When someone searches for your business, Google shows them everything—your name, your hours, your map location, and, maybe most importantly, your reviews. Those little yellow stars carry real weight. One bad review can plant a seed of doubt. A string of five-star ratings can tip a visitor into becoming a customer. People trust what other people say. And Google, for better or worse, has become the place where those opinions live.

The problem isn’t with the reviews themselves. It’s with how little control you have over them once they’re out in the wild. You can respond to a bad review. You can thank someone for a glowing one. But when it comes time to showcase your hard-earned reputation on your own website, Google gives you almost nothing to work with. [Read more…]