For customers

For customers

Strangers’ opinions guide us to greater things

Strangers’ opinions guide us to greater things

Last week I read an article on The Guardian about the backlash that a reviewer had experienced over their career of opining on television shows and movies and I saved the link because I wanted to come back to it. That night the article occupied my thoughts and I...

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Has traditional advertising lost its impact?

Has traditional advertising lost its impact?

I was researching a story the other day and as often happens, an innocuous statement got me thinking. I love when that happens and I am constantly surprised by where it it can take my mind and make me think very differently about things I hadn't considered before....

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An authenticated review platform is essential

An authenticated review platform is essential

One of the greatest challenges to the substance and veracity of online reviews is instilling confidence in the consumers who flock online to make their choices based on the opinions of others, whom they will likely never encounter in real life. Maintaining a...

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Why you need to register your business with NoCowboys

Why you need to register your business with NoCowboys

Simple marketing is the most effective Marketing is essentially the bridge across the gap between your business and the customers you want to attract. NoCowboys provides the most effective means to close that gap – using your greatest, and probably most under utilised...

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Reputations are made by the perceptions of others

Reputations are made by the perceptions of others

A friend and I were talking the other day about branding, reputation, and reviews and she said something that was incredibly simple and also amazingly profound. I really love when that happens - when someone can utter a few words that solidify your thinking and make...

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A resource of all of the benefits of online reviews

A resource of all of the benefits of online reviews

This resource is aimed at those business owners who have not yet committed to putting their reputations on the line, online. It explains the many benefits of an online reputation to every business, no matter what it does, where it does it, no matter how large or how...

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Conflict resolution is a crucial skill in business

Conflict resolution is a crucial skill in business

I've witnessed enough conflict between businesses and customers, personally and professionally, to have a good idea of how to avoid it and if it occurs, to resolve it. Firstly, and most importantly, differences are endemic to human beings. We see things,...

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Where does the freedom of speech end?

Where does the freedom of speech end?

I've been thinking a lot about free speech really, though in truth, the issue of the right to express opinions and beliefs is something endemic to the review industry all of the time. Reviews are, after all, the subjective experience of an individual and there is no...

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Consumers expect to see challenging reviews – embrace them!

Consumers expect to see challenging reviews – embrace them!

For some businesses owners, challenging reviews are a huge obstacle and sometimes end up being a stumbling block that they just can not get past. While there is obviously a human element to dealing with and accepting criticism - fair or unfair - there are some things...

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The whole truth and nothing but the truth

The whole truth and nothing but the truth

Reviews are only valid and worthwhile if they are honest, transparent and real but more than that businesses need to be aware that in New Zealand, there is a legal requirement to present reviews accurately, and consequences if those obligations is not met. This...

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The power of the apology

The power of the apology

In a perfect storm of irony I was all set to write about the power of apology in business this week, and wouldn't you know it, I was served up the ideal how not do it by celebrities in Lalaland. For those of you who missed it, Will Smith decided to let rage and...

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The Covid pandemic and online reviews

The Covid pandemic and online reviews

The past two years have transformed our lives, no matter where we are in the world. In the coming years, behavioural psychologists will have a field day, filling academic journals with papers focused on the many and various ways that the Coronavirus has impacted our...

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Retail vs online shopping

Retail vs online shopping

I'm old enough to remember those crazy, carefree days before the internet where shopping was a physical pursuit and an adventure. Obviously a lot has changed since then and sometimes I have to check myself about my own consumer behaviours, especially over the past two...

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A review is an opinion shared

A review is an opinion shared

Something that came up recently got the ol' brain box ticking over and took me to what some may call the bleeding obvious - a question that I imagined should have a universal and obvious answer - what is a review? It may sound simple, as we may think we know what a...

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How to find tradies/businesses on NoCowboys

How to find tradies/businesses on NoCowboys

NoCowboys isn't a directory in the traditional sense, it is a platform where Kiwis can contact businesses after reading reviews. Our verified reviews are a point of difference to other sites, such as job boards, and they are the best metric to guiding your choices -...

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Facebook marketing? Yeah nah

Facebook marketing? Yeah nah

In our last piece I analysed some of the main takeaway points form BrightLocal's 2022 annual online consumer survey that established the near total reliance consumers have in reading online reviews before contacting businesses. One point in the survey results has...

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98% read online reviews for local businesses

98% read online reviews for local businesses

For over a decade BrightLocal had conducted and published the results of its annual "Local Consumer review Survey". Last year's survey results were released a few weeks ago, but hey, we are in a global pandemic, so who is going to call them out for tardiness? As is...

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NoCowboys online platform is nothing less than marketing gold

NoCowboys online platform is nothing less than marketing gold

One of the greatest things about NoCowboys' online marketing platform is that it requires minimal time and attention and if set up properly, regularly updated, with consistent and recent reviews, it essentially takes care of itself. So well, in fact, that one of the...

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Dodgy company charges for free Google sites

Dodgy company charges for free Google sites

NoCowboys began in 2006 for two reasons - to give Kiwi consumers access to the best information to make informed decisions on who to hire (and who not to) and to create a platform for New Zealand tradies and businesses to harness the power of their reputations,...

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Finding the sweet spot

Finding the sweet spot

It’s always heartening talking with business owners who are passionate about their craft, their staff, and their customers. I spent some time with Darcy Wills, owner of Hibiscus Tiling to discuss the history of his business, the craft of tiling, trading through Covid,...

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NC Web

NC Web

[vc_row css=".vc_custom_1636598365151"][vc_column width="1/2"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1636598381671{border-radius: 25px !important;}"] NC Web offers high quality websites, with secure high speed hosting and SEO solutions at competitive pricing, to enable...

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All for one and one for all

All for one and one for all

When I was a kid I loved the Three Musketeers - the sword fighting, the adventure, the wit, the overcoming of evil and adversity. More than that though, I was utterly sold on their rallying cry of 'all for one and one for all'. It made beautiful sense and it was so...

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Websites for all seasons

Websites for all seasons

At NoCowboys we have been marketing the reputations of Kiwi businesses for over 15 years. We know reviews, we know reviews work and we have witnessed the rise and success of thousands of businesses who use our services and our platform. Over the years, however, we...

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Visibility means being transparent

Visibility means being transparent

Many business owners spend a formidable amount of money on their 'brand' without really considering what it is that customers look for in a brand and what attracts them to brands in the first place. Brand is not about a fancy logo or a self idealised and professed...

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Keeps you on top of your A game . . .

Keeps you on top of your A game . . .

Keeping up with all of the latest research on online reviews and consumer behaviour is all well and good but I still firmly believe that the best indication of the power of what we do at NoCowboys comes from the businesses that use and profit from our platform. After...

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“NoCowboys is an invaluable tool”

“NoCowboys is an invaluable tool”

Like every dynamic business, at NoCowboys we take great pride in the feedback we receive and it is even more heartening for us as we are in the business of marketing the reputations of thousands of New Zealand businesses to help them prosper and grow. Reviews are our...

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You may not think you’re online but your reputation is

You may not think you’re online but your reputation is

This week I had another one of those wonderful lightbulb moments where something I read online put something I knew into sharp relief. This one was all about the resistance some business owners have to taking charge of their online reputation and controlling the...

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Direct contact from customers puts you in charge

Direct contact from customers puts you in charge

There are various ways for businesses to attract new customers but some are better than others. The best methods of all involve active, motivated customers contacting a business, this is known as direct contact. It is far superior to the alternative - business owners...

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Fake reviews are only an issue for the unwary

Fake reviews are only an issue for the unwary

We are strange creatures and no matter what the enterprise, the unscrupulous amongst us do anything they can to secure an advantage. It's been this way for millennia and it's just the way it is. Even still, that doesn't mean that the rest of us have to fall into the...

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Reviews and ratings trump price in consumer survey

Reviews and ratings trump price in consumer survey

Survey results published in the US last month cement the absolute dominance of online reviews and star ratings driving consumer behaviour. 6500 consumers were surveyed by PowerReviews and for the first time the findings indicated a substantial shift in the...

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Our health professionals deserve far better

Our health professionals deserve far better

There are some decisions that really should be worked out with a hell of a lot more thought and consideration. Freezing public sector salaries after the budget last month is one of them. Now we face the prospect of nurses striking for better pay and conditions and...

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Utilising reviews to boost your conversion rate

Utilising reviews to boost your conversion rate

As always, I spent a few hours this week perusing the internet to see what new trends are emerging in marketing, consumer behaviour, and online reviews. A lot of it is just confirmation of what I already know but I will always read something that puts what we do at...

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NoCowboys is an online review platform

NoCowboys is an online review platform

Since 2006 NoCowboys has given Kiwi consumers the essential information they desire before contacting businesses and at the same time we have been instrumental in helping thousands of New Zealand businesses grow and substantially increase their customer bases. The...

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Strangers’ opinions guide us to greater things

Strangers’ opinions guide us to greater things

Last week I read an article on The Guardian about the backlash that a reviewer had experienced over their career of opining on television shows and movies and I saved the link because I wanted to come back to it. That night the article occupied my thoughts and I...

read more
Most trusted Kiwi brand revealed

Most trusted Kiwi brand revealed

The word iconic is terribly overused and often misapplied but for some reason it fits exactly when I think of the winner of this year's Reader’s Digest’s annual Trusted Brands survey.  Ask any kid and they will tell you that one of their favourite things is chocolate,...

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The perils of positivity – read the reviews!

The perils of positivity – read the reviews!

We have known this for years and the research affirms it year in and year out - consumers aren't just taken in by 4 and 5 star ratings - they want to read the actual reviews themselves. An article I read this week brought that into greater focus and I...

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Has traditional advertising lost its impact?

Has traditional advertising lost its impact?

I was researching a story the other day and as often happens, an innocuous statement got me thinking. I love when that happens and I am constantly surprised by where it it can take my mind and make me think very differently about things I hadn't considered before....

read more
Better be home soon

Better be home soon

Last Sunday I got to be part of a huge, raucous,  and appreciative crowd at Auckland's Spark Arena to see and hear Crowded House. This isn't a review of their music, their talent, their endurance, their achievements, or their artistry. It's a short and heartfelt...

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A year since the first nationwide lockdown . . .

A year since the first nationwide lockdown . . .

This week marks the one year anniversary of New Zealand's nationwide Level 4 lockdown and it is incredible how quickly the past 12 months have passed and how much we have changed. I can remember vividly the thoughts of impending doom as the whole country, apart...

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