Track and manage Google Business Profile reviews like a pro

Google Business Profile reviews are star ratings and written feedback from customers of a business featured on the listings platform. They are visible to the public on both Google Search and Google Maps. While reviews aren't verified by Google, the search engine does monitor for fake feedback and content that conflicts with its policies.

Yes, managing and responding to reviews on Google Business Profile is an important ranking factor, according to Google itself . A high volume of reviews signals to search engines that users are engaging with your business and therefore find the Google Business Profile useful, while high-quality reviews signal value and trustworthiness to local users.

First, you’ll need to become the owner or manager of the Google Business Profile by clicking the “Own this business?” link that appears under your business’ profile on Google Search or Maps. If no profile exists, you’ll need to add your business to Google and go through the steps to verify your Google Business Profile . Once you have control of your profile, copy your and go through the steps to link to Google reviews and send it out to happy customers asking them for a review.

Every time a customer leaves you a review, you should get a notification and an email, which includes a button to reply. But unless business is slow, replying to these in real time isn’t realistic and making sure they don’t get lost in your inbox might be even more difficult for the busy business owner or marketer. You could check in on your Google Business Profile reviews (and all the other platforms you’re being reviewed on) at regular intervals and stick to a schedule of getting back to people. Alternatively, you can take the simple route and use Semrush Local's Review Management which also allows you to see reviews from other platforms like Facebook and reply to them all in the same interface.

When reaching out to customers asking that they review your business, you want to make it as easy as possible for them to oblige. On your Google Business Profile, click “Get more reviews” and copy the link, which will send the user directly to where they can leave their star rating and review. The best method is to send the link via SMS, because it has the highest open rate of any marketing channel.

It’s not possible to remove a negative review from your Google Business Profile just because you don’t like it. However, if the review infringes on Google’s policy due to it inciting civil discourse, being deceptive in nature, featuring mature content, referencing illegal or dangerous activity, or it’s just off-topic (spam), then you can report it to Google and request its removal. Reviews that you believe infringe on your legal rights (defamatory statements or copyright issues, for example) need to be reported separately to Google’s legal team . However, it’s at Google’s discretion as to whether or not it will remove the review, so it makes sense to try to resolve the issue with the customer first as they may decide to remove or edit the review themselves if they’re happy with your response.

To get Google reviews for your business, you’ll need to draw up a good review generation strategy that includes properly managing and replying to reviews. Getting a steady stream of genuinely positive reviews (never try to obtain fake reviews or bribe customers to leave you a good review) is a long road that might uncover some things about your business that people aren’t happy with, requiring some operational changes before reaching out to people again.