crucial for encouraging future sales. 

For negative reviews, the focus should be on resolving issues to maintain customer trust and remove obstacles to future sales. If negative sentiments can be turned positive, a call to action can then be extended. For positive reviews, future sales can be immediately encouraged through positive tone and gentle calls to action. 

1. Negative reviews

When faced with negative reviews, the primary task for companies should be to listen for and identify the problem with the full intent to correct the issue as fully as possible. As Max Bailey, Customer Marketing Manager at Aircall, stated, “When customers take the time to leave a negative review, it is because they want to share something worth reading” (Hubspot, 2023). 

Marketing professionals recommend that responses to negative reviews should include:

• A personalized salutation
• A sincere apology
• Empathy on the matter
• A solution to the problem, or updates on remediation

Signing the response with the name and position of the responder also adds a personalized touch, and confirms that the response was genuine.

For example, a negative review could state:

Rating: ★★★☆☆

I worked with XYZ Marketing Agency and found their service to be average. The team was friendly and professional, but the final results didn’t quite meet my expectations. Communication was okay but required frequent follow-ups. Their reports were detailed, but overall, I didn’t see the growth I was hoping for. They might work for some, but I expected more impactful results. – Jonathan

To which, an effective response could be:

Jonathan, we are deeply sorry to hear that our services did not meet your expectations and that our communication was a concern. Your feedback means a lot to us, and we are dedicated to improving. To address these issues, we have recently overhauled our communication policies to ensure quicker and clearer responses. We also want to get you back on track with your goals, so we’d love to provide you with two more weeks of free service. If you are interested, please let us know when we can meet to go over how we can better support your needs. We appreciate your patience and look forward to working with you again. – Sarah, Customer Relations Manager, XYZ Marketing

2. Positive reviews

Whereas a negative review emphasizes problem remediation, a positive review presents an opportunity for companies to capitalize on positive consumer attitudes and extend calls to action. 

In responding to positive customer reviews, companies should include:

• A personalized salutation
• A thank you for the positive review
• A call to action for future business 

Like negative review responses, companies should also be signed by the responder. 

For example, a positive customer review may state:

Rating: ★★★★★

Working with XYZ Marketing Agency has been a great experience. Their team is professional, creative, and results-driven. They understood our brand and delivered a digital marketing strategy that exceeded our expectations. Communication was seamless, and they were quick to address our feedback. We saw a significant boost in online traffic and lead generation. I highly recommend XYZ Marketing Agency for anyone looking to elevate their marketing. They truly deliver and are a pleasure to work with. – Jonathan

To which, an effective company response could be:

Jonathan, thank you so much for your kind words! At XYZ Marketing Agency, delivering exceptional results and a great experience is our top priority. We’re thrilled to hear that you were pleased with your experience and saw significant increases in online traffic and lead generation. We’re excited to announce that we’ll soon be offering refresher packages tailored specifically for our past clients. If your company ever needs an extra boost, we’d be delighted to work with you again. -Sarah, Customer Relations Manager, XYZ Marketing

Local SEO optimization

Companies should remember that, like all text published online, review responses can be a powerful tool for SEO strategy. Whether in response to a positive or negative review, businesses should strive to identify keywords and include them in responses whenever possible. 

It is important to note, however, that the overuse of keywords can be flagged as keyword stuffing or come across as disingenuous by customers. Either situation could harm local SEO efforts and brand reputation, so it is important to find a balance when drafting responses. 

Using a previous example, a SEO optimized response could look like (keywords italicized for emphasis):

Jonathan, we are deeply sorry to hear that our Reputation Management Package did not meet your expectations and that our communication was a concern. Your feedback means a lot to us, and we are dedicated to improving our digital marketing services. To address these issues, we have recently overhauled our communication policies to ensure quicker and clearer responses. We also want to get you back on track with your reputation management goals, so we’d love to provide you with two more weeks of free service. If you are interested, please let us know when we can meet to go over how we can better support your needs. We appreciate your patience and look forward to working with you again. – Sarah, Customer Relations Manager, XYZ Marketing

By including keywords in review responses, your company can effectively address customer reviews while increasing online visibility through SEO.

Review management: Just a piece of the puzzle

Review management helps companies solicit, monitor, and respond to customer reviews. It serves as a dedicated feedback mechanism, completing the communication cycle between businesses and customers. This process not only allows consumers to share their feedback but also enables businesses to acknowledge and act on it. Additionally, effective review management guides customers through the Buyer’s Journey, fostering future sales and building long-term customer relationships.

However, while review management plays a crucial role in shaping public relations, brand image, and marketing effectiveness, it is only one element of reputation management. Reputation management refers to the practices that help guide a company’s public perception, bolstering public relations and leveraging a positive image to propel businesses forward.

There is a lot to learn regarding reputation management. To discover the components of reputation management, why it is important, and how it can benefit your company now and into the future, try reading our free eBook.

At Green House, we understand that review management is complicated. Although this guide has been written as a comprehensive DIY guide for your businesses, we have the experience, software, and talent to complete these steps efficiently for you. 

If you would like assistance with review management or other reputation management services, please contact us here.