Online reviews have become incredibly influential in the customer decision-making process. Consumers say these first impressions significantly affect their choices, with 86% saying they will not buy products or services from companies with negative ratings. On the flip side, customers will spend 31% more when businesses have excellent reviews.
Reviews are also key to increasing a company’s online visibility. Google considers the quantity and quality of reviews when ranking businesses in search results. More and better reviews help businesses appear higher in local search results.
On August 1, MFA Oil launched a Google review contest to encourage BPLP plant staff to ask customers to leave a review for their local plant. Plants received boxes of review cards they could hand out to customers that were customized with their contact information and a QR code that linked directly to the plant’s Google review page. As an incentive, $50 Amazon gift cards were offered to all employees at the location that received the most positive (4- or 5-star) reviews.
The contest ended on Sept. 31, and Warrensburg plant employees were declared the winners with 106 positive reviews. During the two-month contest, MFA Oil plants received 465 positive reviews, a substantial total considering the co-op received 344 reviews (good and bad) in the entire 2023 Fiscal Year.
Trey Glenn, plant manager for Warrensburg and Clinton, says his Warrensburg staff were highly motivated by the contest. They took advantage of the Google review cards and handed them out to customers whenever they interacted with them.
Glenn says the reason for Warrensburg’s success in the review contest was his staff’s willingness to ask customers for reviews.
“We weren’t twisting any arms or anything, but you do have to be proactive and ask customers to leave a review,” Glenn says. “I’d say well over 90% of the reviews we received were because of a personal ask from our staff.”
Glenn credits Warrensburg CSR Shelby Eiskina and driver Ronnie Goodwin for putting forth extra effort to request reviews from customers.
After the success of the first Google review contest, MFA Oil plans to continue the effort with three additional contest periods that will run throughout the remainder of the 2024 fiscal year. For each of the three contest timeframes listed below, the plant that receives the most positive (4- or 5-star) reviews will receive $50 Amazon gift cards for each employee at that location.
- November 1 – Feb. 29
- March 1 – May 31
- June 1 – August 31
Additionally, all employees at the plant that receives the most positive reviews from Nov. 1, 2023 to Aug. 31, 2024 will receive $150 Amazon gift cards.