When optimising any website the focus is often placed on content marketing and on links, however that’s only part of the story.
Business reviews also form part of the mix as well, however as with all areas that relate to search engine optimisation there’s a right way and a wrong way to carry out online marketing.
Picture this, you search online for how you are rankings are doing in your local area, you notice a competitor with ten positive reviews, they may have even used Schema markup, so the reviews pop out of the page.
You then think it’s a good idea to build reviews for your business, however this is where some business owners decide to cut corners, this is never a good idea. We shall explain why within this article.
Do business reviews actually make an impact to local seo?
Yes they do- that’s the short answer, to elaborate a little further not all reviews are weighted equally.
That’s to say, reviews placed on your Google My Business account are more important in Google’s eye’s than reviews scattered across the net on business directory type sites.
So the clue is there, if one of your customers expresses gratitude for your service or products, then you may want to direct them to your Google My Business page.
Should I pay for business reviews to help my local seo rankings?
It was mentioned earlier on within this article, however its important to reiterate the point here again, don’t ever pay for business reviews.
Google’s algorithms are complicated feats of engineering, meaning they can’t be fooled easily.
So our best advice is don’t pay for business reviews, it can damage local seo if Google suspects spam.
Where’s the best place to get a review from?
There are many places to get a business reviews from, however do aim to obtain reviews on Google My Business as a priority.
That’s because when a user of Google searches for a business, say for example an accountancy practice, they will be greeted normally by three local businesses at the top in the local business listings.
If a business has positive reviews noted here, then it’s much more likely the site will have a higher CTR, which simply stands for click through rate.
Is it wise to also obtain reviews from other places as well?
It’s wise to build business citations, which are simply mentions of your businesses name, address and phone number across the web. (Nap information).
These mentions serve your business for two reasons, one Google can obtain greater clarity and therefore confidence in where your business is located, two you normally have a place where customers can review your business.
What can your business offer in the way of local seo services?
Our seo agency can offer a whole host of online marketing services, so if you wish to increase the traffic that your site receives in major cities like Bristol or Cardiff then we can help.
We also take on national seo projects as well.
To obtain a quote please do get in touch.
