Customer reviews as a sales tool
The importance of product reviews can hardly be overestimated. The fact is that over 80% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase. And if we are talking about those who trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations, then such consumers are 88%. With the advent of social media, word of mouth has become more important, and the use of consumer feedback to evaluate the product being sold has become an important element of an e-commerce strategy. It is not uncommon for social information such as online store reviews to have a greater impact than other factors such as the overall reputation of a store.
The rule of ignoring what others think can be applied in personal life. When it comes to business - here you need to take into account the opinion of customers. Whether you are a healthcare facility, restaurant, retail store, or hotel owner, you can greatly benefit from collecting and analyzing customer reviews. Testimonials have tremendous potential to transform a passive customer into a loyal customer. We live in a world where the opinion of a famous influencer about a product is as relevant as the opinion of an industry expert.
You have no control over what people say about you in articles, blogs, and online forums. But you can keep track of how people rate your product. Never miss an opportunity to get better!
What motivates customers to leave their online shopping experience? It is important for people that their opinion is taken into account, therefore, deficiencies are identified on time and can be corrected and improved in such a way that there are more satisfied customers.
Positive reviews can significantly boost a company's sales. Thus, testimonials can have several benefits, the main ones being:
- Gaining trust and increasing customer loyalty. As you know, trust is difficult to gain, but you can say goodbye to it with ease due to a bad experience. Trust is the true currency of a business. Consumers take time to feel comfortable enough to trust you - and trust your products and services.
- Valuable customer feedback. Customer testimonials will help your business understand what can help improve the customer experience. That way, you can build a picture of your sales funnel and identify areas where you are doing well and those that need improvement. Don't forget that you can also reply to the client and start a dialogue to find out more and make sure their problems are resolved.
- Increased search engine rankings. Online customer reviews are of great value for finding a site. It's also important what customers say: negative reviews for the Google search engine are a negative factor in the ranking process.
Negative reviews, on the contrary, can not only destroy the reputation but also nullify all activities. Among the negative trends are the following:
- Loss of customers and decline in sales. 94% of people say an online review convinced them not to make a purchase.
- Four out of five consumers changed their minds about a recommended purchase after reading negative reviews online.
- Companies have a high risk of losing up to 22% of customers if customers find only one negative article. If three such articles appear in a search query, the likelihood of lost customers rises to 59.2%.
What review platforms do customers use the most?
Customers also actively share their impressions of their purchases on social networks. Therefore, a business needs to control the various platforms where their customers are located. It's not what you say about your business that matters, but how your customers respond to it. All of these sources allow consumers to freely express their opinions about products, recommend them to others, or report deficiencies. Reviews like these can confidently be considered a valuable asset for any B2C company, moreover, they are critical to the business.
There are different ways to get feedback from customers, you can use the following tips:
- Call your customers regularly.
- Provide live chat support.
- Follow your social media activity.
- Provide feedback forms.
- Provide an active online community.
- Create email polls for new and existing customers.
- Use NPS to measure customer loyalty.
- Follow reactions on Facebook.
- Offer feedback rewards.
- Request feedback at a service point.
The best way to make sure you get positive customer reviews is to provide customers with a product or service that exceeds expectations. Build a customer experience that deserves a brilliant recommendation. Collecting and analyzing customer reviews can be of great benefit to your business. By working with testimonials, you build trust in your product, improve your site SEO, and get direct customer feedback that can help you optimize your business practice and become better.