Key Takeaways:
My Fertilizing Company transformed their online reputation and customer acquisition by leveraging RealGreen's Reviewbot to automate review generation, resulting in 50 five-star reviews in just 24 hours.
- Online reviews are critical for customer decisions: 85% of customers consider reviews older than three months less relevant, making fresh, positive reviews essential for competing in local search results.
- Automated review requests save time and drive results: Reviewbot sends targeted emails to customers, making it effortless for them to leave honest reviews while filtering negative feedback for internal resolution.
- Strategic timing maximizes response rates: Sending review requests when lawns look their best (end of season) generates the highest engagement and most positive reviews.
- Investment in review generation delivers measurable ROI: Despite initial cost concerns, the immediate influx of authentic five-star reviews proved the value, as online reviews are the most important factor in customer purchasing decisions.
- Negative review management protects your reputation: Filtering poor reviews directly back to the company allows you to address customer concerns before they become public, maintaining strong customer relationships.
Ready to build a stronger online reputation and attract more customers? Schedule a demo with RealGreen to see how Reviewbot can automate your review generation and grow your business.
About My Fertilizing Company
Industry: Lawn Care and Fertilization
Plymouth, Michigan-based My Fertilizing Company was founded in 2014 by co-owners Ryan Shiplett and Andrew Walsh. In that time, they’ve grown from around 150 customers to more than 2,000, servicing primarily residential properties in the Detroit metropolitan area. They have been a RealGreen customer since they started their business and a Lawnbot customer since 2019.
The Challenge
Positive online reviews are essential for any business in 2021, but especially for high-competition services businesses like lawn care and fertilizing. Customers will start their search online, and they will make their decisions at least partially based on the reviews they see. “They look up five competitors in the area and they compare how many stars you have compared to those people – and how many reviews. I mean, you might have five stars but only 10 reviews. If you have 4.8 stars but 150 reviews, that’s much better,” says Walsh. My Fertilizing Company was already happy a Lawnbot customer, so they signed on to Reviewbot with some reservations, particularly about the additional cost. But, keeping online reviews current is important – 85% of customers consider local reviews older than three months to be less relevant.
- Getting online reviews is essential; asking for reviews is time-consuming
- Most customers think older reviews are less relevant and will discount them when making their decision
The Solution
My Fertilizing Company uses Reviewbot to send an email to customers offering them a credit towards new services in exchange for leaving an honest review. “We send out a message saying ‘We love you, do you love us,’ with emojis in the subject to catch their eye,” says Shiplett. Customers click through, answer a couple of simple questions, leave a star rating and give permission to post the review on Google. Bad reviews are filtered out and sent directly back to My Fertilizing Company so that they can address the customer’s concerns before a negative review gets posted. “Customer service is the most important thing. This gives us an opportunity to address the situation and hopefully keep the customer happy,” he continues. My Fertilizing Company uses Reviewbot intermittently throughout the year, finding that they have the best response towards the end of the season when the grass is green and growing, and lawns look their best. In addition, Reviewbot automatically refreshes reviews older than six months to keep everything current.
- Reviewbot sends automatic emails that make it easy for customers to give reviews
- Negative reviews are sent back to the company so issues can be addressed
“In one email blast, we got 50 five star reviews — overnight in a 24 hour period.”
Ryan Shiplett
My Fertilizing Company
The Value
Shiplett and Walsh both note that the response they received through Reviewbot was immediate and effective. “In one email blast, we got 50 five star reviews – overnight in a 24 hour period. It was awesome,” says Shiplett. Walsh agrees, noting, “I do all of the finances, so I was a little against it at the beginning because of the cost. But: If I can pay x amount of money for this many reviews, it’s worth it. Reviews are probably the most important factor in terms of customers making online decisions.”
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