There are enormous benefits to having genuine 5-star customer reviews on the Internet.

They include:

• Higher position on search engines and review websites

• A higher level of trust when customers see and read your reviews

• Your business listing stands out among your competitors’

• Star-enhanced ads on Google Adwords

• More calls and visits from Internet searchers

Because of this, a handful of business owners and unethical marketing companies are finding ways to cheat the system. This is a HUGE mistake. The consequences of scamming the system and getting caught can devastate a business.

All of the search engines and review websites have policies concerning customer reviews and so does the Federal Trade Commission. You don’t want to upset any of them, especially Google and the FTC.

Consequences of Breaking The Rules

Having customer reviews removed from your business listing

Having your business listing plummet to the bottom of the results page

Having your business listing removed from the search engines and review websites

Legal action against your company if you attract the attention of the FTC

If you’re going to generate positive customer reviews on the Internet, there’s only one way to do it. Real customers must write real reviews from their personal accounts, without being compensated for doing so. If they don’t have an account with a search engine or review website, they must get one before they can leave their reviews. Period.

Anything else is considered either fraudulent or review spam– both of which will attract the attention of the search engines, review websites and the Federal Trade Commission.

Unfortunately, unethical review services are willing to take risks with your business that you would never allow if you knew the consequences. They’ll give you dozens of plausible reasons to persuade you that what they’re doing is OK, but in the end, it’s your business that’s going to suffer the consequences– not theirs.

Here’s What You Need To Know To Protect Yourself

1. No Fake News

Cornell University in Ithaca, NY created an algorithm in 2011 that can detect fake reviews. You can download their findings in a PDF entitled: “Deceptive Opinion Spam By Any Stretch of the Imagination.”

Today’s technology can detect fake reviews with a 90% accuracy rate. How long do you think it will be before Google, Yahoo!, Tripadvisor, Citysearch, Insiderpages and hundreds of other review sites incorporate this software into their algorithms … if they haven’t already?

Don’t write or ask someone else to write a fake review for your business. Even though a well written fake review can be difficult for humans to identify, it’s easy for software to detect. Don’t take that risk! The search engines and review websites don’t allow fake reviews on their websites and you shouldn’t either. Who wants a fake review associated with their business anyway? It’s just bad form.

2. No Fake Accounts

Search engines and review websites don’t want you or anyone else to copy customer comments from emails or testimonial letters onto their websites using fake accounts (accounts that were not created by the reviewers). The reviewer is the only person authorized to create an account and leave a review on these sites. If you take a customer review and upload it to one of these sites using a fake account, it’s fraudulent. It’s not the kind of activity you want to get involved in.

Don’t let anyone gather reviews on your behalf (even if those reviews are real reviews from happy customers) and upload them through an account that was not created by the person who wrote the review. Follow the rules!

3. Don’t Ask Customers To Write Reviews From The Same Computer Or Location

Search engines and review websites do not want multiple reviews uploaded to their website from the same computer or IP address. Many business owners, without knowing any better, ask their customers to review their business from their place of business.

Search engines mistake reviews being uploaded from a single computer or IP address as SPAM. It’s not normal for multiple customer reviews to come from a single computer or location.

The problem your customers may have, is that you’re asking them to sign-in to their personal accounts on a computer that they have no control over. Would you leave your username and password on a computer without knowing how secure it is? If a customer’s username or password is ever compromised, you may well get the blame.

Perhaps what is most important, is what customers think when the person who asks them to write a review, doesn’t let them leave the office until they’ve completed it. Do you think they’ll be more likely or less likely to recommend the business to their family and friends and potentially subject them to the same situation? Personally, I wouldn’t want any positive review on the Internet, that caused a customer to end up feeling intimidated or resentful. Do you?

Some individuals will tell you that they manage a host of people working from multiple locations, who create accounts and upload reviews. There are two problems with this process. First, sites like Google can easily detect these schemes. And secondly, creating fake accounts from any computer is fraudulent.

4. No Duplicate Reviews

All of the search engines and most of the review websites don’t accept reviews that can be found anywhere else on the Internet. This includes reviews displayed on your own website. If Google notices a review on their website and detects the same or similar review on any other website, they’ll remove it from your business listing. Here’s what Google has to say about the issue of duplicate or similar reviews.

This may not be a huge problem if you have 50 reviews on Google and one or two of those reviews are similar. (You’ll find a handful of customers who are so happy with your service that they’ll post their reviews on multiple websites.) The problem arises when all 50 reviews on Google are also on other websites. Imagine having all of your hard earned 5-star customer reviews removed because someone decided it would be a good idea to share those reviews on other websites. You’ll never get those reviews back.

There are exceptions. If a customer writes a review or testimonial and sends it directly to you, you can share it on your social networking sites. That includes Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter and LinkedIn. You can also share the review in your emails, on your website or blog, in print or anywhere else that does not require the author of the review to have an account with the site before it can be posted.

5. No Rewards For Reviews

The search engines, review websites and the Federal Trade Commission discourage businesses from offering rewards like discounts, upgrades or special treatment in exchange for reviews, unless the reader of the review is informed that the person endorsing the product or service was paid in return for their review. If you’ve been offering your customers any form of compensation for writing reviews, please stop. It’s against the law.

You can provide your customers with coupons, perks and other wonderful things as long as you don’t do it in exchange for a review. Read the FTC’s position on this. You can also reward your staff for asking customers to write reviews, as long as they don’t reward their customers for writing them.

Conclusion 

Being an informed business owner is the first step to avoiding disaster when it comes to customer reviews on the Internet. If you try to game the system, the system is going to game you back. If you follow the rules, you’ll be greatly rewarded.

The only way to get genuine 5-star customer reviews on the Internet, and more importantly, referrals from your happy customers, is to provide exceptional service and make it easy for customers to leave a review and recommend you to their friends.

This blog is not intended to interpret FTC regulations. We are relatively sure that is not actually possible to do so. If you have a question about the legality of something that you’re doing, check with a lawyer.

Cornell University in Ithaca, NY created an algorithm in 2011 that can detect fake reviews. You can download their findings in a PDF entitled: “Deceptive Opinion Spam By Any Stretch of the Imagination.”

Today’s technology can detect fake reviews with a 90% accuracy rate. How long do you think it will be before Google, Yahoo!, Tripadvisor, Citysearch, Insiderpages and hundreds of other review sites incorporate this software into their algorithms … if they haven’t already?

Don’t write or ask someone else to write a fake review for your business. Even though a well written fake review can be difficult for humans to identify, it’s easy for software to detect. Don’t take that risk! The search engines and review websites don’t allow fake reviews on their websites and you shouldn’t either. Who wants a fake review associated with their business anyway? It’s just bad form.

2. No Fake Accounts

Search engines and review websites don’t want you or anyone else to copy customer comments from emails or testimonial letters onto their websites using fake accounts (accounts that were not created by the reviewers). The reviewer is the only person authorized to create an account and leave a review on these sites. If you take a customer review and upload it to one of these sites using a fake account, it’s fraudulent. It’s not the kind of activity you want to get involved in.

Don’t let anyone gather reviews on your behalf (even if those reviews are real reviews from happy customers) and upload them through an account that was not created by the person who wrote the review. Follow the rules!

3. Don’t Ask Customers To Write Reviews From The Same Computer Or Location

Search engines and review websites do not want multiple reviews uploaded to their website from the same computer or IP address. Many business owners, without knowing any better, ask their customers to review their business from their place of business.

Search engines mistake reviews being uploaded from a single computer or IP address as SPAM. It’s not normal for multiple customer reviews to come from a single computer or location.

The problem your customers may have, is that you’re asking them to sign-in to their personal accounts on a computer that they have no control over. Would you leave your username and password on a computer without knowing how secure it is? If a customer’s username or password is ever compromised, you may well get the blame.

Perhaps what is most important, is what customers think when the person who asks them to write a review, doesn’t let them leave the office until they’ve completed it. Do you think they’ll be more likely or less likely to recommend the business to their family and friends and potentially subject them to the same situation? Personally, I wouldn’t want any positive review on the Internet, that caused a customer to end up feeling intimidated or resentful. Do you?

Some individuals will tell you that they manage a host of people working from multiple locations, who create accounts and upload reviews. There are two problems with this process. First, sites like Google can easily detect these schemes. And secondly, creating fake accounts from any computer is fraudulent.

4. No Duplicate Reviews

All of the search engines and most of the review websites don’t accept reviews that can be found anywhere else on the Internet. This includes reviews displayed on your own website. If Google notices a review on their website and detects the same or similar review on any other website, they’ll remove it from your business listing. Here’s what Google has to say about the issue of duplicate or similar reviews.

This may not be a huge problem if you have 50 reviews on Google and one or two of those reviews are similar. (You’ll find a handful of customers who are so happy with your service that they’ll post their reviews on multiple websites.) The problem arises when all 50 reviews on Google are also on other websites. Imagine having all of your hard earned 5-star customer reviews removed because someone decided it would be a good idea to share those reviews on other websites. You’ll never get those reviews back.

There are exceptions. If a customer writes a review or testimonial and sends it directly to you, you can share it on your social networking sites. That includes Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter and LinkedIn. You can also share the review in your emails, on your website or blog, in print or anywhere else that does not require the author of the review to have an account with the site before it can be posted.

5. No Rewards For Reviews

The search engines, review websites and the Federal Trade Commission discourage businesses from offering rewards like discounts, upgrades or special treatment in exchange for reviews, unless the reader of the review is informed that the person endorsing the product or service was paid in return for their review. If you’ve been offering your customers any form of compensation for writing reviews, please stop. It’s against the law.

You can provide your customers with coupons, perks and other wonderful things as long as you don’t do it in exchange for a review. Read the FTC’s position on this. You can also reward your staff for asking customers to write reviews, as long as they don’t reward their customers for writing them.

Conclusion 

Being an informed business owner is the first step to avoiding disaster when it comes to customer reviews on the Internet. If you try to game the system, the system is going to game you back. If you follow the rules, you’ll be greatly rewarded.

The only way to get genuine 5-star customer reviews on the Internet, and more importantly, referrals from your happy customers, is to provide exceptional service and make it easy for customers to leave a review and recommend you to their friends.

This blog is not intended to interpret FTC regulations. We are relatively sure that is not actually possible to do so. If you have a question about the legality of something that you’re doing, check with a lawyer.

As a Premium or Unlimited subscriber you can add an image to your review requests that are sent via text. Customizing your photo lets your customers know at-a-glance that the text message is from you, someone they trust, resulting in a higher open rate and more reviews. It’s also a great way to promote your brand.

MMS Review Requests Are Picture Perfect!

If you’re a Premium or Unlimited subscriber your text messages are currently being sent using the default graphic shown above. The default graphic is more effective than the text only message, but it’s not as effective as it could be. For the best results, choose a customized photo representing your business.

Here’s What You Need To Do

Choose your photo carefully and make sure that it reflects the elements of your brand that you want to emphasize. Staff photos and photos of yourself emphasize personal relationships and allow customers to feel that they know you little better. Images of your logo promote brand recognition and professionalism, while a picture of your building or office interior may be instantly recognizable and show that you’re a proud part of the community.

Once you’ve decided on the photo you want to use, here’s what to do next.

1. Sign in to the system and go to Review Request Settings
2. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the text that reads “Customize SMS/MMS Settings.”
3. Under Enable MMS select, “Yes – Include a customer graphic”
4. Upload your photo or graphic.
5. Click the Save button at the bottom of the page to save your work.

If you have any questions about this feature or if you want to upgrade to the Premium or Unlimited service to take advantage of this feature, please give us a call at 808-891-0449. We’re happy to help.

In order to get reviews on any website (including Google) you’ll need to do three things.

1.  Change the Default Review Request Text

Step 1:  After you ask someone to write a review for you on Google, you want to make sure that the text in your email guides them to Google. If you decide to use the “Google or Bust” or “Google and Trust” review strategy, you’ll need to change the initial review request default text. Here’s what you’ll need to do.

Go to System Settings > Review Request Settings . At the bottom of the page, click on “Customize Emails.”  Change the default text to this text. (You can copy and paste it if you choose to do so.)

Hi [customer_first_name],

Thank you for offering to write a review for us on Google. Google will provide easy-to-follow instructions as soon as you click on the Google review link. I’m looking forward to reading your comments. Thank you.

[review_link=Write Your Review Here]

Sincerely,
[manager_full_name]
[company]
[phone]

2  How To Ask For A Google Review Script

May I ask you a favor please? Later today or tonight or when ever you get a chance, would you mind taking a few minutes to write a review for us on Google … because when you do it helps others who are looking for a dentist learn about our practice. Will you do that for me please?

Before you go I’d like to ask one of the ladies up front if they’ll send you an email with a link in it to where you can write your review. I’m really looking forward to reading your comments.

Then, you or someone on your behalf must walk the patient up to the front counter and direct the patient to the person who will be sending the review request.

Julie. Bob has offered to write a review for us, will you please send him a review request?

You can also send the review request yourself.

3  How To Send A Google Review Request Script

If you want the highest percentage of patients responding to your review request, here’s what you need to do.

You MUST send the review request to the patient, while they are with you and BEFORE they leave your office.

If you don’t do this they may not respond to your request.

If you send the request after they leave the office, they may not respond.

If you send the review request while they are in the office but they don’t see you send it, they may not respond.

If someone does not engage with the patient when you send the request, they may not respond.

The person who asked for the review (or their assistant) needs to hand the patient over to the person who will be entering the review request, so that both will know what to expect.

Once the patient has been handed over, they should be thanked for offering to write a review. This can be done as you click on “Request New Review”.

The process is very fast if you stay signed into your BestLocalReviews.com account. (Make sure you bookmark BestLocalReviews.com on your computer.)

1.  Type in the patient’s First and Last name.

2.  Ask the patient for their PRIMARY email address and repeat it back to them to make sure you typed it correctly. Always get their email address.

There are four reasons why you ALWAYS want to get the patient’s email address:

3.  After you get the patient’s email address, ask them if they would like for you to text the request to them as well. This is not an either/or question. You ALWAYS want to send the review request by email … and by text too if possible.

4.  Depending on which system you have, you may or may not have a choice of selecting the employee who served the patient. If you do, go to the drop down menu in the Linked To Employee section and select the appropriate employee.

5.  If you’re sending your patient a digital coupon or flyer with a request, to share with their family and friends, mention it to them before you send the review request.

This is a FANTASTIC opportunity to generate referrals from your happy patients. The coupon or flyer will only be sent to the patient if you get their email address.

Referral Request Script

Before I send the review request, may I also send you our digital flyer/coupon and ask you to share it with your family and friends who are looking for a dentist/doctor/chiropractor, etc.?

When Asking For A Review, Here’s What You Need To Know

• Always get permission before sending a review request
• Ask at the peak of your customer’s happiness with your service
• Let your customer know that you’re asking for a “favor”
• Let your customer know how long this will take
• Let your customer know how you benefit from the favor
• Get your customer’s primary email address
• Tell your customer how much their offering to write a review means to you
• Tell them that you’re looking forward to reading their review

Script Examples

If You’re Asking For Yourself

I’d like to ask you a favor Dave. Would you mind taking a few minutes to write a review for me please? Your comments help others know what to expect when they’re looking for the service we offer. (dentist, pet groomer, lawyer, etc.)

May I send you an email with a link to where to review us (and we’ll never, ever share it with anyone). Is that OK? What’s your primary email address please?

Thanks for offering to do this Dave, it means a lot to me. I’m looking forward to reading your comments.

If You’re Asking For Someone Else

I’d like to ask you a favor Dave. (Dr. Jones) asked me to ask if you wouldn’t mind taking a few minutes to write a review for us please? Your comments help others know what to expect when they’re looking for a (dentist, pet groomer, lawyer, etc.)

May I send you an email with a link to where to review us – and we’ll never, ever share it with anyone. Is that OK?

What’s your primary email address please?

Thanks for offering to do this Dave. It means a lot to us. (Dr. Jones) and I are looking forward to reading your comments.

A Word Of Encouragement

You will quickly know whether or not you’re asking properly based on the number of customers who respond to your review request. Be patient. You’ll get better with time. Everyone does!

What To Do After A Customer Writes A Review

Once you get a notification that a customer has attempted to write a review (not everyone who clicks on a review site will write a review – learn more here) you need to IMMEDIATELY thank them. You can email them, send them a hand written card or my favorite, call them.

Hi Dave, this is Bob Sommers at Essential Marketing Systems and I’m calling because I just saw your wonderful review on the Internet and I didn’t want another minute to pass without saying “Thank you” and letting you know how much I appreciate you taking the time to write a review for me. Thank you so much.”

If you call your customer IMMEDIATELY after they write their review, this is the exact same time they will receive your coupon or flyer with a request to share it with their friends. It will dramatically increase their chances of sharing it.