Do you have feedback fatigue?

The polish isn’t even dry on my nails yet and the text is already through: “How was your experience?”

It seems as if everything I buy wants to know how I feel about it. Like an approval-seeking new friend.

From restaurants to dentists to the lady in John Lewis who helped me choose a candle recently. I did review her actually, as she was so nice, but it wasn’t easy – I had to uncrumple the receipt to find the QR code then compose a pithy ditty, before I forgot what it was she’d actually done that was putting me to all this trouble.

And how much difference does it make anyway?

With something like Airbnb, where the reviews are reciprocated, it can become almost meaningless: I’m naturally going to give the musty cottage I stayed in this weekend 5 stars, because I didn’t put away the washing up when I left, and I don’t want them to mark me down for it.

Which is why this week I’m talking about how to get reviews

It’s hard. But you need them.

From Google My Business to VouchedFor, to full-on client stories on your website, reviews and testimonials are extremely valuable to you because they play a vital role in helping you attract new clients, stand out from the crowd, and foster long-term relationships.

So how can you make it easier? Well, by making the process itself as seamless as possible of course, and choosing the right time to ask. But there are other things that can help.

Examples: I was recently asked for feedback on my recent Boden delivery experience. I was a bit of a loss. “They placed the parcel on the ground in a considerate manner”?

It would have been better to have some parameters. So give people some hints about what you’d like them to feed back on, such as responsiveness, communication, and availability. And if you’re feeling brave, value for money.

Show some examples of recent feedback so they can get a feel for what others are saying and where they can add something new.

Make it personal: Often the call to action is something generic like “These reviews help us to monitor service and act as team motivation.” It’s hard to care about this much.

So make it specific. Your clients might not realise that your business is built on referrals from others. They also might not know that you’re open to new business. So you can use this to explain why reviews are so important to you:

"Our business is built on recommendations from others, so your feedback can make a real difference in helping us grow. We currently have capacity to take on a few more new clients looking for support."

This feels direct without being needy, and shows you're busy but not too busy.

Do you have any tips to share on this,? What works for you?

Oh, and before you go, how would you rate this blog post?!

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