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Would this be ethical?

by Dmreed4311
38 replies
Well getting google reviews are hard because no matter how good of service you give, the customer always promised to give a review but rarely does because it is a pain to register with google and most just wont do it. So I was thinking about sending a follow up email to my customers asking for a review by them replying to the email with the review. then I would enter the review on google for them.
Does this seem like cheating? After all it is a real review.
Yes I know the reviews need to be entered from a different ip.
#ethical
  • Profile picture of the author localvseo
    What about if you passed out a freebie promo item after each job as a thank you? Something imprinted with your logo that would be fun, but useful. (e.g. stress balls in a cool shape). Attached to it include a small card explaining your biz is built on referrals and would appreciate reviews to your places account with simple step-by-step instructions on how to do it.
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    • Profile picture of the author danielkanuck
      Originally Posted by localvseo View Post

      What about if you passed out a freebie promo item after each job as a thank you? Something imprinted with your logo that would be fun, but useful. (e.g. stress balls in a cool shape). Attached to it include a small card explaining your biz is built on referrals and would appreciate reviews to your places account with simple step-by-step instructions on how to do it.
      I agree with this strategy. While entering the real reviews yourself is "ok", i wouldn't risk it with a company like Google. Who knows what kind of consequences they would impose on you.
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  • Profile picture of the author perpetualmike
    Hi Dmreed4311,

    You're absolutely right. Most folks are lazy and will
    never get to leaving you a review.

    As long as you have their permission, I don't see a
    problem with entering their review yourself.

    Mike
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  • Profile picture of the author Nail Yener
    Posting their honest review yourself wouldn't be cheating. But what account will you use to post the review?

    Why don't you offer a small discount for those who post a review (e.g. 1-5% off, depending on your service cost)? It always surprises me to see the amount of things people would do for a small discount.
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  • Profile picture of the author localbusinessguy
    Why not just pay someone over at fiverr to post them? I use the guy in my sig.
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  • Profile picture of the author FormerWageSlave
    Yeah, how would you do this? Different accounts each time? I think this is an ethical grey area. Buying Fiverr reviews is definitely wrong in my opinion and I think it could backfire on you.

    Consider making it easy for them. Maybe arrange to come by later with your laptop... help them create an account and incentivize them if they'll leave an honest review. Maybe that's too much... but you should be thinking about how you can remove the obstacles in place for a customer leaving a review or otherwise incentivize them enough so they want to go through the hassle.
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  • Profile picture of the author ClarkKent
    I don't think it's an ethical grey area because they are legitimate reviews.

    As far as Google is concerned though it could get you in some trouble - good luck creating accounts that don't trigger any alarms in their systems.

    As someone who's fairly good with this kind of stuff, and has gotten burned with Google and multiple AdWords accounts before - even though I used different laptops on different accounts at different locations, I can authoritatively say that they're really good at looking into this kind of stuff.

    For that reason, I wouldn't trust anyone of Fiverr for this kind of stuff either.

    I'd recommend going the route of giving away some kind of freebie for reviews.
    Definitely the best method to avoid Google trolling your places page.
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  • Profile picture of the author seanpearse
    there's nothing wrong with posting the reviews yourself as long as they are genuine. you'll obviously have to create seperate accounts and get local ip addresses. ideally you want them to leave reviews themselves and i know this isn't always easy. i offer clients a small discount and i have a QR code on my business card linking directly to the place page to make it easier to find for anyone with a smart phone.
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  • Profile picture of the author thorster
    I agree with the others, if they are real reviews, it's not unethical.
    It might also be easier of they would like, to give them a sample of what the testimonial might look like and let them change it as they like. Most people won't change anything. I use this alot as it's no hassle for the client and they agree to what's being said, and I get to bring up the main points I want mentioned
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  • Profile picture of the author CNCTools
    Could we post the customer reviews by ourselves??
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  • Profile picture of the author TwinDragon
    I think that giving them an incentive and a questionaire type review might help.
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  • Profile picture of the author s62731
    I have personally never seen any penalty for posting the reviews my self. I just log in as the owner and post them. But I also post some on other review sites, such as truelocal. I have never seen any negative effects from this.

    **Note: I only post REAL reviews. I give my clients a form, they get their customers to filln out the reviews when a transaction is made, and then they send them to me. All real reviews, no fake stuff
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    • Profile picture of the author jrobconsult
      Originally Posted by s62731 View Post

      I have personally never seen any penalty for posting the reviews my self. I just log in as the owner and post them. But I also post some on other review sites, such as truelocal. I have never seen any negative effects from this.

      **Note: I only post REAL reviews. I give my clients a form, they get their customers to filln out the reviews when a transaction is made, and then they send them to me. All real reviews, no fake stuff
      Yes, make sure they are real reviews. There are some who make up false reviews.

      I know competitors post fake bad reviews and I helped a client recently with one. The competitor made the mistake with a previous review a little too much personal info that we were able to determine the poster. Using industry jargon in his bad review was the first step to finding the culprit.

      I am surprised some competitor has not hired someone to post good fake reviews for his competitor and then exposed him for the reviews. I would never do that, but there are some who will do anything to get ahead in business.
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  • Profile picture of the author Trivium
    Signing up with google is a pain, and as mentioned would be more than enough to dissuade most people. However, if you offer to give an incentive (especially a %-off one), then how would you enforce this? They will need to purchase the product before being able to review it. The only way I can see this working is via a cash-back sort of scheme, whereby upon posting a review, you refund a portion of their purchase price.

    Undeniably, discounts are a powerful motivating force. Hell, you see enough people drive out of their way to buy petrol 2 cents/litre cheaper, only to end up burning more in fuel than they are saving in the journey. If that doesn't prove the concept, then I dont know what does
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    • Profile picture of the author StarkContrast
      I think you want to have them do it. The incentive works but even this is a potential gray area because if the all knowing Google sees it's from the same ip and machine, they might discount it. Others may not but Google might. Google isn't as powerful as we think but more powerful than they should be.

      In any event, let us know how it turns out. Sometimes you just need to find out things by just doing it yourself and reporting on the results.
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    • Profile picture of the author FormerWageSlave
      Well, hopefully the company has a plan in place to sell more than once to any given customer. If not that's a huge opportunity to be addressed.

      Originally Posted by Trivium View Post

      Signing up with google is a pain, and as mentioned would be more than enough to dissuade most people. However, if you offer to give an incentive (especially a %-off one), then how would you enforce this? They will need to purchase the product before being able to review it. The only way I can see this working is via a cash-back sort of scheme, whereby upon posting a review, you refund a portion of their purchase price.

      Undeniably, discounts are a powerful motivating force. Hell, you see enough people drive out of their way to buy petrol 2 cents/litre cheaper, only to end up burning more in fuel than they are saving in the journey. If that doesn't prove the concept, then I dont know what does
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  • Profile picture of the author Anthony
    I feel your pain.

    It is a hassle for most and they are not to be blamed. Incentives helps as many have pointed out in the thread. I wouldn't recommend doing the review yourself. But I guess it's personal choice.
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  • Profile picture of the author BarbaraP
    Could you log in as owner and add a review as an "update"? I know it's not counted in reviews but if you have 4 or 5 stars, that's what people look at. If they click your page, they will see your "updates." Make sure all your testimonials are on your site/blog too. Idea of QR code on the biz card linking to your google places page from smart phone is great one.
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    • Profile picture of the author sqcd
      Agree, important to post genuine reviews. Perhaps add the reviewer's website in the text?
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      • Profile picture of the author StarkContrast
        Originally Posted by sqcd View Post

        Agree, important to post genuine reviews. Perhaps add the reviewer's website in the text?
        That's an excellent suggestion. Add an email address or phone number to contact would even be better, though, it does have the potential of attracting crazies. How many would actually contact the reviewer? I suspect very few.
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      • Profile picture of the author k60mall
        Originally Posted by sqcd View Post

        Agree, important to post genuine reviews. Perhaps add the reviewer's website in the text?
        Guys you really need to read the terms of service of the reviews sites.

        They do not allow URL's in the reviews, profanity or words their filters pick up, all capital letters and other restrictions. If you want your reviews to stick they follow the instructions they give you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason X
    Google is cracking down on reviews as many other sites as well. I would be very careful doing that, the best thing to do is encourage customer. Offer them a discount or a special promotion. Give them a card with the steps to post the review, for example Step 1 Go to www.abc.com, Step 2 create an account, Step 3 Etc

    Make is as easy as possible for them, if you try to outsource reviews or do it yourself even if they are real reviews, I think it will cost you in the long run.
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  • Profile picture of the author k60mall
    It is against the term of service of most of the review sites to give an incensive to post reviews.

    I heard that Yelp was calling businesses asking if they were paying someone to post reviews and they pointed out it was against their terms of service.

    There is nothing wrong with posting real reviews with different user accounts, you will get into trouble if you start posting fake reviews if they catch you.
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    • Profile picture of the author jrobconsult
      Originally Posted by k60mall View Post

      It is against the term of service of most of the review sites to give an intensive to post reviews.

      I heard that Yelp was calling businesses asking if they were paying someone to post reviews and they pointed out it was against their terms of service.

      There is nothing wrong with posting real reviews with different user accounts, you will get into trouble if you start posting fake reviews if they catch you.
      How Ironic since Yelp calls business owners with bad reviews and offers to remove it for a fee. If it were me, I would offer several options by email for a customer to be able to post a review and definitely have it on your own site.
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    • Profile picture of the author DABK
      Perhaps a prize given randomly to one of the people who posted a review on a given month would work, then. A small prize each month. At the end of the year, a big prize to all who submitted a review.


      Originally Posted by k60mall View Post

      It is against the term of service of most of the review sites to give an incensive to post reviews.

      I heard that Yelp was calling businesses asking if they were paying someone to post reviews and they pointed out it was against their terms of service.

      There is nothing wrong with posting real reviews with different user accounts, you will get into trouble if you start posting fake reviews if they catch you.
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  • Profile picture of the author FormerWageSlave
    At the very least, get them to email you a review and post it on your own website. I know external citations are important, but if a certain segment of customers can't be bothered to sign up at Google or Yelp, then just get it in an email and add it to your site. Better yet if they'd agree to let you record a video of them praising your product or service.

    Also, you could scour the database for gmail accounts... I presume you could then send an email to them with easy instructions and links on where to go to leave an honest review. Right? If they already have a gmail account then leaving a review is easy. No sign up.
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  • Profile picture of the author D Alishouse
    It would be better (and something you never have to worry about being found out by Google) to have the customer's review themselves.

    That being said I would definitely offer them a discount on a future purchase or something like that once the review is up. Most of all I would give them STEP BY STEP instructions on how to register, etc. Really detailed instructions in an easy to read format with a genuine thank you at the end.

    People follow up on things like that much better if you take as much of the hassle out of it as possible.
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  • Profile picture of the author k60mall
    It's really hard to get customers to leave reviews as most people have found out but using SMS to email certainly helps collecting them.
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  • Profile picture of the author localbusinessguy
    Please don't take this the wrong way guys but some people here need to wake up and face the facts that very few customers will leave a review if they have to first create a user account on say Yelp, confirm the email, log in and leave a review. There are a few that will but the ones that do it willingly are those that want to complain and those are the ones you don't want.

    I have been out sourcing the posting of reviews for over two years and have never had a listing removed because I use people I trust to do a good job, they are not cheap but you get what you pay for. There are some people over on Fiverr for example that I would never use as they use the same user account to post hundreds of reviews for businesses all over the country, filter those out and use the ones that only post a few, especially for Google.

    As I said you can ask your clients customers to leave reviews and give them an incentive for doing it but most won't.
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    • Profile picture of the author jrobconsult
      Originally Posted by localbusinessguy View Post

      Please don't take this the wrong way guys but some people here need to wake up and face the facts that very few customers will leave a review if they have to first create a user account on say Yelp, confirm the email, log in and leave a review. There are a few that will but the ones that do it willingly are those that want to complain and those are the ones you don't want.

      I have been out sourcing the posting of reviews for over two years and have never had a listing removed because I use people I trust to do a good job, they are not cheap but you get what you pay for. There are some people over on Fiverr for example that I would never use as they use the same user account to post hundreds of reviews for businesses all over the country, filter those out and use the ones that only post a few, especially for Google.

      As I said you can ask your clients customers to leave reviews and give them an incentive for doing it but most won't.
      Yes, most customers will not leave reviews. There is a lot to do to set up an account. That is why many big corporations offer an incentive to win a big cash prize to do a short survey. If you are doing local businesses, it is not hard to find people to post reviews for you. It is a bit more tricky for out of the area businesses, but can be done.

      However, don't make the mistake a large car dealer in my town a few years ago. They hired a company who was using people who would post reviews about companies all over the country and in the same day. It killed their credibility once local TV got hold of this story.

      I would give an incentive for reviews( doesn't matter if good or bad). However, it would be on a paper form where the customer would give permission to use the review online. The bad ones would not be posted, but give the business a chance to correct a weakness and good ones would be posted online.

      The problem is most small businesses do a poor job in asking for reviews, getting contact info and following up. The good new is it creates opportunities for us to help them.
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  • Profile picture of the author reyeast
    Well as long as the reviews are from them then there's no problem on it. The only thing is that, if you receive reviews from them and its a negative feedback, would you still post it?
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    • Profile picture of the author SiteSpeculator
      Reviews on Google in particular will continue to get more sensitive. According to a number of articles out there Google has filed patent applications that revolve around measuring the validity of reviews AND reviewers.
      This includes (but is not limited to) paying attention to sites where every review is 5 stars . . . I assume Google feels that it is unrealistic that someone would get ALL 5 star ratings. The patent filing also include measuring the validity of the USER placing the ratings as well. Meaning (from what I understand) that a user who only posts 5 star ratings would eventually be given less weight than a user who posts various star ratings across a broad base of companies. (best article on this can be found on the SEObytheSea blog)

      Needless to say Google is intent on weeding out fake or suspect reviews - NOT getting banned and NOT having your reviews help SEO and local rankings are likely two VERY different things.

      I have had offline clients (dentists and insurance guys) do two things to increase legitimate positive reviews on Google - most clients already have an existing processes for getting written reviews and testimonials (if not they need one) - We take those written reviews and place them on the clients regular website. Then we send an email with simple instructions to the patient/client on how to also post it to Google - making sure they know how important it is - and highlighting that their original review was important enough to them to be included on the website - an we send them a link.

      We recently talked one dental client into an experiment of letting patients (happy patients) fill out a Google review on an IPad in the office before they leave - just starting that - so no results to report yet - but I think it is a good idea.
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      • Profile picture of the author k60mall
        Originally Posted by SiteSpeculator View Post

        Reviews on Google in particular will continue to get more sensitive. According to a number of articles out there Google has filed patent applications that revolve around measuring the validity of reviews AND reviewers.
        This includes (but is not limited to) paying attention to sites where every review is 5 stars . . . I assume Google feels that it is unrealistic that someone would get ALL 5 star ratings. The patent filing also include measuring the validity of the USER placing the ratings as well. Meaning (from what I understand) that a user who only posts 5 star ratings would eventually be given less weight than a user who posts various star ratings across a broad base of companies. (best article on this can be found on the SEObytheSea blog)

        Needless to say Google is intent on weeding out fake or suspect reviews - NOT getting banned and NOT having your reviews help SEO and local rankings are likely two VERY different things.

        I have had offline clients (dentists and insurance guys) do two things to increase legitimate positive reviews on Google - most clients already have an existing processes for getting written reviews and testimonials (if not they need one) - We take those written reviews and place them on the clients regular website. Then we send an email with simple instructions to the patient/client on how to also post it to Google - making sure they know how important it is - and highlighting that their original review was important enough to them to be included on the website - an we send them a link.

        We recently talked one dental client into an experiment of letting patients (happy patients) fill out a Google review on an IPad in the office before they leave - just starting that - so no results to report yet - but I think it is a good idea.
        If your dentist can get them to fill it out while they are in his surgery then that's great but to expect them to go along later and leave one is just unrealistic. As someone else here mentioned it is very hard to get people to leave reviews simply because they don't have the time or inclination to do it.

        See my sig for a way to get reviews via SMS which is working very well for me.
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  • Profile picture of the author mickmccrory
    Using fiverr is something I would stay away from for an honest local business owner. Reviews are hard to come by because people just don't feel they have the time. I would provide a link to the places page in your emails and offer a discount on your next service and another discount to any referred customers they send you.
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  • Profile picture of the author SJ048998
    Personally, only a review from a really dedicated person can be of some use. It's either super positive or else the guy is mad and it's really rough, there you know for sure, you did something wrong. But if your service is satisfactory for the people enough, I see no reason, why they wouldn't review you.

    But I probably misunderstood your point anyway.

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    • Profile picture of the author Jeff Bronson
      This is absolutely ethical. You did business with these clients, you have every right to ask for a referral.
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  • Profile picture of the author FormerWageSlave
    I see some people here saying it's ok to post reviews for your clients using accounts you create yourself. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but I know if a business took a review that I sent to them in an email and then took that text and put it on Yelp after creating an account, I would be pissed. I wouldn't do any further business with that company and if I was particularly annoyed, I'd have my lawyer look into it.

    You'd either need to create a fake account using my identity, or a fake account attributing my words to a fake person. Either way, how is that ethical?
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    • Profile picture of the author DABK
      It's ethical if you asked them if they're okay with it and they said yes.

      It's not ethical if you did not ask or you asked, they said no, you posted it anyway.

      So, ask and post only those from people who say they're okay with you posting (have them do it in writing).

      Originally Posted by FormerWageSlave View Post

      I see some people here saying it's ok to post reviews for your clients using accounts you create yourself. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but I know if a business took a review that I sent to them in an email and then took that text and put it on Yelp after creating an account, I would be pissed. I wouldn't do any further business with that company and if I was particularly annoyed, I'd have my lawyer look into it.

      You'd either need to create a fake account using my identity, or a fake account attributing my words to a fake person. Either way, how is that ethical?
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