Encouraging product reviews is the key to the success of an online business, as real customer reviews can persuade a new, on-the-fence buyer to take the action and make the purchase.
So how exactly do you encourage users to give comments? We’ll tackle the ins and outs of customer reviews in this article, including why reviews are important, how to get them, and recommendations of 4 tools to optimize your product reviews.
Why are product reviews important?
As well known, potential shoppers will use reviews as a reference point for whether take action to place their orders in your store.
Good reviews can help you:
- Increase your business credibility
It can help customers quickly know if your business is trustworthy. Positive reviews will have a group effect on your customers, which will have a positive impact on your sales.
- Raise the CTR
Good reviews will drive more customers to click on your product page or site, which increases your CTR (click-through rate).
- Help your business ranking higher
User needs and trust are one of the most essential factors that the Google search engine takes to rank your site. Positive reviews will help your business move up on the SERP (search engine results pages).
On the other hand, bad reviews can also help with:
- Increase the credibility of your reviews
Positive reviews can help increase your business credibility, however perfect reviews may reduce customer trust in your business sometimes. In fact, 67% of buyers prefer to see a mix of positive and negative customer reviews. It helps them determine if the reviews are authentic and if the business is trustworthy.
- Spot improving opportunities
Negative reviews could be a great resource if you change aside to think about it. You can use them to better understand your customers’ needs from their point of view and make timely improvements based on their suggestions.
- Provide a response opportunity
The silver lining with negative reviews is that they give you the chance to respond and manage your online presence and reputation proactively. Responding well to bad reviews and handling them appropriately is your best chance of gaining a loyal customer. If you can win back customers who leave bad reviews, the chance of them being loyal to your business and supporting your sales in the long term is pretty big.
In general, product reviews are an important ingredient of your business’s healthy growth. Both good and bad reviews can have a positive impact on your business as long as you take the right attitude to look at them and handle them well.
How to get product reviews?
There are two scenarios in which you can get product reviews:
Start by customers leaving reviews voluntarily
Since some of the clients have willing to share their experience and give other potential customers a reference, your buyers may leave a review voluntarily if they have already used your products. This is the ideal state for getting customer reviews.
Start by asking for product reviews
- Asking by SMS
SMS can be one of the methods for you to get product reviews. You can create an automatic text which will be sent one or two weeks after the customer receives their order. Make sure this text includes a direct display of the product that your customer bought, so they can be reminded of the purchase instantly and leave a review.
- Asking by email
Collecting customer emails and making full use of them is a key to successful EDM marketing (Electronic Direct Mail Marketing). When you have a list of the contacts of customers you can then set a review-collecting email which will be triggered automatically one or two weeks after they confirm the receipt of the order.
- Asking by social media
If you’ve set social media accounts for your business, which is highly recommended btw, you can encourage your followers to send reviews there. At the same time, you can share excellent customer reviews on your social media as a way of brand-building and attracting the audience’s attention.
Tools that can help generate more reviews easily
Countless tools can help you optimize product reviews, you can choose the plug-ins that suit your needs the most to help your site or products stand out from the crowd. In this article, we prepared a simple introduction of 4 tools to help you get more reviews:
#1 Batch import and edit reviews – Ryviu
Ryviu is an awesome platform to manage, export, and import reviews, supporting online stores built with Shopify, WooCommerce, and Prestastore. There are 3 main ways that you can use it to import reviews:
Method 1. Import reviews use Ryviu Chrome extension
Method 2. Import reviews from your dropship apps
Method 3. Import reviews from your Ryviu dashboard
Check the official tutorial here
After you import the reviews, the content can be customized as well, such as the name, color, and size. At the same time, an email verification function can be enabled (collect customer email for subsequent EDM marketing preparation). The reviews you got from Ryviu can also be updated with one click to make your site looks more active
#2 Automated marketing for Shopify stores – Rivo
Rivo is a powerful marketing tool aiming to help Shopify stores generate more conversions. For its review collecting function, you can search Rivo Product Reviews in the Shopify app store and install it.
There are two ways for you to collect reviews by using Rivo – email campaigns and on-page popups. Once you get the reviews from customers, its widget builder enables you to edit the review into a customized layout to match your store design and branding style.
#3 Promote trust, drive growth – Loox
Loox is a popular review & referral app designed exclusively for Shopify merchants. According to its official data, Loox’s product review has a 48% open rate for emails, and 25% of reviewers provide visual proofs. Of course, as one of the leading review apps in the Shopify app store, Loox supports a wide range of functions such as setting up popups, sending out tracking emails, importing product reviews, showcasing customized review pages, and such.
However, after a 14-day free trial, you’ll have to pay for the membership which starts at the basic plan with a $9.99 monthly fee up to the unlimited plan charging $299.99 per month.
#4 Data-driven makes it simple – Yotpo
Yotpo is a comprehensive marketing app for eCommerce with multiple functions including SMS promotions, customer referrals, visual UGC, and review collection.
Its reviews collecting tool generates authentic reviews that make a difference and display them where they’re most impactful. Yotpo help send automated email & SMS review requests to your customer a few weeks after they purchase your product, collecting reviews, ratings, photos, and community Q&As.
When customers receive the email they only need to complete the relevant operation in the email, such a simple operation makes more customers willing to give the review.
Conclusion
According to research, 90% of consumers read reviews before they visit your business, and 88% of buyers trust online reviews more than personal recommendations. Customer reviews are essential to increase your sales, build trust with buyers and help expedite SEO by driving precise organic traffic to your business.
