{"id":114018,"date":"2017-06-05T13:56:00","date_gmt":"2017-06-05T18:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dacgroup.com\/brands-listening-customer-reviews\/"},"modified":"2024-12-23T00:35:41","modified_gmt":"2024-12-23T05:35:41","slug":"brands-listening-customer-reviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dacgroup.com\/en-gb\/insights\/blog\/local-search\/brands-listening-customer-reviews\/","title":{"rendered":"Are brands actually listening to customer reviews?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The world of customer reviews is changing.<\/p>\n

There was a time where a customer had to go into a store to complain; this then evolved into phoning customer services to resolve a query; then came the age of email \u2013 the only medium where, in most instances, the query is not time sensitive.<\/p>\n

The explosion of social media has opened communication channels and customers expect the fastest response when contacting a brand on Facebook and Twitter.<\/p>\n

In the main, brands have accepted that once they open social channels it is imperative that they continue to monitor and engage with customers. Brands simply can\u2019t afford to have hundreds or thousands of people viewing any negative review left by an un-happy customer.<\/p>\n

The next evolution is local reviews. While it has been around for a while, it often fails to be treated with the same importance as traditional social.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0Unsure about what we mean by local reviews?<\/h2>\n

Here are a couple of examples of unanswered Vodafone reviews\u2026<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Local reviews are hugely important as they have a significant impact on a place of business. While they may only have minimal impact on a brand in the short term, over time multiple negative reviews can cement a negative perception of the brand. This risk is only heightened when brands fail to respond and work to resolve any issues.<\/p>\n

To users, a lack of response can be taken as a sign that the brand doesn\u2019t care about the customer.<\/p>\n

Why is a Facebook comment deemed more important than a local review? Is it purely because there are more eyes on the main social pages?<\/p>\n

Facebook is an interesting channel to look at as local is an area in which they feel they can compete with Google. In the past, Facebook has pushed brands to create a place for users to check in, and now they are pushing for local reviews.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Most brands are failing to respect the fact that unanswered local reviews lead to a loss of business, cause negative brand perception, and cause customers to leave multiple negative reviews (central & local).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Still not seeing the reasons and benefits of monitoring and responding to local reviews?<\/h2>\n

Let’s try another angle…<\/p>\n

If we look at Google\u2019s local reviews, you’ll see that a listing has a review score. This can be used to connect online with offline.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The score can be shared with the store owner\/manager, compared to the competition in the area and subsequently set as a KPI. We\u2019re also able to flag common themes so brands are then able to address problems with the specific store and prevent it from growing.<\/p>\n

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