Throughout history, the future of business has been linked to the opinions expressed about it, but since the advent of the internet, websites, and social media, the importance of a (good) reputation has skyrocketed. Words can fly away, but what's written on the internet remains there forever. Therefore, it's essential to work on your online reputation so that the opinions surrounding your business are positive.

Related to this topic, Google, which just turned 18, recently announced on its blog that it will display, on the right side of its search results list, the information it knows about the company you're searching for. Where will it get this information? In many cases, it's from online directories. That's why, on this occasion, we're talking about the importance of reviews in an online directory.

The importance of appearing in an online directory

Being listed in an online directory has many advantages for your business, such as:

• They are used by people who are looking for your product or service, but don't know where to go.

• Related to the previous point, some of your users may become your customers over time because they remember seeing you in a directory.

• Many companies looking for suppliers of products or services also use online directories.

• Additionally, appearing in a good online directory improves our website's SEO ranking.

Likewise, the most important online directories have a considerable volume of visitors . Therefore, simply by listing your listing there, you will substantially increase the number of visitors to your business page.

Pro Tip: Easily post a review for small business and share your experience. Help local businesses grow while guiding other customers with your feedback.

Opinions attract customers

When you plan a trip to another city and look for hotels to stay at, you always rely on other users' reviews to help you decide which one to choose. Something very similar happens to your customers when they browse the internet looking for the products or services you offer.

In most cases, the offer they see is very broad, but when it comes to ignoring your competition and clicking on your business, they'll notice:

• The information you include.

• The colors and design of your logo.

• The tab for opinions or experiences of other users.

Regarding the last point, Google has announced that its knowledge graph—the information located to the right of search results that is only available to the user currently using the search engine—will soon display ratings, comments, and opinions that other people have left about the business in question.

However, this functionality will only be available if the site or online directory has implemented rating and comment data markup (HTML tags to make it easier for search engines to recognize the data on a page), as required by Google.

From there, the process works similarly to blog SEO. The more reviews you have, the easier it will be to stand out from the competition. As those reviews increase, Google will display more information about your business in its knowledge graph, and consequently, more users will become customers.

There are different strategies for getting users to leave positive comments or reviews of your business in online directories, but they all boil down to one thing: offering excellent service. If the customer is satisfied, they are more likely to recommend you.

As you've seen, online reviews of your business are essential for expanding your business because the more reviews you accumulate, the greater your visibility and the more people will be able to reach you.