Satisfied customers are what successful business is all about. All companies want to please their customers, not only to ensure that they will come back, but also so they will also tell others about their positive experience and spread the word about their positive experiences with your company. This in turn makes new clients want to have the same good experience. Word of mouth referrals are a powerful, priceless marketing tool for any business.

With the advent of the Internet and the rise of social media, word of mouth is now carried out on a global scale. There are many websites now that exist simply for the purpose of allowing Internet users to have the ability to state their opinion about a particular business, service, or product. Google reviews have become the gold standard for a business. Reviews placed through Google are considered to carry a great deal of weight and confidence. Since everyone uses Google to research when they are looking for a particular type of product or service, those reviews are seen frequently - good or bad. Google has high standards so a review placed through Google Local, Google Maps, or another section of their system is read by potential customers because they value the feedback from this source. Often times, it seems the only feedback you get as a business owner is the negative feedback. But, when a customer gives you positive feedback, encourage them to take an extra couple of minutes and write it up on Google. If necessary, offer some type of incentive to them (most of the time, this isn't necessary). But, this pro-active approach will do your company a world of good in boosting a positive online presence.

Google reviews are displayed with relevant search engine results too, so it can have a great influence on potential customers. Potential customers then read the reviews and it has the ability to influence people to opt for your business over others. Sometimes potential clients are unsure of which company to choose and good reviews from satisfied customers makes all the difference and ensures that their choice is easy to make.

One source says that 25% of search results for the world's top 20 largest brands are links to user-generated content. 34% of bloggers post opinions about products and brands. The power of customer reviews posted on the web is extremely high. Don't know what Google reviews are? You can check out our reviews here as an example

As a business owner, you can ask customers to provide feedback to Google and explain the process to them. This is an extra step for them but often people are quite willing to share their positive experience. You could print up something with the Google review information on it to make it easy for them when they check out or pay for the service or product provided in your store. You can also ask colleagues at business meetings or other local business owners and customers to share their feedback on Google. As a business owner, every way that you can boost your sales is always positive – and a good review on Google is what it is all about!