Studies show that over 60% of home buyers select their realtor based on online reviews; thus, it is critical for real estate agents to have an established presence on review websites.
Though some agents may shy away from asking their clients and referrals to leave reviews online, great customer service often results in positive online reviews that help increase clientele and referrals.
Showcase Your Client Reviews
Real estate agent reviews and testimonials can provide prospective clients with an inside glimpse of what it’s like working with you. By sharing positive online client endorsements, real estate agent testimonials allow prospective clients to differentiate you from competition while positioning you as an expert in your field.
Display client reviews prominently on your website and social media pages for maximum exposure, but real estate review sites such as Zillow, Google and Yelp also provide excellent opportunities.
Zillow is one of the premier real estate agent review websites. Users can leave star ratings based on negotiation skills, local knowledge and process expertise for agents they encounter while using the Zillow site – which receives over 124 million visits monthly!
Zillow offers many benefits; however, its platform also has some drawbacks. To post reviews you must create an individual Zillow account which makes it easier for people to post false reviews or to alter existing ones with fake accounts. Furthermore, some agents have reported inaccurate reviews which have been altered.
Google is one of the premier real estate agent review websites, as well as being a primary search engine used by consumers when researching any topic or service. Accumulating reviews can significantly boost visibility within search results and give your firm an edge against competition.
Google does not guarantee that accumulating reviews will boost your rank in search results; to rank higher on Google it’s best to provide excellent customer service which results in delighted clients who leave positive reviews for you.
When soliciting reviews or testimonials, make sure that customers include specific details about their experience so that prospective buyers or sellers can identify with it and determine if your service would be a good match for them. For example, having reviews where clients state you went above and beyond to help them meet their goals will add credibility to your testimonial.
An efficient way to boost real estate client reviews is with a reputation management platform. These tools can automate the process of asking and collecting client reviews online and then display them on social media and websites, providing detailed reports about positive and negative feedback, keywords that people are searching for you using and other important metrics.
Attract New Clients
As more consumers search for real estate agents online, client reviews can help attract leads and clients. Reviews provide prospective customers with an insight into the quality of an agent’s work and can help them decide if they are suitable to their needs. However, for agents hoping to earn positive reviews quickly and earn their business through word of mouth referrals alone: excellent customer service will lead to word-of-mouth recommendations which lead to word of mouth referrals which, in turn, generate more reviews.
Real estate agents should make client reviews an effortless process by asking clients in person or through email and providing clear instructions on how to write one. Some agents even offer incentives, like small gifts or discounts on services rendered, in exchange for them leaving reviews. Finally, agents should promote these reviews through social media and their websites in order to gain maximum client feedback.
Real estate agents should take great care in being honest when responding to reviews of their services. Contravening Federal Trade Commission and Google My Business guidelines is prohibited; any payment for fake or falsified reviews could damage an agent’s reputation further, potentially even leading to suspension from practice of real estate altogether if caught doing this activity.
One effective strategy for increasing client reviews is using a paid online review management platform. These services allow real estate agents, teams, or brokerages to automatically request, receive, reply to and manage reviews quickly – giving real estate agents an advantage in getting more reviews quickly while increasing SEO by increasing high-quality reviews online.
Many of these platforms feature customizable features to meet the specific needs of an agent, team, or brokerage. For instance, some services allow agents to display reviews by city and buyer/seller – making it easier for potential clients to locate what they’re searching for – while others turn review text into visuals which can be displayed on an agent’s website or in email communications.
Improve Your Reputation
Real estate agents use online reviews and testimonials to demonstrate they have an impressive track record helping buyers and sellers. When potential clients see your reviews and testimonials, they’ll feel more at ease working with you knowing you have already assisted others.
Review sites offer industry-specific features that enable potential home buyers and sellers to rate the experience they had with agents, such as Zillow. Prospective homeowners and sellers can rate quality of a realtor’s market expertise, responsiveness, professionalism, communication abilities and negotiation abilities; providing prospects with enough data for them to decide whether you are the ideal agent.
Angie’s List and Yelp are both essential review sites for real estate agents, offering invaluable feedback from both homebuyers and sellers alike. Angie’s List was the original service provider review website but also offers a real estate section highly searched by buyers and sellers. Yelp is widely trusted review website which Google pulls reviews from to display in search results; therefore having an accurate profile with them is paramount for agents looking to grow their business.
Real estate agents should avoid responding inappropriately or indifferently when faced with negative reviews of their business, instead take the opportunity to thank customers for providing feedback, let them know you’re committed to improving, and even offer to work with the customer again on getting their issue resolved. To further reduce customer attrition consider automated software solutions which automatically request reviews for you on review websites before sending emails or SMS reminders directly to potential clients requesting reviews – this way your positive ratings increase without having to ask every single one for one!
Boost Your Search Engine Optimization
Real estate agent review sites can be an effective way to market your business for two key reasons. First, they allow people searching specifically for realtors to see you; secondly, they improve search engine optimization (SEO). When people see that there are numerous positive reviews for you on one or more review sites, they’re more likely to click through and visit your website – increasing the chance they become clients!
Reviews are an integral component of any business’s online marketing strategy, but more than simply their quantity and quality ratings they play an even greater part. According to Moz’s SEO experts, various elements of customer feedback such as quality ratings, number of reviews received and speed at which new reviews come in play in determining search engine ranking – among these elements customer service feedback quality, rate at which new reviews come in can also play an influential role in determining search engine positioning.
To improve SEO, you should address all aspects of review generation. One effective strategy for this is actively soliciting reviews from your satisfied clients by sending text messages asking them to leave reviews on whatever sites they choose; this strategy can improve reputation, gain new referrals, and drive sales growth.
Real estate agents understand the importance of having a strong online presence, especially as prospective buyers search online to determine who to work with and it is imperative that your realtor appears in those searches. When combined with a comprehensive review strategy, potential clients are much more likely to choose you than your competitors.
As such, it is imperative that you register on all of the top real estate agent review sites so you can be found by potential clients when looking for their next home purchase or sale. If you don’t already use review management software to track client feedback easily and showcase it online while increasing client reviews while expanding your real estate agency online reputation and growing it offline.