Why Your Restaurant Needs Online Reviews & How to Get Them
1. The Importance Of Online Reviews For Restaurants
○ Online reviews are an excellent marketing tool
○ Reviews put your restaurant on the map
○ Positive reviews will boost your profits
○ You can shape and manage your online reputation
○ You get to address negative reviews publicly
2. How to Get More Positive Online Reviews for Your Restaurant
○ Enable online ordering
○ Add your restaurant to the main review sites
○ Ask for reviews directly
○ Share positive reviews on your website and social media
○ Create a QR code restaurant menu
○ Offer small incentives
○ Reply to all reviews
Do you want to make your restaurant a 5-star establishment? Then you should try to get more favorable remarks. Before visiting a restaurant, the majority of customers nowadays read online reviews. Let’s look at why online reviews are so important for restaurants and what you can do to get more.
The Importance of Online Reviews for Restaurants
Did you know that online reviews affect 94% of diners in the United States when choosing a restaurant? France, Spain, and Italy all have similar rates, with 90 percent, 91 percent, and 93 percent, respectively.
And it doesn’t stop there. The number of good ratings your restaurant has has an impact on how much money customers are ready to spend there.
31% of diners would pay more at an establishment with positive reviews. Meanwhile, 22% of customers won’t buy something from a business with at least one negative review.
These numbers are not just a coincidence. The importance of online reviews for restaurants has exploded in recent years.
Any restaurant owner should make a serious effort to collect good restaurant reviews as proof of their excellent service. It is more about how customers decide where they’ll spend their hard earned money.
If you’re still not convinced, consider the following actual advantages of online restaurant reviews.
1. Online reviews are an excellent marketing tool
Potential customers will always place their trust in other customers rather than the brand itself. That is one of the most interesting aspects of social proof marketing. While your own promotional and advertising efforts will surely bring in new clients, nothing beats the recommendation of other consumers who can vouch for the quality of your products.
Think of online reviews as advertisements you don’t have to pay for. The reviews will speak for themselves if you do your utmost to provide exceptional customer service. Online reviews are now the equivalent of people recommending restaurants to their friends and family.
2. Reviews put your restaurant on the map
People nowadays mostly discover restaurants over the internet. If people come across your restaurant and see that you have no ratings, they are unlikely to pay you a visit.
Not to mention that restaurants that no one talks about won’t stand out in Google’s eyes. This implies that when people search for restaurant reviews on Google, they won’t find them on the first page of results.
3. Positive reviews will boost your profits
According to economists Michael Anderson and Jeremy Magruder of the University of California, Berkeley, a restaurant whose rating improved by half a star increased its bookings at peak dining hours from 30% to 49%.
The economists also assured that the food’s quality, pricing, or service did not change, implying that the main reason for the increase in bookings was due to positive online reviews.
4. You can shape and manage your online reputation
Keeping a careful check on your online reviews, responding as quickly as possible, and encouraging people to leave additional reviews will help you gain control over how your business is perceived online.
People will question your customer service capabilities if you do not respond to feedback. Someone else may take control of your profile on restaurant review sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp if you don’t claim it. This could harm your reputation.
5. You get to address negative reviews publicly
While you may wish to keep negative reviews away from your other restaurant customers, you can’t do so with online reviews. There is, however, a silver lining.
Other customers will notice if you take negative reviews seriously and try your best to resolve the issue, and you’ll get a gold star.
How to Get More Positive Online Reviews for Your Restaurant
Now that you’re aware of the importance of online reviews for restaurants, it’s time to learn what you can do as a restaurant owner to collect more positive reviews.
1. Enable online ordering
The more services you provide to your consumers, the more likely you are to receive positive feedback. Allow consumers to place food orders online, and encourage them to leave a review if they enjoyed the food, as you’re focusing on online reviews.
Online Ordering = More Positive Reviews
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Read more: Top 5 Reasons You Need Online Ordering
2. Add your restaurant to the main review sites
Reviews portals like TripAdvisor and Yelp are extremely popular among customers looking for high-rated restaurants. Create a profile for your restaurant if it isn’t already listed. If you can find it, claim the profile so you can edit it.
Once you’ve gained access to your profiles, be sure to fill in as much information as possible. The more you can share with users, the better. Add your website, online ordering page, address, contact information, opening hours, and photos of your food and restaurant.
Another important portal for restaurant reviews is Google My Business. Set it up so people who google your restaurant are greeted by all the information they could need at one glance. The reviews on Google My Business are among the first things that customers look at since they’re so easy to find.
3. Ask for reviews directly
Asking for restaurant reviews is the simplest approach to obtain them. You can do so on a wide variety of platforas, including:
- Your restaurant website. Add a call to action and create a page filled with positive reviews of your restaurant.
- Social media. Ask your followers for reviews.
- Email. Use your restaurant newsletter to ask for reviews.
- At your restaurant. Encourage dine-in customers to review your restaurant on tabletop flyers.
4. Share positive reviews on your website and social media
I recommend highlighting some of the best ratings your restaurant has ever received to encourage people to leave you a review. Ask for permission from the reviewers to post their feedback on your restaurant website and social media first.
If they agree, distribute positive reviews on a regular basis, along with a link to a page where people can post their own. This strategy works in multiple ways because seeing positive reviews will also motivate others to give your restaurant a shot.
5. Create a QR code restaurant menu
Customers value safety more than ever when visiting their favorite restaurants. Taking all the necessary precautions against the spread of COVID19 will attract more positive reviews. One of these precautions is to replace your typical dine-in menu with a QR code one.
6. Offer small incentives
Would you write a product or service review in exchange for a discount or a freebie? Many customers would agree with you. You can motivate them with rewards such as gift cards or vouchers, but be careful not to cross a line.
You can’t “bribe” your customers to leave you a good review with freebies. What they say in the review is up to them. The only thing you can do is incentivize them to take the time and write one, and then hope your service has spoken for itself by then and the review will be positive.
7. Reply to all reviews
Finally, what will encourage people to leave you more reviews is seeing how important they are for you. If you take the time to reply to all of them, good or bad, customers will take note of that and may help you out with another positive review.
Conclusion
The value of online reviews for restaurants cannot be contested — they are the industry’s lifeblood. They distinguish your restaurant from the competition, increase engagement, and, as a result, increase profitability.
Follow the steps above to ensure you get more positive reviews and turn your business into a 5-star restaurant.
You might also like: Top 5 Reasons You Need Online Ordering