4 Steps to Boost Customer Reviews

Receiving positive compliments and comments on any business venture is a goal that most try to achieve. Especially when it comes to the restaurant business. For them, positive customer reviews are what helps the venture grow and expand in the industry. One good review can create a chain reaction - others follow suit and give your restaurants food and customer experience a try. You want this chain to keep expanding without any breaks. In this manner, more customers come in, resulting in higher profits. This is what you are aiming for at the end of the day.

So, if you’re struggling to reach this ideal situation, then rest easy knowing that you are not alone. Many find it hard to get their restaurant marketing right and use social media effectively to bring their restaurant into the spotlight. They spend hours on making the perfect flyers and spending a lot more on their marketing, only to receive the bare minimum and see no closer to hitting their targets. However, it’s not all that difficult. With the right guidance and tips, giving your customer reviews the recharge it needs will be easier than you had ever imagined it to be. Here are a few tips and steps which you can follow to boost customer reviews in no time. 

1. Try Out Different Avenues – They Make All the Difference

Instead of keeping customer reviews restricted to a verbal conversation, obtain feedback from customers in written text. This will allow you to post reviews online on your social media platforms. If you don’t have any social media accounts, you might want to make create them as soon as you can. With everything online these days, you don’t want to miss out on this aspect of restaurant marketing - it can do wonders for your business.

Hand out feedback cards or forms or politely request your customers to give their valuable feedback on your social media account. Remember to keep them short and simple to comprehend and fill out. No one likes filling out long and tedious feedback forms.

However, be prepared for any negative reviews that may come your way. You want to place your focus on this side of the coin without letting it weigh you down. Take it as constructive criticism and work to improve any service or aspect that the customer was dissatisfied with. Communicate this to them and appreciate them for their valuable feedback. 

2. Don’t Be Hesitant to Ask

For anyone who has a business venture, asking for customer reviews can be tricky. It has to be done at the precise time and moment. There are some rules here which you ought to follow. Train your employees to act on them as well and notice the difference it makes in the reviews you receive.

Make sure any customer review or feedback is asked near the end of their meal while the customers are paying their bill. Interrupting the customer midway will surely not bode well for your customer service. Try not to take up too much of their time either, customers don’t prefer this especially if they’re in an important engagement or meeting. 

3. Incentivise – You Want to Keep Them Coming Back For More

Customers like being given attention and preferential treatment. You want to make sure all your customers feel special and looked after. Provide incentives as well to keep them coming back for more. Gift cards or discounts can be used to attract them to your food and will enhance their customer experience. Make sure to highlight such offers on social media as well to reach the maximum amount of people you can.

You want to stay on top of their go-to list when it comes to their preferred restaurants and retain customer loyalty here. This also adds to your business prospects by helping you draft prospects and plan their execution and implementation effectively. 

4. It’s Never Too Late to Improve and Improvise

Addressing positive as well as negative reviews is important. However, you might not want to rely on negative reviews entirely to improve your restaurants' overall customer experience. Be your own critique and analyze all aspects of your restaurant.

From the food, the cutlery, and ambiance, you don’t want to leave any stone unturned when it comes to this. By doing so, you’ll minimize the chances of having to deal with negative reviews. Ask friends and family members to provide honest feedback and work your way towards building upon what may be needed.