Have you ever wondered how Google Maps locates or rates the businesses it suggests to its users? If you're like most people, you've definitely used Google to look up a business or service, such as a local salon or hairdresser. You've probably also checked up their Google My Business reviews to see what other people have to say about them.

Google My Business has pushed most online business listing and reviews sites like Yelp under the rug, establishing itself as one of the essential business listing tools for businesses and individual consultants. On the other hand, Google Customer Reviews allows business owners to collect feedback from customers who made a purchase.

But what is the difference between Google Customer Reviews and Google My Business Reviews? And which of them should you use for your e-commerce business?

Google Customer Reviews and Google My Business Reviews are two different products and services offered by Google, and they serve two different purposes. However, there is some overlapping in reviews between the two products.

Let's look at the two products in detail.

Google Customer Reviews

Google Customer Reviews is a service that allows businesses to collect reviews from their customers and display them on their websites. You must have a Google Merchant account to participate in Google Customer Reviews.

By assisting you in collecting consumer feedback, Google does some of the heavy job for you. To do so, Google can send an email to your customers asking them to submit feedback on their experience with your company. Customers who wish to participate are given a brief survey to complete.

Customers' feedback and ratings from surveys might be posted on your website and other marketing platforms. They also assist Google in determining seller ratings, such as the average star rating and the number of reviews given to merchants. The greater the grade, the more likely the merchant is to be trusted.

Google My Business Reviews

Google My Business is Google's business listing service, which is used to assist users who are looking for services, businesses, or information on the internet. Because of Google's search strength and ubiquity across the web and consumer devices, it has surpassed most traditional company listing services.

It is not only free, but it is also one of the most significant things you can do to boost your visibility and attract more clients by listing your business on Google. You don't have to have a Google Merchant account to participate in Google My Business Reviews.

Google My Business has gone through numerous iterations and enhancements to get to where it is now. From the earliest Google Maps business snippets, which merely displayed a company name and location, to today's comprehensive information bars and snippets, which feature anything from business hours to reviews, business postings to photos, and much more, the product has evolved considerably throughout the years.

When it comes to reviews, the only true rival of Google My Business is a Facebook Business Page. Many experts have dubbed both of them Yelp killers. Positive company reviews are as vital as any other marketing strategy in gaining new customers and retaining existing ones.

So what's the difference?

People tend to mix up Google My Business Reviews with Google Customer Reviews, but the two are not the same. Google Customer Reviews is a feature that allows you to collect customer feedback from your e-commerce website. Customer feedback is then used to determine Seller and Product ratings.

On the other hand, Google My Business Reviews is a useful feature included in Google Maps and Google My Business that allows users to offer feedback on their experiences with a specific business. 

One of the most significant distinctions between Google Customer Reviews and Google My Business Reviews is that Google Customer Reviews is exclusively available to e-commerce businesses. Still, Google My Business Reviews is available to everyone.

Integration with Google Customer Reviews is required for your e-commerce site. This is not the case with Google My Business Reviews. Any company, in fact, can join up for Google My Business Reviews.

When to use each service?

If you have just an e-commerce store, you should use Google Customer Reviews. However, if you have a physical store, it's a good idea to get Google My Business reviews.

Businesses that have both e-commerce and physical store may benefit from getting both types of reviews. Though, many business owners who have brick-and-mortar stores and also sell online find it annoying to have a duplicate system for reviews. If that's the case, choosing a single system would be a good way to simplify the process.google-customer-reviews-or-google-my-business-reviews-2-ogoship

Why are reviews important?

We live in a time where there is a lot of competition online. Small, local businesses are finding it increasingly difficult to stand out in the competitive online marketplace, and the list of things to consider appears to go on forever. We understand that there are already a lot of things to consider, so adding any types of reviews to the mix may not seem important.

Reviews are extremely valuable for businesses since they may help with everything from your search engine ranking to your customer's perception of you.

So, thinking of the different types of Google reviews specifically, how do reviews affect your company?

Boosting your reputation and credibility

A clear benefit of having Google reviews is that they boost your reputation and make your business appear as a better option when potential clients are doing their research.

With more customers using reviews to inform their purchasing decisions, having Google reviews boosts your credibility and makes your business appear as a better option. Customers read evaluations and take them seriously, so it's critical that they see not only your business but also that other customers think it's fantastic.

Helping you with SEO

One of the most crucial advantages of Google reviews is their impact on your local search results ranking.

Having a lot of reviews is beneficial to your SEO since search engines prefer businesses that have a lot of reviews. It all comes back to the search engine's desire to provide the finest results possible to the user.

All of this means that search engines scrutinize how your company is perceived, weighing both the quantity and quality of reviews to evaluate whether your company is the best option. If you have a large number of reviews and a high overall average rating, search engines are more likely to rank you higher in local search results.

As a result, Google reviews are an excellent tool to employ in conjunction with other SEO methods and best practices on your website, such as keyword research and content creation.

Making it easy for you to get feedback from customers

Another great benefit of Google reviews is that they allow you to collect useful information from your customers, which you can then use to better your company.

Google reviews are like mini-surveys from your clients. If a consumer has taken the time to write an honest review, it is almost certain to provide answers to some important questions.

For instance, what product or service that consumer purchased from your company, whether your organization provided a pleasant customer experience, and what they thought of the final product.

Some reviews may go into greater detail about specific details such as delivery time, specific staff people who assisted them, and whether or not they would use the firm again in the future.

As a result, Google reviews enable you to collect a wealth of information about your consumers' opinions. You can discover where your business is doing well right now and where you need to improve in the future.

Bottom line

As you can see from the above, reviews are an important part of e-commerce marketing. Customers notice them, and they can often be the difference between a customer going through to your website or clicking on a competitor's one instead.

Google My Business provides you with the tools you need to handle such reviews, including the ability to track them, respond to them, and receive notifications when they are published online. Although there isn't a direct way to ask customers for reviews, clever use of a link in your Google Maps listing, paired with a URL shortening provider, can help you get the ratings you need.

On the other hand, Google Customer Reviews are particularly important for e-commerce businesses and a great way to boost your brand's visibility and credibility.

Either way, it's important to have some mechanism in place to claim ownership of the assets available and to increase the visibility and online presence of your business.

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