According to a ZenDesk survey, 90% of consumers say buying decisions are influenced by online reviews. Think about your own recent online or even offline purchases. Most likely you looked at star rankings or what others had to say about the product or service. Online reviews are vital for a number of reasons, and they have major implications through their ability to affect:

• Your rankings in local search engines, especially Google
• Click-through rates in search results
• Consumer buying decisions

I have previously shared 3 easy steps you can take to make review marketing part of your accounting practice-building strategy. There is a reason Yelp was valued recently at nearly 3 billion dollars. Reviews matter. And they should matter to you.There are two ways people may find you on search.

‍1) They may have been referred to you by a current client and be looking you up by name on Google. You will notice Google usually shows review sites near the top of the results. So if your firm has very few reviews, or even worse, a negative review, this will have a direct effect on whether you convert this lead. Positive reviews will increase the likelihood they will become a client and help build up trust much faster.

2) Online reviews also matter in local search. Search engines make money by finding relevant results for their searchers. If someone is looking for tax preparation in Holtsville, NY, for example, the consumer can make a faster decision if the search results include reviews in the results. Guess which search results get clicked more: those with reviews or those without. According to Moz.com, reviews make up 10% of what Google uses in their algorithm when indexing your brand. So if you are in a competitive market and you have reviews, it is more likely that you will be higher on the search results.

I put together a 9-minute video that shows how reviews work in search. They have a direct effect not only on consumer behavior but also on what placement Google gives your brand in search results. The video includes 3 case studies on reviews in action.

It is not hard to get started. It just takes conviction.