How to Manage Reviews on Google Maps

Beyond the question of “How to leave a review in Google,” effective management of Google Maps Reviews helps to enhance the company’s image, boost loyalty, and attract new customers. 

In our latest blog post, we'll look at how to get started with reviews, encourage customers to leave a Google review, and cope with fake comments.

‍

Why Do Companies Need Google Reviews?

Reviews on Google Maps assume free advertising. When your potential customer looks for a product or service, they pay attention to Google reviews. Various surveys have shown that consumers trust online reviews and feedback on platforms just as personal recommendations. 

A high rating and positive Google Maps Reviews increase a business's credibility and the likelihood of choosing your company among competitors. 

‍

‍

Google reviews also affect Google's local SEO by helping businesses appear higher on search engine results pages (SERPs).

Naturally, business owners often ask us: “How do I see all my Google reviews?” 

‍

Optimize Your Business Profile

There’s a vital question among business owners: “How to view my reviews on Google?” To start getting Google reviews about your business on Google, you need to claim ownership rights. 

Here are the instructions for responding to reviews on your company’s behalf.

After your company is verified, start filling out the corporate profile.

Companies that optimize their Google Maps profile attract more local consumers. This is because Google recognizes such profiles as active, which increases their visibility in search results. 

To achieve this, update your business profile regularly:

‍

Working hours:‍

• During weekdays and weekends 
• Consider working hours on holidays. This will help customers know exactly when your business is open, and mitigate dissatisfaction.

‍

Up-to-date contact information: 

• Make sure your phone number, email address, and physical address are always
• Updated Inaccurate or outdated information will cause the loss of potential customers.

‍

Visual and location-based data:‍

• ‍Add and update photos of your business to make the finest impression 
• Use high-quality images to grab the attention of potential customers
• Add other useful information about your business and your core services.

‍

Publishing Reviews on Google Maps

‍

Fake reviews or negative actions are the ones that:‍

• Do not reflect the true customer experience with the company
• Are published by a competitor to undermine the credibility of a product or service
• Identical reviews from multiple accounts
• Remove negative feedback.
• Receive positive feedback only
• Incentivize positive feedback in exchange for gifts or discounts.

‍

Google Maps prohibits companies from:‍

• Facilitating the publication of fake content
• Providing incentive offers like money, discounts, free goods, and/or services in exchange for Publishing a new review or correcting or removing an existing negative review
• Preventing the publication of negative reviews, prohibiting them, or persuading customers to write positive reviews only
• Publishing content about a competitor's location to undermine a company’s or a product’s reputation.‍

‍

Sellers are allowed to:‍

• Promote the publication of content that reflects the real situation without incentive offers.

‍

Can Google Detect Fake Google Reviews?

Google deploys a fake reviews detection system, including a mix of automated systems, machine learning, and user reports. Meanwhile, it does not work perfectly, so the search engine cannot always protect a company's profile from distractions like phishing reviews. 

‍

How to Effectively Interact with Reviews on Google Maps

Regular monitoring of reviews is crucial. This allows you to respond quickly to problems, while interaction with positive feedback will award you with higher Google rankings. To receive all notifications timely, you can use Google Alerts or specialized services to receive notifications.

‍

Respond to All Feedback 

You should respond to both positive and negative Google reviews. This shows that you value and respect customer feedback and are ready to resolve any issues they may have.

Responding to positive Google reviews, say thanks to the customer and mention specific details from their review. For example: 

‍

“Thanks for a great review! We're glad you liked our service/product/store. We look forward to seeing you again!”

‍

As for negative reviews, it’s vital to address the issue and offer a solution or apology if needed. Remember to remain professional and avoid being defensive or uncooperative.  

‍

"Thanks for your feedback. We're sorry you had a negative experience. Please contact us at [contact information] so we can cope with your issue further and correct the problem."

‍

Encourage Customers to Leave Google Reviews

The more reviews you have on your Google Maps profile, the higher your chances of ranking higher in search results.

‍

Encourage satisfied customers to leave Google reviews by adding a call to action:

• On the website 
• After the purchase
• On social media pages. 

‍

You may also:‍

• Send emails after a purchase or service with a request to leave a Google review via a link
• Integrate the link to the review into the email signature in your email newsletter
• Deploy SMS marketing once this channel brings you a sound conversion rate.

‍

We’ve been working with a medical clinic to place reviews on Google Maps for their 5+ branches. On our part, we emphasize the importance of pursuing a client’s reputation by encouraging visitors to leave reviews on pivotal digital resources like Google Maps. It is essential to grab authentic customer reviews while the most recent Google updates detect possible manipulations regarding reputation. However, the client’s case showed that few patients agreed to provide feedback. And here’s a vital question on a patient’s side: “How do I leave a review on Google?” Following an appointment, make visitors leave written reviews reflecting their first-hand impressions: what they liked most, what they didn't like, recommendations, and wishes. Healthcare providers may encourage patients to send Google feedback on the quality of their performance online, i.e. through a messenger. The review process should be done with a client’s consent. A client sends us the collected feedback for each of the branches, and our team further posts them on popular platforms like Google Maps or other external resources. This allows us to showcase genuine patient experiences, improve the clinic's reputation, and boost trust among new clients. Oksana Babenko, SEO Expert at Promodo.

‍

Regularly Monitor and Analyze your Google Maps Reviews

Regular monitoring and analysis of Google Maps reviews allows you to identify trends, strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. Use this data to adjust your marketing strategy or ad campaigns and make changes to improve the user experience and increase engagement with potential customers.

‍

Through constant feedback monitoring, we identify current customer dissatisfaction. Based on negative reviews, we create a list of recommendations for the client to improve their service. By working out these issues on the client's side, we impact the reputation of the client’s site by improving the quality and subsequent feedback from visitors. Oksana Babenko, SEO Expert at Promodo.

‍

Integrate Google Reviews 

Make the best use of positive Google reviews to increase your brand credibility:

• Place customer reviews on the website
• Use customer reviews in newsletters, ad campaigns, pop-ups, etc 
• Post customer reviews on social media by adding photos or videos. 

‍‍‍

Add Google Customer Reviews to Your Website

Google Customer Reviews is a review collection service on your website available through your Google Merchant account.

While assessing local business presence, Google also evaluates the reviews left by users on Google Maps. 

‍

Google Customer Reviews:‍

1. ‍Invitation from Google: after the purchase, the customer receives an email with a request to leave a review on the day they receive the goods.
2. Customer survey: the customers who want to leave a Google review are redirected to the survey page. They may provide a 1-to-5 rating and post additional comments.
3. Data aggregation: Google collects reviews and generates a rating displayed on the site and in search results.

‍

Data Collected by Google Customer Reviews:‍

• ‍Order number
• Customer's email address
• Google account information
• Country
• Date of delivery of the order
• Product identification numbers.

‍

How to View My Google Reviews:‍

‍To make the most use of Google Customer Reviews, add the code of the survey module to the order confirmation page, available for both PC and mobile devices. A full integration guide is available here.

‍

1. Go to Google Merchant Center, sign up, or select a program.
2. Select Customer Reviews from the programs.
3. The Customer Review Program agreement will appear before you continue. Then select that you have read and agreed to the document. Click on the Save and Continue buttons.
4. Post the survey on your website. Then you’ll receive a code for integrating it into your website.
5. How to place the survey module: here are the details.
6. Show your badge. Google provides a Google Customer Reviews icon you can embed on your website. 

‍

That’s how to find your reviews on Google/

‍

How to Handle Fake Reviews

Fake reviews on Google Maps can negatively affect your business reputation. Once you've received fake reviews on Google, check it out before taking action. To identify a fake review, check the following points:

‍

1. Are the commenters in your CRM? If not, they are probably not your customers.
2. Have they registered a support ticket? If not, encourage them to do so by providing a direct link to contact them.
3. Are specific details provided, such as names of employees? Usually, if there has been a bad experience, specific names are provided and the situation is described.
4. Was there an influx of negative reviews in a short while? It could be a competitor or a spammer. Suspicious reviews often hold general or absurd accusations.
5. Did the reviewer recommend a competitor in their negative review? This is a sign of a fake review.

‍

We recommend our clients respond to all reviews, even fake ones, professionally. It is crucial to explain the situation and express your desire to solve the problem. We understand which reviews can be deleted. So if the review is fake, we send a complaint. If this does not solve the problem and Google does not remove the review, we contact Google support via Google Business Profile to explain the situation and request review removal, providing all the necessary details and evidence. Oksana Babenko, SEO Expert at Promodo. 

‍

How to remove a Google review:

Business owners cannot delete reviews on Google Maps, still, they can complain about those that violate Google's policy. To do this, select the review and click on “Report Violation”. In particular, negative reviews can be removed for: 

• Profanity
• Intimidation or harassment
• Discrimination 
• Disclosure of personal information
• Aggressive statements that humiliate or discredit a person or group based on race, nationality, political views, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity
• Content of a sexually-explicit nature
• Dangerous content
• Illegal content.

‍

Google checks the flagged content and may remove it once it violates the rules or contradicts the search engine's standards. 

‍

Conclusions

Working with Google Maps reviews is an ongoing process that requires attention and a strategic approach. Use positive reviews as free advertising, analyze negative ones to improve your service, and be sure to respond to all the reviews promptly and professionally. This will solidify your business reputation and help you win more customers.

‍

Need Help With Google Maps Reviews?

Let's discuss your strategy with our best SERM experts.

Apply