Importance of Reviews on Google Business Listings for Kennels and Catteries

When you need service in your area, do you Google it first? When you see the results of your Google Search and the multiple companies that offer this service in your area, how do you make your decision? Google shows you a map and a listing of the companies that offer the service. For each business, it includes the company name, website link, hours of operation, address, some other items, and reviews. Seeing these 1-to-5 star review ratings helps trigger your next step. Your next step might be to visit the website, or maybe even call the company. Will you visit the company's website that has a 2-star rating or the one that has 4.5 stars? Of course, you'd choose the 4.5-star business first.

Why should you use reviews for your kennel boarding or cattery business?

  • Customer reviews are noticed immediately when the Google results are listed.
  • For small, local businesses, online reviews bring the benefit of social proof to the decision-making process.
  • 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
  • The more reviews a business has, the more trustworthy it is considered.
  • Pets are part of the family. People consider reviews as a deciding factor when choosing a facility for their pet.

How can my pet business get Google reviews?

  1. Type your business name and city into Google.
  2. On the right side, you should see a profile of your business, maybe even a map of your location. Click on the button/link titled "Write a review."
  3. This will open a pop-up box, with the option to give the business a 1 to a 5-star rating and write a review. With the review box open, copy the URL in the address bar at the top.
  4. Copy and paste this link into an email. Create an email to existing customers, asking them to review your business.
  5. In the email, explain how important reviews are for your local business and how much this means to you. Your reviews can help keep your business alive.
  6. To neaten the email, you can shorten the URL or hyperlink the text instead of displaying the full URL.

BONUS TIP!

Regarding the URL that you copy and paste into the email to send to your customers: This URL will end with the number 3. If you add the number 5 to the end of the URL, it will automatically choose a 5-star rating! Of course, your customer can change the star rating, but if it is already 5 stars, they will probably keep it at 5. Then, your customer can simply write their review and click "Post."

The last part of the URL looks like this: 3,

Adding a 5, it will look like this: 3,5

It is extremely important to have reviews of your kennel or cattery business available to potential customers. Obtaining Google reviews is free and easy. Plus, it is the first thing potential customers see. Why not try this today and see what type of boost your company receives?