Google reviews – how to handle the good & the not so good.

So, why are Google reviews important?

Google reviews are challenging to get, and can be fragile – anyone can leave a review, and there’s very little you can do to dispute it.  But having great reviews is so important to any business.  

• They boost your local ranking, and act as social proof that customers love your service or product. 
• Multiple positive Google Reviews improves our search engine rankings, enhances our online reputation and entices new customers.
• They’re trusted – a whopping 60% of customers read Google reviews before making a purchase – photography is no different. In fact, photography is such a personal service, that word of mouth and reviews are even more important in our industry.

So how many reviews do you need?  Well, it really depends on business location, type, and size. But we should all aim high, my friends, Googleability will help us all!  

It can be so challenging to get Google Reviews. Clients are busy, so you need to make it as easy as possible for them. Here are our top tips:

• Ask! If you don’t ask for a review, they probably aren’t going to leave one.  So ask – loud and proud – in your post-shoot email, in person after the shoot, in a follow up text… 
• Make it easy!  Add a direct hyperlink that’ll take them straight to your Google Reviews, so they can do it in just one click.
• Keep reminding! Add “leave me a google review” to your email footer, to your gallery delivery, to your follow up emails… 
• Book a fellow Tog Hubber for a photoshoot swap and review each other!

Responding to Reviews: An Art and a Necessity

Every business gets bad reviews from time to time – even Stacey has been the victim of a 1-Star Google review (from someone who never even booked a shoot!).  

The most important thing to remember when responding to negative reviews is this: your next prospective customer (let’s call her Jane) will one day be reading it.

So, you need to write that response for Jane.

Often when people write disgruntled reviews, there is more going on.  It’s probably very little to do with  whatever has gone wrong with your photos/photoshoot/instagram interaction.  It’s not personal. It might feel it, but chances are it’s bigger than you; you are just the scapegoat for those feelings. 

Here’s how you respond:

• Stop. Do not respond while you’re upset. Wait, let it sink in, and craft a great response.
• Apologise, and don’t push back.
• Make absolutely no excuses
• If offering context is important to you, tread carefully.  Remember that Jane wants to see how you handle the problem, not how you explain it away. 
• Whether good or bad, show gratitude for their time and feedback. 

If you receive a review you believe is unjust, you can report it…. But, remember, Google only removes reviews that violate their policies – so it’s probably unlikely that they’ll remove it. That means responding well is even more important because it’ll likely be there permanently.

Swift resolution may prompt them to reconsider their review, or even remove it (yes this can happen!).

From here?

• Leave Tog Hub a review! Please and thank you – truly, if you find us to be valuable, then leave a review! 
• Set up a Google My Business account if you haven’t already.
• Seek reviews from customers, and provide a link. Ask them everywhere you can. Logging on to google to do a review is a bit of a faff, so not everyone will do it for you. Just as you guide your clients through their booking and session, you need to them through the steps to leave a review.
• Don’t forget, respond to “Jane” with gratitude whether it’s positive or constructive (or even a poor review).

What’s next…

SEO. Being googleable is part SEO and well, yes, part SEO – best be sure you’re on the mailing list for when we drop our best tips for being googleable in 2023 > sign up here.