Stars in Google Search Results: What this means for you!
Recently Google has started showing a review count and star rating next to Service Central business listings in its search results. What does this mean for you? Well, more customers for a start!
Everybody knows how valuable reviews are. Consumers constantly use them to compare and judge products, places and businesses. Meanwhile businesses do their best to get a great rating in order to look better and more reliable.
So when you see something like this in Google search results:
Your attention is instantly grabbed. Even if this listing appears down below others, the stars make it grab your attention first and the fact that it's nearly 5 stars and over a hundred reviews looks even better.
So are you registered with Service Central? Why not see if how your business looks on Google now.
- Enter your business name (as it is registered with Service Central) in Google Search
- Select 'Pages from Australia' in the left column
- View the results
Can you see your business listing from Service Central? How does it look? Are the stars appearing? (If there's any problem with your business listing, please contact your account manager).
So, we understand that stars in search results are good... but there's a flipside to this... What if you haven't got a very good star rating, or only a few reviews?
How do I go about getting more Service Central reviews?
First up, you need to understand that only customers whose work you've accepted through Service Central are eligible to review you. Yes, it sounds convoluted, but why do we do it? Well, to avoid situations like this, in which a dodgy builder gave himself fake reviews and then went on to ripoff a bunch of customers.
We restrict who can review you in order to ensure that your star rating is an accurate representation of your business on Service Central.
On top of this, while all your customers can leave feedback, only customers who you have actually completed work for can leave you a star rating and contribute to your total number of stars.
So, how to get more stars! First off, make sure you're encouraging your Service Central customers to review you. You can do this by talking to them (duh!) as well as through your Service Central portal. Remind customers who you've completed work for that they have to mark a job as 'done' in order to give you the stars.
How can I improve my star rating?
Remember the three expectations of a great Service Central business:
- Call within 24 hours of accepting the job (one of the things customers love about Service Central is that they'll often get calls within an hour of their job posting.)
- Be appropriately registered, licenced and insured
- Adhere to the Service Central Code of Conduct
Some other tips for happier customers?
- Know who is boss. You are in business to service customer needs. Let it be communicated that it is YOUR privilege to have been placed on their shopping list.
- Listen. Identifying the three most important things to your customer will provide clarity and focus. Concentrate on what the customer is really saying. This in turn will help you provide the solution they are looking for.
- Anticipate needs. Customers don't buy services. They buy good feelings and solutions to problems. The more you know your customers, the better you become at anticipating their needs.
- Treat your potential customers as individuals. Always use their name and find ways to compliment them, but be sincere. It creates good feeling and trust.
- Give more than expected. Consider the following:
- What can you provide that your competition cannot?
- How can you follow-up and demonstrate gratitude even when they don't buy?
- What can you give a customer that is totally unexpected?
For more ideas on how you can get a great star rating, check out this FAQ.
Can I get rid of bad feedback?
Generally, no. In extreme cases you can, and if you feel you need to then have a chat to your account manager. Usually your best course of action in the case of bad feedback is to reply to it (you can always reply to any feedback) and talk to the customer to work out why things went wrong and how you can make them feel better about your business.
For more tips on improving your star rating check out this FAQ.
Is Service Central doing anything else behind the scenes to get us more customers?
You can bet your socks on it!
