How online reviews help small businesses and how to write them

Since the dawn of the twenty-first century, much has changed about the way businesses and consumers interact with one another. The Internet has had a lot to do with that shift, and it continues to inform and affect consumer decisions every day.

Online reviews are particularly influential components of modern buying. According to the online review facilitator Trustpilot, two out of every three consumers rank online reviews as the biggest influence on their buying decisions. In fact, reviews outrank search engines and social media in terms of their influence on modern buyers. That’s vital information for business owners, but it’s also important for consumers who want to support the local businesses that call their communities home. Because online reviews are so influential, business owners can encourage customers to write them, and consumers who choose to do so can consider these tips to ensure their assessments are as beneficial to local businesses as possible.

• Emphasize being informative. The more informative a review is, the more likely prospective customers are to gain a greater understanding of what separates a given business apart from the competition. The search engine optimization (SEO) experts at Sterling Sky note that longer reviews tend to stay at the top of Google Business Profiles (GBP) listings for a longer time. Unfortunately, Sterling Sky researchers found that one-star reviews averaged 244 words, while five-star reviews average 74 words. That suggests even the most positive reviews are unlikely to remain near the top of a firm’s profile if they’re short. An informative review need not be a lengthy screed, but reviewers can try to write as much for a positive review as they would a negative one.

• Be truthful. An authentic rendering of your experience with a company will be recognized as such by savvy consumers, and thus more likely to compel others to patronize a business. Share details of your experience with the company, and emphasize accuracy over all. If part of the experience was negative but the overall encounter was positive, note both aspects. Pulling back and offering an overly glowing review might backfire, as other consumers might question its authenticity and wonder if the business is really worthy of a positive review.

• Write well. Writing is not everyone’s forte, but it’s still important for online review writers to try to write as well as possible. Poor grammar can be distracting, and that can affect how people perceive a review.

Some may be too distracted by poor grammar to recognize the reviewer had a positive experience with a given company. Review writers need not sweat over their grammar as if they were writing a term paper, but the review could be most beneficial to local businesses if the grammar does not draw attention away from their experiences.

• Avoid social or political commentary. Online reviews are not appropriate forums to foster or engage in political or social commentary. Consumers who want to help local businesses should refrain from discussing anything other than their experiences with a company and its products in an online review.