Google Reviews for Accountants – Why Your Firm Needs More

How important are Google Reviews for Accountants?

Just how important are Google reviews for accountants? Getting Google Reviews from your clients has always been beneficial in boosting your accounting firm, but you might be amazed at how big of a role those little yellow stars play in the overall success of your business. Let’s face it, just the sight of five stars builds up all the trust and confidence a potential customer needs to do business with your business. But let it also be said, the absence of those stars could have quite the polar opposite effect.

In case you aren’t aware, Google is the most prominent online review site, helping attract potential clients to your business. Another little secret, 90% of consumers consult customer reviews before engaging with a business. And if those are not good enough reasons to make Google Reviews a top priority for your accounting practice, here’s the best part – getting reviews on the world’s top search engine is absolutely free!

If you’re still not convinced that Google Reviews play a convincing role in the success of your business, here are 5 more reasons why you should start accumulating more reviews pronto!

Higher Search Rankings

If you were to do a quick search in your local area on Google, say for instance, “best accounting firm in [my town]” what comes up in search results? Most likely, you’ll see the top 3 firms, known as the “Google 3-Pack”, that have a handful of reviews. But most likely, the top firm listed will have many reviews.

Remember, Google is in the business of internet searches, which means their sole purpose is serving up the best results for a search query. So how does Google know whether your business is trustworthy enough to recommend? You guessed it! Reviews are a strong indication of whether or not people had a positive experience with your business. So it makes perfect sense that Google refers to online reviews when determining the placement of local organic rankings.

As you might imagine, Google’s algorithm is pretty complex, with over 200 ranking factors in all! According to Moz, nearly 10% of the total weight of search ranking is estimated to be review signals, including review quantity, review recency, review quality, and review frequency. In a nutshell, this means businesses that have a high star-rating, along with a large number of reviews posted on a consistent basis, will be considered more than businesses that don’t.

So if you want a sure fire way to influence your search rankings, start asking your customers for reviews on a regular basis! You may even end up with your business listed in the "Google 3-Pack". Make no mistake, Google reviews are a key factor in climbing the ranks of search results, so don’t make the mistake of leaving reviews out of your SEO strategy!

Increased Click Through Rates (CTR's)

You might have already figured out there is a direct correlation between the number of yellow stars and the click through rate to your website. When internet searchers land on your Google listing, the first thing they see will be your Google Business Profile photos, overall star rating, and number of reviews.

These listing components have a direct influence on whether or not they click on your website link, and it stands to reason that businesses with a higher rating are more desirable. Ultimately, this impacts your search rankings since CTRs are also a key factor in Google’s local algorithm.

Establish Trust & Confidence

Google reviews play a vital role in validating your business as a reputable and reliable resource. When looking for services, potential customers will select whether or not to engage with your business after reading online reviews. You can toot your own horn all day long, but there’s nothing more genuine than an unbiased third party testimonial. According to BrightLocal, 79% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal referrals.

Reviews provide transparency into the quality of your services and how you treat your customers. Good reviews help build a level of comfort and trust with prospective clients and help push them towards conversion. And if you happen to get a bad review, don’t sit back and do nothing! For starters, be sure to reply to bad reviews (in a general manner of course). This will show potential customers that you care about your clients. Next, bury the bad review by acquiring fresh positive reviews.

And don’t go thinking no reviews are better than bad reviews. If your Google Business Profile has no reviews at all, people will assume your business was not worthy of anyone taking the time to write a positive review. And you can bet they will pick up and move on to one of your competitors!

Gain Customer Feedback

Reviews, good or bad, provide direct insight into what people really think about your services. Pay attention to what your clients are saying, even if it’s not a stellar review. Refer to bad reviews to identify and address any potential problems in your practice. It usually takes someone from outside your business to point out an issue you may otherwise miss.

Be sure to keep an open mind and use good and bad reviews in a constructive way to help improve your business.

Beat The Competition

The hard truth. If your competitors have better reviews and more reviews, you are losing business! Do your homework and find out how many reviews your main competition has, and what their overall review rating is.

Keep in mind, most prospects will not even contact your firm if you don’t have at least a 4 or 5 star rating. And if you don’t have as many, or more, reviews than your competitor, you run the risk of being passed by!

Time to Start Asking for Google Reviews

When it comes to Google Reviews for accountants, don’t wait for tax time each year to ask for reviews. The time to start loading up on Google reviews is now! Take advantage of Google’s free online listing tool to build your review profile all year long. Here are some quick tips to keep in mind when asking for reviews:

• Start out with long-standing, loyal customers to get the ball rolling.
• Provide a shortcut Google review link to share with your clients.
• Let clients know that reviews don’t just benefit you; they assist others in making informed decisions.
• Ask for reviews using email, social media, or during a phone call.
• Install a “review” page with links on your website.
• Respond to your reviews. This encourages other customers to leave a review and provides insight on your client interaction.

If you would like Build Your Firm to manage a customized Google Review campaign, contact us at 888-999.9800, ext 1, or email us at info@buildyourfirm.com to learn more about our accounting websites and marketing services for accountants.