Online reviews have been called the new ‘word of mouth’ – and there’s plenty of evidence to support this claim. The Spiegel Research Centre concluded that a whopping 95% of customers read reviews before making a purchase; and Bright Local found that just 53% of people would consider using a company with less than four stars. Simply put: reviews matter, so it’s worth spending the time required to ensure that yours are stellar!
Why Do Online Reviews Matter?
Customer service expert Bill Quiseng perhaps put it best when he stated: ‘Nobody raves about average’ and ‘Your customer’s perception of your service trumps your advertising every time.’ This is why so many marketing departments spend time on reputation management: because word of mouth, whether it’s a great comment on social media, a testimonial for your website, or a review on Trustpilot, can have a huge impact on your company’s sales figures and retention rates.
So that’s what a review can do for your business – but what about your potential customers? Research has shown that 88% of shoppers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations… but why? Why do reviews matter to them? It’s a fast-paced world and things are changing all the time (not least because of COVID-19 and other impactful global events), but studies suggest that customers browse reviews for four main reasons:
Information: to learn about the product they’re thinking of buying.
Quality: to get a better sense of any benefits or drawbacks associated with the product or service.
Risk: to reduce the possibility of making a disappointing purchase.
Social proof: to gain community insight from customers that have used the product or service.
The good news is there’s a bonus to this approach: because gathering customer feedback can be a lot cheaper than a paid-for promotional campaign! That’s not to say it’s free – you’ll still have to invest some staff time in order to implement your strategy – but you can gain huge rewards for relatively little output. Here are some top tips on devising a winning online-review strategy.
How to Conquer Online Reviews: Step 1
First things first: you’re not going to get great reviews without providing a great consumer experience. Full stop. It’s really important to ensure that every step of the process - from the first point of contact to the final delivery of the product – is outstanding, and you want to work out 99% of the kinks before you start pushing for reviews, not after (though if a customer review encourages you to make tweaks, that’s great – you can always turn any negative feedback into a win, after all!).
Remember, too, that most negative reviews involve a consumer disappointment – and that, most of the time, this will be due to an expectation that your brand has created and not fulfilled (probably unknowingly). Therefore, it’s very important to sense and fact-check every step of the consumer journey to ensure you’re being honest about the product and service you’re intending (and are able) to provide. This will help prevent confusion and reduce the likelihood of any false expectations being formed.
How to Conquer Online Reviews: Step 2
You’ve combed through the user journey in detail. You’ve made several tweaks to ensure that your customers are receiving excellent service all the time, every time. But your online reviews don’t seem to be piling up…
This is a common scenario for many business owners. Whilst fantastic service can inspire glowing reviews, many customers need a little push in order for this to translate into a public write-up about your company. Thankfully, there are a few things you can do to spur your customers on!
Send out follow-up emails. This may sound obvious, but you’d be surprised how many businesses don’t follow up with their customers. Timing is important, too: you want to be front of mind (there’s little point contacting a customer who received their product months ago) and yet you don’t want the customer to feel bombarded. Provided the customer hasn’t reported any problems and their product/service has been safely delivered, aim to send a follow-up within 72 hours to thank them for their custom and ask if they’d consider leaving a review.
Use product inserts. Print out a small flyer or business card and pop this into every order that is shipped or sold in store. Make sure your contact details are listed clearly on the material along with a request for review on your chosen platform(s); with any luck, you’ll not only secure a review but also some repeat business. A simple – yet surprisingly effective – tool!
Use different platforms. One key thing to remember when asking for reviews is to meet the customer wherever they feel comfortable. Some will prefer to comment on social media; some will be familiar with TrustPilot; some might be extra keen on YouTube! If you can provide a variety of different methods by which to leave a review (ensuring you have the Google ‘My Business’ feature set up, functionality on your website/social media pages, etc.), it’s more likely that your customers will follow through.
Use live chat. Similar – yet slightly different – to the tip above, this technique can elicit reviews from even the busiest of customers. Set up a live chat function on your website; then, after each interaction, include a prompt to encourage your customer to provide feedback there and then. This will capture those customers who are easily distracted or who have an ‘instant gratification’ mindset.
Incentivize. Understanding that a customer’s time is valuable is crucial. As such, you should be prepared to reward them accordingly in return for the time spent leaving you a review. Incentivizing the review process is a powerful way to encourage customers to take action: whether it’s the promise of a discount code, a free gift, or being entered into a prize draw, setting up some kind of reward scheme is a great idea if your business isn’t receiving the number of online reviews that you desire.
How to Conquer Online Reviews: Step 3
Research by Bazaarvoice illuminated many revealing things about consumer attitudes toward online reviews – including their reaction to how a brand handles negative feedback. It was deduced that potential customers who see a brand managing negative reviews with efficacy are 92% more likely to make a future purchase. A plan for dealing with unhappy customers is therefore a vital part of any online-review strategy – with any luck, you might be able to ‘turn that frown upside down’ and convert negative feedback into a fantastic review! Here’s where to start…
Respond – and be personal. Above all, you must always respond: no business is immune to negative reviews, no matter how successful, and a lack of response (or worse, a churlish one), is an absolute no-no. When you do respond, take care to be personal: don’t fire off a canned response and always sign your name. If at all possible, it’s best for the response to come from a manager or someone in a position to resolve the issue – this shows it’s being taken seriously.
Be timely. A delayed response is unlikely to be effective: it seems careless, and if the customer has been left to stew, they may be less receptive to your efforts. Be specific. Take care to familiarise yourself with the customer’s order history before responding. This, again, will show that you’re taking the matter seriously.
Take responsibility – and offer a solution. No-one is perfect, and most customers respect this… if you’re honest. Trying to dodge responsibility or offering stock phrases like ‘I apologise that you feel this way’ is a sure-fire way to increase tension. Own up to any mistakes that were made and promise to resolve the matter by offering a credible, well-considered solution.
Follow up to show that you care. Once the situation has been satisfactorily resolved, follow up with the customer to check that they’re happy. Provide some details of the situation online to evidence the efforts that have been made, and carefully encourage the customer to offer their own update: this may inspire them to change their original review or provide a new one that shows your brand in a much more positive light.
Reviews – good and bad – are extremely important to both sales figures and customer retention rates, so it’s well worth investing time in devising (and implementing) a solid strategy for gathering buyer feedback. Remember, the customer is always right… and if you manage your customer interactions online with sensitivity and care, you could receive just the right reviews to put your brand on the path to success. Good luck!
