If you think that online reviews have no influence on whether or not a prospect will hire you, you are dead wrong. 

And if you don’t pay attention to them, your practice could die as well.

Consider these latest research findings:

• 89% of consumers say online reviews are trustworthy
• 86% of consumers look for online reviews when researching products or services
• 80% of consumers say negative reviews will dissuade them from making a purchase
• 85% of consumers say they are more likely to make a purchase if the product or service has favorable online reviews

Google and Yelp! are the two most influential online review websites, and having no reviews is as bad as a negative review:

So how can you get good reviews or offset negative ones? Here are some tips:

Have a website. This sounds simple, but having a website that ranks well in search results will allow prospects to see who you are and give you the ability to control the message.

Ask clients for reviews and tell them where to post. Happy clients are the least likely to post a review, so ask your satisfied clients to go to Google or Yelp! and post give their feedback on your services.

Don’t post fake reviews. Consumers can inevitably sniff out the fake reviews and after that happens, you won’t be trusted.

Monitor your online reputation and respond appropriately. If you get a negative review, respond appropriately online and offline. Acknowledge the review with a reasoned response and then take it offline to attempt a resolution. Be sure to thank those who post positive reviews as well.