It’s all about the reviews
It seems everyone has a nearly perfect review these days. That’s because these companies have all discovered the review game. Nearly everyone of these gushing reviews are either bought and paid for in the form of discounts, gift cards, and other freebies. Or they are made through compelling, almost manipulative, tactics.
What’s really crazy is that according to the available statistics, 95% of customers say they are willing to pay more for a product or service when the company providing it has good reviews. This means all the companies playing the review game know that by having a high overall review rating, that they can charge you more. So in turn, companies are now more than ever incentivized and motived to make achieving high reviews a top priority. So much so, the practice is now officially known as Reputation Management.
Let’s be real for a moment, how many people are going to actually take the time to go out of their way to leave a review of a company? There will always be some, but reality says not many. Most organic reviews come from people that had less than an ideal experience or their expectations weren’t met. These reviews are made out of spite or in hopes to try and get some sort of compensation out of the company.
This is where companies have learned the importance of incentivizing clients to leave glowing reviews. Time and time again, I have found that anytime I call a service provider for any sort of work to be done, I am now offered gift cards, discounts, or even additional free products and service if I leave a 5 star review right then and there.
If I am not offered some sort of benefit for the five stars, then I am pressured into giving one by the service tech that is standing at my door begging for his rave review and three fire emojis all under the guise that it will help out his bonus potential for the month. It’s a form of an obligatory tip to the tech without it having to cost the customer anything. Many of us all bite in the same way we end up tipping the fast food restaurant employee for doing nothing more than the very job he is paid to do.
When it comes to the HVAC industry, the same rules of the game apply. Most every AC contractor’s website now proudly display their 4.9 or 5.0 star review rating from Facebook, Google, Yelp, and the like…and why wouldn’t they. If high ratings equal more profit, then it is only smart business to wear that review like a badge of honor.
We all read the reviews before we call anyone regardless what the overall rating is. The key is to just remember that the majority of what you are reading was coerced from the author, not volunteered. That means it is skewed and naturally biased in favor of the company that is dangling the carrot. It also means that the company has spent a lot of time, money, and energy building their five point reputation. As a result, they need to recoup their investment. Unfortunately, the reaping comes from your wallet, the paying customer, in the form of overinflated prices.
But here is the real secret, all the fancy marketing and slick talk about being an expert with high quality service doesn’t change the fact that the service tech they are going to send to you is paid based on what he upsells you on. It’s the sales commission game and it’s where the real manipulation of extracting all your money from you steps up to level 12.
You’ll have to read this post to learn more.