“What is the shortest word in the English language that contains the letters: abcdef? Answer: Feedback. Don’t forget that feedback is one of the essential elements of good communication.” ~Anonymous
As a business owner I know the value of a positive review online.
It is a priceless thing. Because of that I work hard to take a couple of minutes to photograph my food or turn around and take a photo of the front of the building as I walk out of a store or restaurant.
I can honestly say that if I were not a business owner, I would not think to do this or take my time to do it unless something bad happened. This is a great example of how having a different perspective changes our actions.
I started leaving reviews years ago. It still surprises me when I get a notification from Google that hundreds of thousands of people have noticed my review.
If you are wondering if I leave negative reviews, I try really really hard not to. I, instead, will try to locate an email to the owner or manager and send them my feedback directly. 95% of the time, I get a response that they appreciate that I told them directly and did not leave it as a review for the world to see. I figure everyone can have a bad day and that shouldn’t be something that gets the focus for weeks to come.
I thought of the power of positivity yesterday when I got an email from google about a photo, I took at a donut shop that has over a couple of thousand views. How we, as people, all enjoy hearing something positive about ourselves and the people around us.
Please, take time today to say as many positive things about the people around you as you are able. If you have a good experience at a store, leave a review. If someone takes a moment to do you an extra favor, find ways to pass that on to others too.
Life is less complicated than we think.
Love yourself with some humility and love others.
Thanks,
JoyGenea Schumer
Business Owner, International Neurodiversity Coach, and Speaker
P.S. Constructs of a useful business review
If you are going to use your time to support a business with a review, make it useful to the business, yourself and other people.
HINT: Focus on what went really well. If they don’t hit amazing, what did they get right?
- Be direct with the title – Great food, good price, and outstanding server or Had Exactly What I Was Looking For
- Use people’s names if they were exceptional. “We had just landed from seven hours of travel and almost no food. The Crackle Barrel seemed like the perfect place to get a great meal and get rehydrated. Theresa, our server, never missed a chance to refill a glass of my lemonade or refill my husband’s coffee mug. The fried porkchop was perfectly done and the grilled chicken fingers tasted so good with a hint of garlic I believe. Just for fun I had the turnip greens, and they added a nice touch to the whole meal. As always, the food was good, and our server was exceptional.”
- Brief description of what went well, was above average, what you were doing, or what you ate. See description above
- Add a photo if you can. More than one is even better.