No matter what you do or sell, customer reviews are an important part of doing business, and they are becoming even more so as more and more sales move online. In fact, in our digital age, trustworthy customer reviews are a vital part of getting the most out of your business’s online presence. So that begs the question: how do you get reviews?
Here are five tips to help you ask for that feedback or encourage consumers to leave their own reviews:
1. Follow-Up With Buyers
It seems like a no-brainer, but one of the first things companies forget to do is simply ask customers to rate their experience or purchase directly after they receive it. It can be as simple as sending a follow-up email as soon as their product is received or requesting that they stay on the webpage after their purchase to fill out a brief survey.
If you have a website where customers can log in and view their purchases, each purchase could have a button for reviewing next to it. Once customers review your company or your products, thank them, and on that page, give them links to other places where they can post their feedback. By giving them the option right away, it’s easier for them to simply copy and paste their review from one page to another, putting those glowing customer reviews in front of more eyes.
It can also be as simple as maximizing the impact of the page that loads after a purchase. Ask the customer how it went right away, and include links to other review websites on that page and subsequent ones so the buyer is consistently reminded of them.
Customers want to share their good experiences, and the easier you make it for them to give you that feedback, the more often it can happen.
2. Reward Reviewers
As much as people want to be generous with feedback, incentives help get those who may not take the time to leave a review or think about reviews at all. Enticements like this don’t have to break the bank either. Simple things like a percentage off their next purchase, a free sticker, or even just being featured on your social media can be enough to incentivize customers to share their feedback with you and other shoppers.
You can also approach rewarding reviews in a few different ways. For example, you can advertise that you reward people for reviewing you, or you can send out rewards for every review without any kind of warning/advertisement. The second option eliminates attracting those customers who do it just for the rewards, but it also surprises consumers who put in the extra effort and may make the customer feel so good about the experience that they turn around and buy from you again.
3. Use Social Media
Engaging in discussions about your products or services on social media can be a way to encourage reviews and respond to feedback in real-time. At the core of using social media for business is interacting with consumers so that they know there are real, live people behind your company and its products or services. So responding when a comment, question, post, or video about your business or product appears online is a great way to tell customers and potential customers they are seen and heard and an excellent way to keep people talking about your company.
Posting consistently is also a great way to remind customers you exist and that they love what you have to offer. You can even go a step further and provide a hashtag you’d like them to use or encourage them to tag you in their own posts whenever they visit your store or post about your product or service. A customer’s video or photo of your product improving their life speaks volumes and can be even more effective than a written review.
4. Feature Your Reviews
One of the first things the consumer wonders when they see a product that interests them, is, “Does it really work like that?” The best way to answer that question is through customer reviews. A section featuring reviews left on your website could be featured on your home page and below each product. The easier it is to find the information, the happier the customer will be.
Many customers will leave your website to confirm with what they consider a more trusted source, so getting people to review you on other websites is also important—especially if those customer reviews are the first results when someone searches your business. People rely heavily on Google, Yelp, or even the Better Business Bureau for answers about businesses they want to buy from or work with. Having a listing on those sites also encourages people to leave their reviews there.
Customer reviews aren’t always good feedback, and it may feel like most people only feel the need to leave a review when something negative happens. Thankfully, according to a 2022 survey by BrightLocal, “67 percent will consider leaving a review for a positive experience, while 40 percent will consider leaving a review for a negative experience.”
Getting your good reviews front and center on your website, Google, Yelp, or Facebook will boost your chances of getting more good customer reviews overall.
5. Respond to Reviews
It seems simple enough, but when you start getting a lot of customer reviews, good or bad, it can be overwhelming trying to respond to them all. At a minimum, you need to respond to the ones left directly on your site and social media pages. A simple “thank you” is great, taking it that step further and engaging with the customer on some level beyond a copy-paste phrase.
The more heard the customer feels, the more willing they are to not only buy from you or use your product again, but they may go out of their way to leave a review of you someplace else too. You might even choose to partner with a full-service marketing agency such as InnoVision Marketing Group. Let their experienced team respond to reviews and assist in reputation management while you focus on making your business even better.
There isn’t really one simple trick or easy solution to online customer reviews, but with just a few simple changes, you can quickly gather positive feedback to help build your success.
