How Plumbers Should Respond to Google Reviews

Customer reviews have a proven impact on potential customers, whether they’re looking for a new restaurant or need plumbing, HVAC, or electrical services. Many home service companies underestimate how powerful Google reviews are for their business. With 79% of consumers trusting online reviews as much as recommendations from family and friends, your business should be on top of every review.

It’s important to understand how effective Google reviews can be for your plumbing business. In this article, we’ll discuss the importance of reviews and tips on how to respond to them effectively.

How Effective Are Google Reviews?

Given their reach and impact, Google reviews for businesses present an effective, cost-free marketing opportunity. It’s important for you to respond to all of them, whether they’re positive or negative. Responding to negative feedback can be intimidating, and you may be tempted to respond to positive feedback exclusively. However, studies have shown that 94% of consumers say a negative review has persuaded them to avoid a business.

Receiving a less-than-stellar review is normal for any business. Thankfully, responding to that review gives you a chance to leave a good impression on the reviewer and any potential customers reading it. Learn how to respond to a Google review with these quick and simple tips.

Tips For Responding to Google Reviews

You should always respond to reviews, both positive and negative. Acknowledging the time someone took to review your business shows you are a brand that cares. Here are a few things you should keep in mind when responding to feedback from your customers.

Spell Check

Leaving a response with multiple spelling mistakes could leave a bad impression. Customers may feel as though the answer was rushed and that they’re not valued. If you’re not confident about your spelling or grammar, we recommend utilizing a spell checker, like Grammarly.

Use Their Name

A great way to make your message feel more personable is to use their name when addressing them. You should also sign off with your name rather than with something impersonal like “Management.”

Be Friendly

Not sure if your responses are coming off as friendly as you want them to? Reading them aloud can help you get a good feeling about what sort of tone your message is delivering.

Express Gratitude

Thanking people for their feedback, positive or negative, is a great way to show that you value your customers’ opinions. Being able to take compliments graciously and accept criticism humbly is critical when responding to Google reviews.

How to Respond to Positive Reviews

When responding to a positive review, there are a few things you should always keep in mind when giving your response. See our tips below.

Respond Promptly

There’s no benefit in keeping your customer waiting. Reinforce their positive feelings about your business by responding to them as quickly as you can. This is an easy way of showing that you care and are genuinely grateful that they took the time to compliment you. If you can, schedule a time each week to read each review and respond.

Be Enthusiastic

Being friendly and grateful in your response should be the standard. If you really want to leave an impression on them and anyone reading the review, be enthusiastic with your language. The difference between words like “happy” and “thrilled” is more significant than you might think.

Encourage Them to Share with Others

Encouraging customers to share their positive feedback elsewhere online or in person with friends could be a game-changer for your business. This could help you acquire new customers and inspire loyalty from former customers.

Record Their Feedback

If you want to continue providing great service to your customers, make an effort to record their feedback. It’s important to know what you’re doing right so that you can retain customers and maintain your quality of service.

How to Respond to Negative Reviews

Although no one loves a negative review, they are just as important to acknowledge. Look at each of them to learn how to improve your business. Here are some tips for how to respond to a negative review.

Do An Internal Assessment

When responding to a negative review, it’s important to know what the customer is referring to in the review. Take time to do an internal assessment of the situation, so you have all the information you need to understand what went wrong. This will give you the context you need to respond properly.

Respond Publicly

Responding publicly to a negative review shows that customer and anyone else reading the review that you are a business that cares. Acknowledging the issue and attempting to fix the situation is what will make you stand out from others on the internet. If your response leads to a longer conversation, then it may be appropriate to find a more private way of communicating.

Be Transparent, Never Defensive

If you made a mistake, the best thing to do is own up to it. Customers don’t expect you to be perfect, but they do want to see you admit to your faults and make up for them.

Offer Solutions

Being empathetic is great, but you should also offer the dissatisfied customer a real solution of some sort. If there was something wrong with your work, you could offer to send someone to correct the mistake, free of charge. If their dissatisfaction is unrelated to the work itself, you could consider offering them an incentive if you think that will serve your business long term.

Request An Update

A customer’s perception of your brand is always in flux. So, if you manage to correct a mistake and fully make amends, there’s nothing wrong with politely asking if the customer would consider updating their original review. This could go a long way in preventing you from developing a negative reputation.

Final Thoughts

Now that you understand the importance of Google reviews, it’s time to take action. Use these tips to start responding to reviews, both positive and negative, and build your customer experience reputation.

KEEP READING: Why Home Services Providers Need to Create Customer Engagement