From pruning trees to removing stumps, tree care is dangerous work. Simple mistakes that would be no big deal in any other industry can endanger lives and damage property. That’s why people don’t take hiring a tree service lightly.

If someone hears about your tree service business on Facebook, a search ad or a digital TV ad, you can bet that they’ll do more research before making a choice about working with you.

Even if a lead comes from a personal recommendation — which is the most powerful form of marketing — they will most likely read at least a few of your reviews throughout the decision-making process.

8 tree service reputation management tips

Getting tree service leads is just the first step toward growing your tree care business. You have to turn those leads into customers. In order to do that, you need to have a strong reputation. Here are a few tips to help you build one.

#1. Provide outstanding customer service

No matter what you do to get reviews or build your reputation, it will be all for naught if the customer experience you provide is lacking. At the end of the day, your reputation boils down to how you treat your customers.

The kind of customer service you provide lays the foundation for the kind of reputation you build. The very first thing you should do to build a strong reputation for your tree care business is to make sure your customer service is up to par.

Customer service may seem insignificant compared to getting the job done safely or preventing property damage, but it matters big time to your customers. People expect great customer service, and most won’t hesitate to write a bad review if your service doesn’t live up to their expectations.

Make sure that you always put the customer first, and that your staff is properly trained to do the same. Remember, that your technicians are often the people who get the most face-to-face time with your customers and who set the stage for the customer experience you provide.

#2. Manage your listings

There are a lot of different places people can go to find a local tree service, including Angie’s List, Yelp, Top Rated Local® and even Facebook. If one of those listings has an old phone number or email address, you could end up losing out on a high-quality lead.

You also need to think about what incorrect contact information says to a potential customer. If they can’t trust you enough to have accurate information on your listings, how can they trust you with their tree care needs?

Claiming and managing your listings across multiple local sites, directories and apps is an important part of building a strong reputation for your business. Save time and update all of your listings at once with listings management software, like the Marketing 360® Listings app.

Not only will keeping your listings up to date make for a better customer experience and a strong reputation, but it will also help your organic visibility.

In its Maps rankings, Google prioritizes Google Business Profile listings with consistent NAP (name, address, phone number) information across listings. Even spelling out “street” instead of using “st” can negatively impact your organic rankings.

#3. Ask for feedback after service

Not everyone will go out and write a review of your tree care business on their own (unless they’ve had a bad experience). So if you leave your reputation up to chance, your reviews can often unfairly skew negatively.

However, most people are happy to write reviews when asked. And, if you make it a habit to ask every customer for a review, your average star rating will paint a much more accurate picture of the kind of service you provide.

The best time to ask someone for a review is when their experience is still fresh in their mind — immediately after a service has been performed.

When someone tells you that they are happy with your service and is raving about how great their trees look, simply ask them to share that feedback with other consumers in the form of a review.

Pro tip– When a customer mentions one of your employees in a five-star review, make sure to recognize and celebrate their success. This will encourage them to ask for reviews as well as to provide a five-star-review-worthy experience.

#4. Get reviews via email

Asking for reviews in person is one of the most effective ways to get more reviews for your tree service business. But, for some people, asking for a review can feel awkward, or you may not always remember at the time.

Another great way to get more reviews is to use an automated email marketing campaign. Send an email to every customer after a service has been completed asking to give you feedback about their experience by choosing either a thumbs up or a thumbs down.

People who indicate that they are happy with your service by clicking the thumbs up button will be sent to a review site where they can write a tree service review. People who indicate that they were unhappy with your service will be sent to an internal feedback form.

This way, you can diffuse situations that are likely to lead to one-star reviews before they damage your average star rating. Plus, you can hear first-hand about what your customers are upset about.

#5. Have a professional website

Reading your reviews isn’t the only thing a potential customer will do when they are still in research mode. You can pretty much guarantee that they’ll also visit your website. It needs to paint the right picture of your business.

If your website loads slowly, doesn’t function well on a mobile device, is hard to navigate or just looks bad, it won’t do you any favors. Your website is often what forms a prospective customer’s first impression of your tree service business. Make sure you get it right.

One thing you can do to make your tree service website more professional and attractive is to use lots of white — or blank — space. White space helps to highlight the important elements on your website, like your call to action (CTA), and keeps it uncluttered.

Another good reason to use white space is that it helps you provide a better mobile experience to your visitors. For mobile users, it’s especially important to leave plenty of white space around buttons and other clickable elements.

Pro tip – White space doesn’t necessarily have to be white. It can be different colors or even a background image. It’s simply the area between elements on your website.

#6. Respond to your reviews

When someone takes the time to give your tree service business a review, make sure that you take the time to respond to the review. This shows prospective customers that you listen to and value customer feedback.

While it’s good to respond to all of your tree service reviews, it’s especially important to respond to your negative reviews. By responding to negative reviews, it gives you a chance to turn the situation around and show off your customer service chops.

Here are a few tips for responding to negative reviews:

• Remember that your response is public – It’s important to keep in mind that the person who wrote the review is not the only person who will read your response to it. Most prospective customers will probably read it, so always think about what kind of impression your response will have on them.
• Give yourself time to cool off – No matter what the review says — even if it’s fake or unfair — it will do you no favors if you get publicly upset about it. You need to be professional and even-keeled in your response, no matter what. Don’t hesitate to take the time you need to cool off or calm down before you respond.
• Apologize and make it right – Even if you don’t think you were in the wrong, it’s hardly ever a good idea to argue with someone in a review about your business. Apologize that they had a bad experience with your business, and figure out what you can do to make it right.
• Invite them to contact you directly – Sometimes, disgruntled customers won’t be satisfied no matter how you respond to their review. Instead of getting into a public back and forth with them, invite them to contact you directly by giving them your phone number or email address.

#7. Monitor your reputation

When someone writes a review about your tree service business, they expect you to respond — and not in two weeks or a month. They expect you to respond in a timely manner.

If you are going to respond to your reviews in a timely manner, you need to be in the know about when someone writes a new review. In order to do that, you need to monitor your reputation.

You should have an active, up-to-date listing on any review site consumers in your area use to look for tree care services, like Top Rated Local, Facebook and Yelp. Reputation management software, like the Marketing 360 Reputation app, can alert you of new reviews no matter which review site they’re on.

The Reputation app also gives you an overall Rating Score™, which is based on the number of reviews you have overall , the number of review sites your tree service business is listed on, your average star rating on those review sites and other criteria. This helps you keep a close eye on how your reputation is doing overall.

#8. Build an active social media presence

Social media platforms, like Facebook and Instagram, are not just where people go to stay connected with friends, family and acquaintances anymore. They’re also where consumers go to find local businesses, like tree services.

Customers can leave reviews on Facebook and other social media platforms where all of your followers can see it. They can also leave you feedback in the form of comments and tag your business in their posts.

When the social media feedback is positive, it gives you a powerful form of social proof that helps to build trust in your business. Negative feedback on social media can impact your business just as much, but not in the way you want.

Just as you should always respond to reviews, you should also respond any time someone mentions your business on social media. This demonstrates that you value and appreciate feedback, and to other users that you’re active and ready to help.

---

Building a strong reputation is a non-negotiable part of tree service marketing. Marketing 360 has the reputation management software you need to get it right. See our plans and pricing.