Having an online business or a law firm alone is not enough. You also need to devise a system that keeps bringing in new prospective clients your way. One such system is online reviews.
Online reviews are a form of advertising that’s effortless. It requires your prospects to just read other people’s experience with your business and then have their interest hooked to choose you. So in short, online reviews build your business reputation and help shape the way your prospective clients perceive you.
However, reviews go beyond preserving your business reputation. They also have some additional benefits.
Why Are Reviews Important?
- Improve your search engine ranking.
- Help increase the conversion rate of your website.
- Make you credible.
- Make you the go-to expert in your field.
Simple Guide to Obtaining Online Reviews
Now that you understand the importance of business reviews, you need to follow this step-by-step guide on how to set them up.
After finishing a case with your client, PaperStreet recommends that you reach out to them with an email. This email should ask for their feedback and also ask them to submit a review. However, to enable a smooth sail, you must have given your clients a heads up that you’ll ask them for review during your physical contact with them. This email then functions as a follow-up to that conversation.
In your email, you can decide to include links to your different review sites or a single page on your website containing the list of these review sites. To understand this, read the details below.
Create “Submit Your Review” Page on Your Website
This is a separate page that doesn’t necessarily need to be included on your website menu. It can only be accessed by people you give the link to. This page will contain a list of different sites where your clients can submit their reviews.
7 Simple Ways to Get Online Reviews
There are a number of platforms you can set up for online reviews. The right platform or platforms for you will depend on how you operate your business.
Martindale
This is a platform that provides information about legal practitioners and the legal profession as a whole. It covers background information of lawyers and law firms in the United States and some other countries. Its database contains more than one million lawyers and law firms worldwide.
The customers are provided with the option of searching for a specific lawyer or law firm using criteria such as geography, law school, specialty, and language. Customers are allowed to give reviews which can help other customers in making decisions.
Google allows different businesses to open a business profile that will enable them to connect with customers. The interesting thing is that these profiles are integrated with Google services such as Google search and maps. This makes it easier for prospects to locate your business.
While setting your business profile, you can add photos, locations, and offers that make your business unique. This will give your prospects reasons to always choose you.
Another exciting feature is the review collection option that is available. This will help build your online reputation.
Avvo
This platform was created specifically to make it easier for people to locate good lawyers with just a few clicks. In addition to lawyer profiles, the site provides useful advice on legal issues. This platform contains detailed information about lawyers that are registered with it. Each lawyer is showcased with their profile, reviews, and ratings given by Avvo. It is an excellent place to receive reviews, and interestingly, it is completely free.
YellowPages
This is a good platform that can also be used to get online reviews. It has an estimated visit rate of more than five million people per month looking for businesses to connect with.
YellowPages is open to all business types, and it is free. It has strict rules that forbid fake, biased reviews or reviews received in exchange for a payment. YellowPages values reviews that reflect sincerity, but it prohibits reviews that contain foul language or defamatory comments.
Facebook is a great tool to receive your reviews on social media. It is open for all businesses and is free. All you need is an active business Facebook page where you consistently engage your audience and receive reviews from people who have interacted with your business.
BBB
BBB stands for Better Business Bureau. This is an organization that helps consumers locate businesses based on their ratings and accreditation from BBB. Before BBB can accredit a business, it must meet and also maintain specific qualifications. However, BBB allows for companies to be listed on the platform before they’re certified. Business listing is free, but accreditation requires payment. Like other review sites, BBB allows customers to give their reviews and share opinions about any accredited business.
Yelp
This is also a review site where you can receive reviews. Though it’s commonly used by businesses such as restaurants, shopping, food, and entertainment, other business types can use it too. However, Yelp is not free.
What to Do After Getting Reviews
1. Create a Testimonial Page
When you’ve gotten enough positive reviews, you can put them on one page on your website and call it a “Testimonial Page.” This page will be part of your website menu. This page aims to give you social proof and help increase your website conversion rate.
2. Set up a Snippet Code
When you’ve got five positive reviews from your Google listing, you can set up a snippet code to make 5-star ratings appear alongside your website. This alone will have a massive impact on your click-through rate.
What to Avoid When Getting Reviews
As much as possible, you must ensure that the reviews you have are original, natural, and don’t look like spam. To ensure this, check the tips below:
- Don’t allow your client to leave the same review across different review sites.
- To ensure integrity, don’t write reviews for yourself or the firm.
- Don’t collect reviews in exchange for a payment. Doing this means you’re not yet at the top of your game. So focus on getting to the top.
- Don’t collect reviews from people that you don’t have a relationship with or allow reviewers to claim to be a client if they are not.
Note: When your reviews are original, it saves you from unforeseen problems that might incur a loss on your firm.
Tips on How to Ask a Client for Review
When asking a client for a review after legal dealings, you should be reasonable and not pushy. You can make use of the tips below:
- After legal dealings, ask if they’re satisfied with the legal service you provided.
- Ask if they would recommend you to their families and friends.
- If the satisfaction they express is positive, you can then ask if they don’t mind leaving a review.
- If they accept, tell them you’ll reach out to them with an email.
When you provide good service, you will have satisfied clients. Getting those clients to provide positive online reviews for you can be essential to building your business.