The Power Of Reviews
In the digital era, it is imperative to have a strong and clear online presence for business – and Google is the leading forum to do this at. Google Maps is one of the most commonly used mediums of sourcing a diverse range of information about similar enterprises and thus is essential for SEO – a priceless asset for small-to-medium enterprises.
But how do you ensure that you are writing genuine and useful reviews on Google Maps? Simplicity and clarity are the answer – though often the opposite is quite tempting. Below is a helpful guide for you to use as a roadmap in guaranteeing transparent, genuine and useful reviews on Google Maps.
The Tip Game
Be Relevant
This is a subset of simplicity and keeping your review relevant to your experience. Word of mouth is one of the most motivating forms of advertising, so by including clear and concise information about what you ordered, your thoughts on the location, the service you received, the subsequent round of prospective clients will be able to engage and process your experience and apply it prospectively to their own.
Leave Emotions Off The Keyboard
It is tempting, and more often than not evident, that reviewers allow personal feeling and emotion to control their critique. In this case, context is vital. Specific negative or unpleasant situations can occur, but naming particular people is not useful – focus on the experience overall. You are reviewing a business, not an individual.
Balancing Act
Once more, context is critical when writing genuine and useful reviews on Google Maps. Particularly after a negative experience, empathize with both sides. “Analyse and understand the context of the situation. Then proceed to leave your review – this empathetic reflection gives an honesty and credibility to your answer that most people can, and will, actively seek to relate to”, – says Duncan Moller, a Reputation Manager at Paper Fellows and Huffingtonpost writer.
Writing With Style
Word of mouth is a powerful tool. People will pay attention to a well-written, thoughtful review. Keep your review accessible to the broader public – don’t use excessive capitalization or punctuation. Precise grammar, avoid profanity, and the big one – use a grammar checker! A short, creative, and honest paragraph will have the best impact.
Follow The Guidelines
When writing a review, be sure to stick to the local guide content rules. If you stray away, then there is no guarantee that your review will remain available to the wider public for very long.
Common sense will assist you here but avoid spam or off-topic reviews. These are not relevant to the business and will see your review removed if deemed necessary. Once again, no expletive content or hate inducing speech will be permitted. But still, common sense should prevail in this regard.
Formatting
Formatting and Writing Style are invaluable when writing genuine and useful reviews on Google Maps. If you’re unsure about how to check up on what you’ve written, the below tools are particularly accessible resources to do so.
- State Of Writing and Studydemic are great general editing and proofreading platforms.
- UK Writings is for those of you more interested in the proofreading side of your review, definitely one to check out.
- Grammarix is a handy grammar checker before posting that final review.
- EasyWordCount is an essential tool, keeping in mind the importance of a concise review.
- Cite It In is essential when adding credibility to your review.
Your Review – Your Experience
Your review is just that – yours. While it may be incredibly insightful, its roots stem from very personal experience. This is relevant both when you’ve had a delightful experience, or when your expectations were simply left unfulfilled.
Analyse your thoughts before sharing them. Break your experience down into brief snippets, and craft a genuine and useful review on Google Maps.
Attention & Awareness
A review on Google Maps is now more influential than standing in the respective business and sharing your experience aloud – both in a negative or positive sense. This is important to keep in mind when writing your review, using the above tips that it will have an ongoing impact. With this in mind, ensure your review is not a general running commentary.
Armando Sanford, a PR professional at Oxessays, comments: “Local reviews are not meant as forums for your own opinion, they are meant to shed light on the business for the next line of clients following you. So be aware that you don’t get to control who those prospective clients are – be concise, be coherent, and be credible.”
Go Forth & Review
Writing reviews on Google Maps is essential for business representation and SEO. Using the above tips, you can keep your review concise and credible ensuring that those subsequent clients can maximize their experience.
Remember, your experience is personal to you, so keep your feedback balanced and constructive.
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