With an average of 142 million user visits a month, businesses around the world are paying more attention to Yelp, and the importance of positive customer reviews. We’ve learned that making simple changes like using the correct phrasing or adding in a badge can have a promising impact on your practice’s page. Here are our top tips on how to boost Yelp reviews for dentists.
Encourage, But Don’t Force, Yelp Reviews
If your patients aren’t aware you’re on Yelp, you won’t get reviews. But you also can’t ask for them, per Yelp’s policy. And it makes sense! If companies only solicit reviews from 5-star patients, over time a review bias begins and users will no longer trust Yelp.
Here’s how to encourage Yelp reviews and stay within their Terms of Service:
- Say, “Check us out on Yelp”, not “Write us a review on Yelp!”. This raises awareness without explicitly requesting a review.
- Add a “Find us on Yelp” sign to your practice’s door. This again increases awareness without asking, and you can request one here.
- Share reviews on social media. Posting positive reviews on your social media platforms not only creates an uplifting buzz about your practice, but it can also encourage new patients to stop in.
- Add a link in your practice’s email signature. Similar to the first point, it needs to say “Check us out on Yelp” to remain compliant.
Add a Yelp Badge to your Website
This is another great way to encourage reviews without directly asking your patients. By adding a Yelp badge to your website, you decrease the friction between a patient loving your practice and adding a review. A patient that visits your website will likely be a happy one, and this encourages them to share what they love most about your practice.
Adding this button is simple, and your website manager will make quick work of it. If you’re managing your practice’s website, it’s a block of HTML code to add onto the relevant pages. (Your website hosting provider will have the guide you need to include it.)
Once you add this Yelp button to your website, you’ll begin to see an increase in reviews, helping your overall rating improve.
Know When to Engage with Reviewers and When to Refrain
It’s important to respond to reviews, whether to thank them for sharing a positive experience or to address confusion, but it’s also important to know when to disengage. Unfortunately, reviewers are not always level-headed and rational. In these instances, it’s important to know when to refrain.
It’s suitable to reply with a simple response: “We’re sorry that your experience was less than amazing. We’d be happy to discuss your experience further on the phone,” but don’t engage their specific points.
These reviewers will often not respond to reason, and your time is better spent engaging with the patients in your office than someone who is only interested in venting their frustration.
If there is someone with a 3-star review who proposed valid concerns and relays their thoughts well, then it can be valuable to engage with them more and see how you may be able to improve.
Increasing the number of reviews on Yelp is one of the best ways to grow your practice, but you’ll need to do it carefully. Focusing on Yelp reviews for dentists can help your focus on practice growth this summer, and you won’t be disappointed.