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You know the advantages of reviews, and your website is set up and ready to receive them, but none seem to come in. This is the case for a lot of advisors, but it’s also a growing trend in the way customers respond to businesses. According to GatherUp, roughly 40% of customers never write a review for a business:
Your website can go on for quite a while without a single review. But this doesn’t have to be the case. Unlike many other businesses, being an advisor is a personal process. And, a lot of the time, advisors will receive praise in private — through a phone call, email, in person, etc.
This leaves a lot of advisors wondering, if someone gives great feedback, can you ask them to use that on your website or in a Google review?
Absolutely. Asking clients to provide reviews is one of the most reliable ways to obtain a better rating. In fact, 72% of customers will write a review when asked to do so. However, every client doesn’t communicate the same way. For this reason, we’ve provided multiple ways to ask for reviews, depending on the scenario you find yourself in.
And, as part of our ongoing SEC ad rule series, this list will contain new marketing strategies, which should be cleared by compliance before use.
The content in this blog post is the result of Twenty Over Ten’s interpretation and Twenty Over Ten is not a compliance expert. Information herein should not be considered legal advice and financial advisors should consult with consult the appropriate authorities as needed including the SEC.
7 Ways Financial Advisors Can Ask for Reviews
1. Make It Easy
We’ve included this as number one because it affects every method on this list. After all, asking clients to write a review takes time out of their day. With that in mind, you will want to make every review request quick and simple. Think of ways to make it easy to write the review.
For example, we recommend using Google My Business to receive reviews. But, providing other options doesn’t hurt. You could include a link to both your Google My Business listing and your Facebook page to give options to different customers. How you make the review process easy will depend on the way you ask, but it’s important to keep in mind as you develop your own methods.
2. Email
Asking for reviews over email is the best way to make review writing easy for your clients. They are already on their phone or computer, so they are only one step away from writing a review. With that in mind, you’ll just want to provide some incentive. Follow some email best practices to catch your reader’s attention, like choosing an optimal send time and subject line. Then, provide a quick, action-oriented message. For example:
3. Phone
Keep in mind, this category includes Zoom calls and text messages as well! The review request from this sort of conversation happens organically. You don’t want to force it, but you do want to ask. The best time to discuss review writing is when your client mentions something positive. If this is over the phone, you could ask them to write a review, or send them an email when they need to hang up. And even better yet, if your conversation is through text you could ask to use what they said on a testimonial page. The last of course is the easiest, but any option can work. Here’s what you can say to a client to make sure the request is natural:
4. In Person
Like on the phone, in-person review requests happen organically. However, even if your client does offer praise, they are not in the immediate position to write a review. Therefore, an in-person request should describe why reviews help your firm, then offer to send a quick request over email, text, or social — now is the time to ask your client their preference! Even if they don’t write reviews very often, letting them choose the method can improve the likelihood that they will. Here’s how you can ask your client for a review in person:
5. Social Media
When we think of social media we often think of public channels visible to every user. But for this situation, we’re discussing direct messaging conversations. Like texts, you can ask clients to use their praise on your testimonial page.
LinkedIn is a great source for these sorts of conversations. But, as an added benefit, platforms like Facebook also offer the chance to provide a view right on the platform. For example:
6. On Your Website.
When creating your reviews and testimonials page, you will want to make sure to include a quick guide on how to write reviews. Not only will this help visitors who may be interested in providing a review, but it also acts as a one-stop location for you to send your clients. Make sure to include directions for all of the platforms you are active on, including social media, Google My Business, etc. The goal here is to make the review writing process easy.
Your review writing guide can also be included in the other options on this list as part of the asking process. Or, you could provide a quick request on the review page itself. For example, you might write:
7. Download Form
A downloadable is a great way for advisors to attract leads. But it can also be a great way to ask for reviews. For example, a downloadable market report might contain a message at the end asking the reader to provide a review if they enjoyed the content. The important part about this option is to only request a review after you’ve provided value. The reader is there for the content you are providing, so it’s the first thing they want to engage with. Asking for a review beforehand only serves as a distraction for the reader.
To help drive action from your downloadable, consider writing something like this:
Wrapping Things Up
Positive reviews bring a list of benefits to any business. The challenge, however, is obtaining the reviews. In many cases, advisors don’t receive enough of them. Luckily, the solution is relatively simple. Asking for reviews, and providing the client with a simple method to write one, can greatly benefit your firm’s online reputation.
Related: The New SEC Ad Rule Is In Effect: Everything Financial Advisors Need To Know