If a picture is worth a thousand words, a GIF speaks volumes. When you want to say no emphatically, it’s much better to send this GIF of Michael Scott from The Office. It will get your point across much more effectively than typing “no” ever would. Continue reading “Quick Guide on how, when, and what types of GIFs to use in customer interactions”
Despite the consistent growth of e-commerce, brick and mortar isn’t dead. In the US, more than 92 percent of retail sales happen in a store. But that doesn’t mean that local businesses should neglect their online presence. Today’s consumer does most of their ‘shopping’ online before ultimately making their purchase in the store. And Google has even found a way to track offline purchases back to online activity. Continue reading “ROBO Economy | How does online research impact offline purchases?”
One of the most common questions businesses ask us when they’re just starting to build an online review presence is, “Which online review sites are best for my business.” The answer we have to give is often, “It depends.” And it does depend on a number of different factors ranging from their industry, to what their goals are, to where they are located. Continue reading “5 Tips for Selecting the Right Online Review Sites for Your Business”
When building your online review presence, it’s easy to focus on your star rating, how many reviews you have, or how often you have reviews coming in. All of those things are important and have an impact on whether your business is found and considered. But if you want customers to choose your business, you should place more emphasis on online review content. Continue reading “3 Reasons Why the Quality of Your Online Review Content Matters Most”
Podium recently surveyed more than 2,000 consumers who interact with online reviews on a regular basis. The survey contained a lot of interesting online review stats, but one of the most interesting findings was that more than two-thirds of consumers would be willing to pay up to 15 percent more for a better experience. Focusing on quality over price isn’t a strategy that will work for every business. But emphasizing customer experience is a good way to create loyalty and improve your online reputation. Continue reading “3 Easy Tips to Attract Customers With a Quality Experience”
Online reviews play a huge role in our business at Podium. We are constantly striving to learn how consumers interact with online reviews as part of their daily routine. Because of this, we decided to launch the Podium State of Online Reviews. Our goal was to gain a better understanding of how reviews influence the customer journey. Then use that data to help businesses better optimize their review presence. Below are some key online review stats from the survey. Continue reading “Podium Launches First State of Online Reviews”
Ken Garff, a 54-location dealership group headquartered in Utah, wants its customers to know they are listening. It’s so important to them that they built an entire ad campaign around the slogan, “We hear you.” Because of this, Ken Garff takes what customers say about them in online reviews very seriously. But when you’re trying to sift through the reviews of that many dealerships it can be difficult to hear everything. Continue reading “Online Reviews Help Ken Garff Improve Customer Experience”
One of the biggest challenges many small business owners face is finding a way to stand out from the competition. Oftentimes, they don’t have large marketing budgets. They need to find cost effective ways to create awareness, build trust, and drive sales. Building a presence on online review sites like Google and Facebook is a good jumping off point, but if you’re just starting, the task might seem a little daunting. Continue reading “5 Must-Have Characteristics of a Balanced Online Review Presence”
At Podium, we live and breathe reviews. We are constantly striving to find ways to improve customer engagement. We know from experience the best ways to approach customers and ask them for valuable feedback that helps businesses grow and get better. Over time, we’ve compiled a running list of best practices and lessons that have worked for our customers. That knowledge is distilled the list below. Continue reading “9 Things We’ve Learned After Inviting 4.3 Million People to Leave a Review”
Turning awareness into sales is a complicated riddle that many brick and mortar business owners are trying to solve. You can throw a lot of money at traditional marketing and advertising, but if you have a bad online reputation, it’s unlikely that you will see a return on your investment. Because of this, we’ve compiled three local marketing hacks that will not only help you combat negative reviews, but build trust, and drive sales. Continue reading “Three Local Marketing Hacks that Will Put You Ahead of the Competition”
