Put simply, yes!
While there are many factors at play regarding which businesses get to rank higher on Google search pages, from successful optimisation of keywords to domain authority, customer reviews online can let search engines know that your business is trustworthy and an authority in your chosen product or service. According to a 2018 study by Local SEO Guide, google my business reviews which included searched-for keywords were ranked as the second most influential factor when looking at how businesses rank in the “local pack” area of google search, after organic rankings. Even if your business operates strictly online without a true physical location, reviews can still be important for your SEO.
So why and how can this help?
Google sees reviews as a marker of customer trust in a product or service. Google functions as a service, and knows the best way to help customers find what they’re looking for is by directing them to businesses that have proven to be trusted by customers. This works in a similar way to link building and domain authority, the more links to your website from other trusted domains, the more google will see your business as trustworthy and legitimate. A high quantity of positive reviews for a business will send the same signals to the search engine that your business is the real deal and that customers have interacted with you, giving google more reason to rank you higher in search results! Alongside this, being reviewed by verified or regular reviewers will also help increase your rankings, with people who post more often being seen by google as more authoritative reviewers and given more weight.
Equally, a high volume of positive reviews for your business will likely increase click-through rates on its own, as customers are obviously more likely to choose a product or service that has been recommended by other customers. This in itself is likely to increase your SEO performance, as google takes into account the volume of people who choose your business through search and will assume that you’re doing something right, therefore ranking you higher. Google rankings have long been known to be influenced by click-through rates, and positive reviews can be a great way of ensuring that customers choose you over your competitors!
Another way reviews can help with your search engine optimisation is simply by creating more relevant content about your website. Google likes to “read”, and the more available content it has to read about your business, the higher it is likely to rank you. Equally, customers leaving reviews are likely just by default to use searched for keywords when describing or reviewing your product or service, which will naturally help boost your SEO in the same way organic optimisation does! Reviews can even help fill gaps in content on your website, with potential customers able to get a good idea of your business from reading what other people have said.
In summary, google reviews can be a valuable and important way to boost your Google rankings and inspire trust in your potential customers! To learn more about how SEO can help supercharge your business, book a free consultation!