We were asked recently by Guy Masters if there is a good place to direct customers to leave reviews about Goats On The Go®’s targeted grazing services. Turns out, that’s kind of a complex issue. Should customers review Goats On The Go® broadly, or their local affiliate who actually provided the service? What’s the least complicated way to direct customers to the right place to leave a review? What should we do with negative reviews left by pranksters, axe-grinders, and animal rights activists who didn’t even hire us?
It seems best that customers review their own local affiliate who did the goat grazing rather than the overarching brand. Since customers have likely already visited the affiliate’s individual profile page on the GOTG website, they should be able to get back there to leave a review. And, in keeping with our “your business, your decision” approach to things, you should be able to use the review service that you prefer.
So, I’m here to remind you there is space on your profile page for a couple of custom link buttons. Many affiliates use these buttons to connect customers to their Facebook business pages, and each Facebook business page has its own review function. A button can be added to link directly to your Facebook review widget, or to some other review tool such as the one incorporated into a Yelp or Google Business listing, or even to your local chamber of commerce website.
No matter which option you choose, here are some best practices you should consider:
Always use your affiliate descriptor in any business listing, business page, or review service so customers can distinguish you from the brand as a whole. So, “Goats On The Go® Lawrence KC” instead of just “Goats On The Go®”.
Make it easy for your customers to give you a positive review. Send a follow-up email once the project is complete with a direct link to your chosen review service, or to your profile page on the GOTG website (be sure to let us know that you want a review button added, and send us the link it should contain). You might say something like, “Did you love the work our goats did for your property? Click here to leave a review. The herd craves your feedback!”
You will get negative reviews from people who never hired you. Ignore them. By giving the review link directly to actual customers after projects are done, you can be assured that most reviews will be legit — and positive. Facebook’s review tool simply asks if the user would recommend the business or not. Then it uses some magic algorithm to incorporate page “likes” and post “shares” to produce a 1 - 5 star rating. This helps to ensure that one vicious or goofball review will not do much damage.