Last Lesson we covered important facts about getting reviews. The two most important facts are:
How fresh your reviews are matters
88% of people trust online reviews as much as a friend’s recommendation
Now I’ll show you my secret to getting reviews online. But first a news update.
Starting February 2017 Google has updated their star rating system to show stars on business in their search results with as few as 1 review – Source.
That is great an all but what if you have little or no reviews, you get 1 bad review and your rating falls under the 4-5 start sweet spot. – Jason Weaver
So what is to be done? You have to make getting and replying to reviews part of your every-day business process. And you have to do this on multiple sites.
P.S. I know you are going to love this course so much you are going to share, review and possibly become one of my monthly clients that work with me. Next up is all about where to get reviews, lesson 3.
This course will change your business—and you’re going to want to tell the world about it! Because reviews improve rankings in search engines and convert people on the fence.
So, dust off your website login and let’s get started!
First, you will add three “hidden” pages to your website. Many have called this a feedback funnel.
Tyler at Excel is Getting Reviews
If you would like a sneak peak at tomorrows lesson, Tyler at Excel Roofing uses his funnel for success.
The importance of reviews can’t be overstated. A yearly small-business survey reveals several facts.
I like to have experts come on the contractor podcast from time to time. This one with Luke Alley from Avalaunch is perfect for helping you know what to look for in an agency. Also his top recommendations for your business marketing online.
As a service professional you do a lot of business from your car. So I was thinking, wouldn’t it be nice if somebody kept you up-to-date during your drive on the recent Google changes and what do you need to know? So that’s exactly what I’m gonna do today.
Getting Reviews – Pillar 4
Interesting enough, there has been a lot about reviews come up recently. One of the reasons it’s a big deal is because Google decided that you need only 1 review to be able to start having your star rating show up in search results. This applies to your Google Maps listing and other listings such as Yelp and Facebook.
Here is what it looks like.
And
This matters if you have very few reviews on those sites and you get one bad review. That can really impact the perception of your business. So now it’s even more important to get a few reviews everywhere and to get them more reliably.
Harvard has actually done a study and found that having to overly positive reviews also hurt your business. This hurts in returns or clients being unhappy. It truly is better to under promise and over deliver. I’m sure a motto that you know well.
I went ahead and created a FREE 7 day course on everything you need to know about getting reviews. Essentially you put in your email and each day for 7 days you’ll get 1 email all about reviews.
The secret to getting reviews
Where to get reviews
How to know when you get a review
And more…
These are the secrets that I personally use and my clients have used to get more reviews. As an added bonus, I’ve made the emails easy to read.
I recommend you go check it out and get that going on your business.
Google recently did another update where if you have anything obscuring the view of your website on a mobile device (such as a pop-up),it is going to get penalized unless it is on exit.
This next one is a tool and it’s a doozy. Have you ever wanted to be updated when your competitor site changes at all?
Here’s a free tool, visualping.io, where you can automatically check two sites a day and get a notification if there are any image or wording changes on a page.
My favorite free tool is Chatra.io and they do allow the tracking of events such as somebody interacting with you. I have found that if somebody can interact with you, they’re more likely to buy. It’s a very great tool to have and you can answer chats straight from your phone on the app.
I haven’t checked if Facebook’s free live chat can do that but that’s also great tool to look at.
Update: After this recording I decided to investigate live chat more. Turns out currently there is no way to track back to the source Facebook Live Chats. So I wrote this article comparing Facebook Live Chat WordPress plugins & Chatra.IO, “Should I Use Facebook Free Live Chat“.
For Beginners
For beginners this is a really great video from Matt Cutts who used to be with Google. He explains how the Google search engine works. It can be really insightful to understand all the different pieces that they’re looking at to make sure there’s a great experience online.
We scour the web for the best resources for your small business by topic. We call it a news pulse because we believe in the 7 pillars of online marketing that keeps your contractor business alive.
I’ve helped service professionals for years with their digital marketing needs. Interestingly enough they all have the same problem: how to get leads and get back to focusing on what they do best–servicing their customers.
Lead Buying Services
Buying leads has always been part of the mix. Over the years a number of startups have emerged onto the scene. Each taking their own spin. None of them focused on making the process easier or better for the service providers. It’s typically a race to the bottom, with price being the central differentiation.
Enter Amazon
Amazon may be onto something by handling the payment processing and only charging a percentage of closed sales with Amazon Home Services.
Though new, some already have seen success with the new offering.
To explore more about the potential of Amazon Home Services read more about the ins and outs here. Or Signup here.
A Better Return
Amazon may be onto something. But in the end, it’s another service matching people with your competitors and sometimes you. Home shows, referrals and a well executed digital marketing campaign are common better returns for service professionals. We’ve found that directly branded leads from methods like those just mentioned, create value and that value translates into higher ROI.
Ask yourself, are you truly maximizing what you are doing right now? We recently wrote on LinkedIn about the benefits of small things like Live Chat. Feel free to schedule a free 30 minute consultation to asses easy wins.
Other Lead Buying Sites
Ignoring these lead buying services will not make them go away. Ignoring these lead buying services will shut you and your business off to the channel of customers that have been frequenting their websites. So I’ve included several of the most important sites to buy leads from for service professionals. Did we miss any?
Porch.com (owned by Lowes) Thumbtack.com (allows you to list reviews from other sources and read leads comments before deciding to bid on it) Proreferral.com (formerly RedBeacon.com and owned by Home Depot) Homeadvisor.com (formerly Service Magic) Angies List Nextdoor (Up and coming) Yelp (Offers are free but expensive ad options are available)
As we look to the future of where to buy leads, we must include elephants in the room like Google. Google has been testing for years a change in map results that are paid. The advantages are paying for leads. There are many disadvantages as well but when buying leads you must consider a PPC (Pay Per Click/AdWords).
There are pay for call and other useful ways to advertise on Google AdWords that aren’t related to these HSA ads. But please do not use AdWords Express or AdWords on your own.
Let Us Know Your Thoughts
What has your experience been with lead buying services? Have we inspired you to try something new? Let us know in the comments and on social media.
