In an increasingly digitalized age, conventional word-of-mouth has been surpassed by online business reviews as the must-have marketing tool for organizations of all sizes and niches.
While in the old days, people relied on referrals from friends and neighbors, they now look to feedback given by strangers online to guide their purchasing decisions.
In a survey by Podium, 41 percent of respondents stated that reviews matter most when choosing a local business. Meanwhile, a study by SaaS provider Womply showed that companies with more reviews than their competitors earn 54 percent more in annual revenues. This is why successful brands hire agencies for review generation services and online review management – simply put, feedback can make or break a business.
The fact that online business reviews significantly affect a brand’s reputation and, in turn, its bottom line has already been established by several studies and extensive research. It’s also a fact that business reviews online help widen a brand’s reach and expand its audiences. This is particularly true of online business reviews in multiple languages.
Breaking down the language barrier in business reviews online allows you to reach audiences whose primary speaking language isn’t English, both in the U.S. and around the world.
Read on to learn more about why non-English feedback is essential to your business, how to ask for a review, how to get online reviews in multiple languages and why you should consider opting for online reputation management solutions, especially review generation services.
Positive Reviews in Different Languages: Why They’re Important
Multilingual Business Reviews Online Help You Tap New Audiences
English is the most used language on the Internet. According to Statista, it represents 25.9 percent of Internet users worldwide. However, other languages are not far behind.
Chinese languages rank as the second most common language on the Internet globally at 19.4 percent, likely because China has the most Internet users in the world. In the U.S., Spanish is by far the most popular, with 13 percent of the population speaking it at home.
Making positive reviews in different languages available to read on your website gives more people access to information that could guide them toward purchasing your product or service. If your goal is to get more conversions, then learning how to get more reviews online and translating 5 star reviews in different languages is a must.
Still wondering why you should get more online reviews in multiple languages and have existing feedback translated? Here’s another great reason: According to a study presented at the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems in 2016, Internet penetration rates are already high in English-speaking countries.
That’s why it’s likely that in the future, new Internet users – and contributors of online content, like reviews – will come primarily from countries where English is not a native language. This means that many potential new customers and future reviewers of your business do not speak English. It also means that you should prepare for them by developing a strategy to get more online reviews in multiple languages, if you don’t have one yet.
Positive Reviews in Different Languages Make Your Customers Feel Understood and Valued
All customers want to feel like they are being heard and that brands value their business. Customers who speak a different language want to be able to access the same information and tools as English speakers. Not translating reviews from English into their language may make them feel as if they’re not valued as customers.
As previously discussed, reviews help shape consumer perception of a business and guide purchase decisions. By not removing the language barrier, you miss out on opportunities to acquire new customers and strengthen relationships with existing ones.
On the other hand, 5 star reviews in different languages show that your business appeals to people outside the U.S. and that you proudly do business with a diverse audience. They also show that you care about the opinions and experiences of ALL your customers, not just the ones who speak English.
A company that offers reputation management services, as well as review monitoring services, will help ensure that all of your feedback, regardless of language, is responded to in a professional and friendly manner. For instance, Rize Reviews writes customized responses to both negative and positive online reviews within 24 hours.
A fast, helpful response further helps strengthen your reputation as a company that values all customers’ opinions equally. That’s why review responses are a critical component of a successful online reputation management strategy.
They Build Trust and Loyalty
Non-English positive feedback could encourage speakers of other languages to leave reviews of their own. A 2021 survey by Unbabel found that, for 29 percent of consumers, knowing that a brand understands their native language makes them feel more confident about communicating with that brand.
To get more reviews online, you should make existing reviews available in other languages. Doing so can persuade other customers to leave their own multilingual feedback.
Keep in mind, however, that having reviews available in different languages necessitates hiring a company that offers multilingual review monitoring services and online review management. If you don’t, fake reviews may fly under the radar, and negative feedback may be left unaddressed.
How To Get Online Reviews in Multiple Languages
Some good news for those wondering how to get more online reviews in multiple languages: according to research by GlobalWebIndex, 47 percent of global Internet users say they post reviews about a product, service, or company each month.
Meanwhile, a BrightLocal survey found that 53 percent of consumers were likely or highly likely to leave a review after a positive experience if they received a request from the business through email or SMS.
To get more online reviews in different languages, the first step is to simply ask.
How To Ask for a Review
Not sure how to ask for online reviews? You can try the following strategies to get more reviews online in languages apart from English.
To Get Google Reviews in Other Languages:
If your business is new or just starting to expand its online presence, consider requesting reviews from people you know who speak languages apart from English. In a past blog, we recommended trying to reach out and get Google reviews from friends, co-workers and even family members you have worked for, who have purchased your product or paid for your service.
This approach can also help you collect feedback in a foreign language. Since 67.3 million U.S. residents speak a language other than English at home, the odds are good that you know someone whose native language isn’t English.
You may direct them to your Google Business Profile (previously Google My Business) by including a link in your email or SMS. The key to getting more reviews is to make leaving feedback as straightforward as possible.
To Get Yelp Reviews in Other Languages:
You can send requests for feedback on Yelp to your customers via a follow-up email or SMS. To encourage all customers, including those who speak foreign languages, to leave reviews, consider hiring an online reputation management firm with experience sending multilingual review requests.
For instance, Rize Reviews offers online review management services in multiple languages.
“We translate our review landing pages, emails and SMS to other languages like Spanish, French, Italian, Chinese and German,” said Tim Clarke, Senior Reputation Manager at Rize Reviews.
“We also allow custom translations.”
To get Yelp reviews in other languages, you can try the other steps outlined in this article and tweak them as necessary. For instance, you can put up the “Find us on Yelp” sign in the window of your brick-and-mortar store with translations underneath.
Key Takeaways
Positive reviews in any language help give your brand credibility, improve its online reputation and even improve its local SEO rankings. What’s more, positive online business reviews can convince readers who are on the fence about your product or service to commit to a purchase.
Having an ear turned to the online conversation about your brand is also a great way to gauge the effectiveness of your approach to customer service. Additionally, it helps you learn more about your customers and what you can do to improve their experience with your brand further.
Meanwhile, online reviews in other languages help you establish your brand as trustworthy and reliable to potential customers whose primary language is not English. Feedback in other languages diversifies your audience and gives you access to a previously untapped source of leads and conversions.
Choose Rize Reviews for Multilingual Review Generation Services
For more information on how to get online reviews in multiple languages, reach out to Rize Reviews. We are a company offering a wide range of reputation management services.
We have extensive experience translating review requests and related content for overseas clients as well as U.S. companies catering to diverse audiences. With our multilingual review monitoring services and review generation solutions, you won’t have to worry about how to ask for a review, as we’ll do it for you.
For more information on how to ask for online reviews, check out this post on our blog. You may also reach out to us for more information about our reputation management services.
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