In today’s world, where so many first impressions are made on the internet, it’s no surprise that reviews play such an important role in a company’s marketing strategy. For businesses in the restoration and home services industry, these reviews can make a huge difference in converting a prospect into a client. 

What makes 5 star reviews so influential? 

When they are authentic, they can provide a business with more than just the obvious benefits of establishing trust with the public. Restoration business owners and their marketing teams should consider focusing their efforts on achieving high reviews for the following reasons.

Show Experience to Prospective Customers

Any restoration company can make claims that they have experience in one area or another. If they can get a detailed review from a client, they can use that as an opportunity to actually showcase this experience. 

Reviews give prospective customers a chance to see that the restoration company has worked on projects like theirs, and more importantly, it shows that the crew can get the job done right. Encouraging customers to include photos in their reviews is even better because prospects can see the results for themselves! 

Not to mention, the number of reviews a company has can also indicate their experience. New businesses tend to have few or no reviews at all, so collecting reviews from every customer can set an experienced company apart from the new contractors.

Establish a Good Reputation

For many homeowners, finding a restoration company they can trust is the most important thing. Therefore, most of them turn to online reviews when they want to find a contractor with a good reputation. 5 star reviews are a great way to show how many satisfied customers a restoration company has, but even lower ratings have a chance at boosting a company’s reputation. 

Though small and mid-sized companies often overlook the importance of managing their reviews, responding to critique and unresolved issues gives the business a chance to rectify the situation. The right response to a low rating can still show customers that the company is professional and honest.

Improve Local SEO Results

Since most restoration companies rely on local customers, improving local SEO can make a huge difference in the number of leads they get. While blogs and website content are great ways to incorporate geo-specific keywords, reviews can also play a significant role in a business’s search engine ranking. 

In fact, Google uses online reviews as one of its top three ranking factors for local searches. Therefore, businesses with a higher number of positive reviews are more likely to appear at the top of the page when customers search for “restoration companies near me.”

Look at the difference it made here. This is 1 month difference in rankings after our client got 15 5-star reviews in a month span:

Easy Content Ideas for Social Media

Another common issue that smaller restoration companies run into is managing their social media. When they are busy doing their job, there is usually little time for Facebook or Instagram posts. Many contractors struggle to even come up with content to share! 

Fortunately, 5 star reviews make it easy. Not only do they give businesses an opportunity to highlight a job well done, but they also make easy-to-share marketing material for emails, socials, and newsletters. 

Develop and Improve Product & Service Offerings

Finally, restoration companies should look at all reviews—5 stars and below—as a chance to evaluate their performance. Reviews are powerful tools for product and service development. Even a perfect review could include recommendations from a customer on ways to make the service even better.

To get the most out of their reviews, businesses should analyze them regularly. This can help them spot patterns or pain points for their customers. From there, the business can show that customer opinions matter by taking action based on the feedback that was provided. 

Learn More About Encouraging 5 Star Reviews Through a Marketing Strategy

Restoration companies that are interested in leveraging reviews in their marketing strategy don’t have to struggle alone. At Vinnie Mac Restoration Marketing, we offer a wide variety of services to help companies stay on top of their reputation, social media, and so much more. To learn more about how our team of experts can help your business, we encourage you to contact us right away.

Our helpful service representatives can answer any questions over the phone, or you can schedule a marketing strategy session. There is absolutely no cost or obligation to sign up, so take a moment to find a date and time that is most convenient for you!