Don’t buy harmful fake Google reviews. Always get them from real customers.

New data indicates that Google dominates the global internet search market, accounting for approximately 81-91% of all searches. This significant statistic underscores the importance of garnering positive reviews, leading some individuals to consider purchasing reviews on Google.

Word of advice: Don’t do it! Instead, focus on getting more Google reviews – organically and from actual customers.

3 Reasons You Should Never Buy Google Reviews

Google reviews are becoming more important for business success, particularly for local businesses, has been increasing. The star rating is the initial impression customers encounter when searching for a product or service, making it crucial. Your business is displayed and compared to competitors for all to see. Negative reviews can lead to instant rejection.

According to Google, businesses with numerous positive reviews and a proactive approach in engaging with customers will receive better rankings on search engines. Satisfied customers play a crucial role in generating reviews, which in turn enhance your Google business listing through local SEO strategies, particularly for online businesses.

Loyal customers won’t be hard to motivate to give you a positive review and help with your online reputation.

Is it worth the risk of purchasing Google reviews to increase your numbers, considering how crucial they are? In short, absolutely not! To reiterate: avoid buying Google reviews at all costs!

Purchasing fake reviews differs significantly from acquiring genuine Google feedback for your business’s online reputation, as they do not accurately represent real customer experiences and fail to adhere to Google’s guidelines.

It may be frustrating looking at your business on Google Maps devoid of reviews can be exasperating, leading you to consider purchasing reviews once more. However, resist this temptation as it will ultimately harm your digital marketing endeavors.

Let’s explore three compelling reasons why purchasing Google reviews is not advisable. We aim to caution you about the potential risks associated with buying reviews, to ensure you are informed of the consequences.

3 Reasons Why to Never Buy Google Reviews

1. Inauthenticity is Absent in Genuine Reviews

It is typically quite simple to identify fake reviews. Reviews that have been purchased and compensated for are often easily recognized due to the language they employ.

Unscrupulous businesses that offer reviews for sale online frequently use a standardized format, enabling them to easily replicate and distribute thousands of reviews daily in order to boost their earnings.

Common Features of a Fake Review

• Discuss the product or service in a broad manner.
• Providing a five-star rating without offering a genuine explanation
• Stuffed with keywords
• Repetitive
• Appear different from the typical way in which individuals usually write
• The profile has either provided a single review overall or consistently offers identical reviews for all.

Being impatient and resorting to fake reviews for your Google business profile is counterproductive, as it adds no value to your page and can harm your reputation.

Clicking through to their reviewer profile can also help shine a light on how inauthentic they are. Fake profiles tend to accumulate numerous reviews in a short period, often coinciding with a surge in purchased reviews from customers.

Or conversely, that profile might only contain one Google review because the user creates a new account for each review.

Or if you “buy” google reviews by offering incentives to customers, such as providing discounts in return for reviews, may result in the customer disclosing this arrangement within their review. This could potentially undermine the authenticity of your company and its offerings, even if the customer’s positive sentiments are genuine. The presence of an incentive could cast doubt on the credibility of the review and diminish its impact on potential customers.

Unfavorable feedback from customers is less damaging for attracting new clients compared to purchasing reviews. While it is common to solicit positive reviews, the authenticity of these reviews can be easily discerned by potential customers, potentially tarnishing your reputation with all clientele.

The Ramifications of Lacking Authenticity

• Prospective clients have a keen eye for detecting phony reviews. Recognizing purchased Google reviews will quickly erode trust. If numerous blatantly fake reviews are present, customers will lack confidence in both you and your product and seek alternatives. As a result, your Google listing may end up driving away more customers rather than attracting them.
• The impact is contrary to social validation. Rather than attracting more users to your services, you inadvertently repel them. This is particularly detrimental for local businesses, as word-of-mouth can reveal the true nature of your operation.

2. Not Knowing Your Strengths and Weaknesses

Purchasing reviews is akin to burying your head in the sand, avoiding recognition of flaws or leveraging your assets. In reality, companies require increased transparency, not less, in order to make real progress. Acquiring Google reviews or soliciting fabricated feedback on various review platforms does not contribute to genuine enhancement efforts.

Implications of False Business Reviews

The value of reviews diminishes as you fail to enhance your product or services, ultimately causing more harm in the future. Essentially, you are squandering money on fabricated paid reviews.

It is possible that you will never address your problems or areas of dissatisfaction. Despite receiving positive Google reviews, the influx of numerous paid-for reviews may overshadow them, preventing you from identifying necessary improvements. Genuine feedback from customers and negative reviews can be more beneficial than a flood of incentivized reviews on Google Business or other review sites.

3. Legal Minefield and Against Google’s Policies

Paying outright for reviews can come very close to being illegal in a lot of countries. Offering payment for reviews can potentially cross the line into illegality. In the UK and USA, misrepresenting your business by falsely portraying it or making exaggerated claims is against the law, and compensating for reviews flirts with breaching this boundary.

Both the UK’s Competitions & Markets Authority and the USA’s Federal Trade Commission have previously intervened against companies that engage in the practice of outsourcing fake online reviews.

In addition, paying for reviews is in violation of Google’s own policies. It’s not a smart move to piss off one of the most used search engines.

According to Google, it is acceptable to ask customers for genuine reviews, but it is strictly against the terms of service to offer payment in exchange for reviews.

The same principle works in reverse as well. Should you choose to slander your competitors and pay for them to be inundated with one-star reviews in order to enhance your own reputation, there will be repercussions if you are discovered.

Consequences

• You could face civil fines from the federal trade commission (or its equivalent in your country), and even face criminal proceedings for buying reviews or making incentivized review requests.
• Google can choose to remove reviews if they find them to be fake or paid for. Google doesn’t take kindly to those who violate its policies and you can definitely expect your rankings to suffer if they find out you’re being dishonest.

How to Get more Google Reviews Organically?

It is now clear that the key to success with Google reviews lies in obtaining honest and real feedback. If you are curious, you can explore further on how leveraging reviews and customer input can enhance sales performance.

No matter what industry you work in, it can sometimes be very difficult to get customers to actually leave a review.

Throughout the day, your clients are bombarded with various distractions that may hinder their motivation to provide feedback. This is why the practice of purchasing Google reviews to enhance one’s online reputation has become increasingly prevalent. However, simply generating fabricated reviews does not guarantee an increase in potential clientele.

You need good reviews and you need real reviews, especially if you’re aiming to come up in local search results as a part of your digital marketing campaign.

1. Ask to Leave a Review

Indeed, it is true. The straightforward truth is that businesses encouraging customers to share their feedback typically receive more reviews compared to their rivals and often achieve superior ratings.

It is essential to approach the situation with tact, ensuring proper timing and avoiding excessive assertiveness.

• When engaging with a customer in person, consider requesting their feedback post-purchase by directly asking if they would be willing to leave a review once they return home. Provide them with a flyer or business card containing guidelines on how to proceed.
• After making an online purchase, consider sending a follow-up email. It may be beneficial to wait a few weeks before reaching out, allowing the customer ample time to fully utilize and enjoy their new product.

Feel free to send a second or even third message asking for the review, but be cautious not to appear overly persistent by sending too many follow-ups.

Make sure to maintain a high level of politeness and respect in all your communications, while also personalizing them for each customer, in order to receive more Google reviews.

Consider checking your social media notifications to see if there are any mentions about you. If a satisfied customer has recently given positive feedback, consider sending them a direct message to inquire if they would be willing to share their experience on Google too.

Try creating a review campaign to see if your service earns you those 5-star Google reviews!

2. Make It Simple to Complete

Fortunately, Google has streamlined the review process by enabling users to create a personalized URL that directs them straight to the review page. By following Google’s guidelines, you can easily incorporate the Google review link into your emails, messages, and printed materials when requesting reviews.

Consider incorporating the review link into your email signature for all your routine communications. A simple call to action at the conclusion of an email could prompt unexpected responses.

3. Let Customers Leave Reviews on Your Website

To further simplify the user experience, incorporate a direct link to Google reviews on your website’s main page. This will effortlessly boost the number of reviews on Google.

By providing a transparent box on your website for visitors to easily submit reviews, you can boost your review count significantly, especially if you receive high traffic. This indirect approach allows all visitors the opportunity to leave feedback, potentially enhancing your overall review ratings.

Each authentic Google review holds significance, as even a critical reviewer can contribute positively to your reputation if managed effectively.

4. Respond to Your Reviews

If your business appears in a Google search results, boosting your ranking is possible by actively engaging with reviews – whether positive or negative. This not only demonstrates to potential customers and search engines that you value customer feedback, but also serves as an incentive for others to share their experiences through reviews.

Interacting frequently with customers can increase the likelihood of them leaving reviews. Customers appreciate feeling heard, and expect responses to their feedback, whether it’s positive or negative. Engage with your customers to enhance your online review presence.

Always keep in mind the significant impact that genuine, high-quality reviews can have. If you’re skeptical, feel free to verify these statistics for yourself right here!

Above all else, it is crucial to never, under any circumstances, purchase positive reviews as it will ultimately prove to be more costly in the future. While negative reviews can be managed, fabricated reviews tarnish your reputation unmistakably.

Consumers Trust Online Reviews – Embed Them to Your Website

On average, a typical business accumulates 39 Google reviews, and 93% of consumers consult online reviews prior to making a purchase.

One common issue with online reviews is the difficulty of consolidating them onto your own website, as they are typically spread out across various review platforms rather than being easily integrated.

RTS Website Design can embed all your Google reviews (and business reviews from Facebook, Yelp, etc.) to your own website for a small monthly fee.

After all, that’s where they matter the most. By adding in depth Google and Yelp reviews to your business page, you’ll increase your conversions!

RTS Website Design is a team of professionals that provides clients website optimization and marketing services across the country.

Call to speak with one of our professionals today to see how RTS Website Design can help establish your online presence and increase your online exposure. Or submit your information via our contact form below, and our friendly staff will get an answer back to you within 24 hrs.