Research shows that if your rating improves just by a half-star, the probability of your restaurant filling all seats for the evening increases by 49%. So here is the list of five things for you on how to get more Zomato reviews. These tips actually work for other platforms too, like Google, Yelp, Opentable, etc.
1. Get Listed On Review Sites
It is very important that you register your business on popular review sites Google, Yelp, Opentable, and Zomato. Once you’ve completed the registration, your reviews will start coming in. The next step is making yourself visible to your visitors by replying to reviews. Even if you thank your guests briefly, you will stand out in the eyes of your clients. It’s always pleasant to realize that a business is listening to its guests. Replying to negative reviews with gentleness and care will always be appreciated. The better you are at crafting your response, the more you will get noticed.
2. Ask Your Guests For Reviews
Why should you take an effort and ask your visitors for online reviews? This is simple: if you get more online reviews, your rating will be more accurate. This means that your restaurant will get a more fair representation online.
Imagine that you have five 4-star Yelp reviews, and a 1-star review comes in. This will cause a significant drop of your rating from 4 to 3.5. But if you have twenty reviews of 4 stars, and you suddenly get a 1-star review, your average will be 3.85. This figure will be rounded up to 4 by Yelp. So, the more reviews you get, the more you can be sure your rating won’t suffer in case you receive a bad review once in a while. That is why if you ask your clients to leave reviews, this will ensure your business has a good reputation online.
There are numerous ways to ask customers for reviews. You can do it in person, via text, through your website, via email, via social media (direct message or post), on receipts/invoices. You can test and combine these strategies until you find the best one.
3. Leverage Your Regular Customers
If your clients come back over and over again, this is a clear sign that they like your place. This means that if you ask such a guest for an online review, there’s a high chance it will be positive. This way, your rating will improve automatically. These people are very likely to say good things about your business. By the way, you can use their feedback as a source of valuable insights about what you actually need to improve in your business practices. Get them to see that their opinion really counts, and they will stay your most loyal customers ever.
Place links to your profiles where customers can leave reviews on your social media, website and email. You can also ask your repeat customers in person, offering a discount or a compliment in return.
4. Respond To Online Reviews Accurately
It doesn’t matter if the customer leaves a positive or a negative review, you should always respond positively. This way, your customers know that you actually take their opinion seriously.
Responding to a negative review and willingness to improve does a lot for improving the experience of your guest. Try to be as diplomatic as possible, and choose to reply either publicly or privately. Try to improve the experience of the customer by fixing the issue and offering some benefits next time they come in. It’s a good idea to have a well-written template for replying to bad reviews, so you can just copy and paste it, inserting the necessary details.
Remember that more than 50% of your guests will read Google reviews before they choose to come have a meal in your restaurant. Those 5-star reviews are your real assets, and you should keep up the hard work of getting them over and over again, even if sometimes it involves dealing with cranky customers.
Want more tips on running your restaurant business? Read more articles on our blog. Be sure to contact us if you are looking for reliable suppliers for your restaurant.
