It's no surprise that product reviews increase the likelihood of a shopper making a purchase. What may surprise you is the degree to which product reviews can impact a retailer's business. Take a look at these stats about consumers and product reviews:
- Adding product reviews to a retail site can increase conversion rate by 14-76% (Internet Retailer)
- 90% of shoppers read fewer than 10 reviews before developing an opinion about a business (Bright Local)
- 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations (Bright Local)
Needless to say, it's important to have reviews on your eCommerce website. But it's not always easy to know who, what, when, or how to ask customers for feedback and product reviews. Today we're going to focus on when and who to ask customers for product reviews.
Asking Customers For Product Reviews
When deciding what criteria indicates shoppers as the best candidates for product reviews, there are a few important factors to keep in mind. You want to ask yourself:
- Will their product review be positive?
- Will they be surprised, annoyed, or in any way bothered when asked?
- Is it worth offering anything in exchange for a review?
Ensuring A Positive Product Review
In an ideal world, your happiest customers would be the ones who review your products. Luckily, there are a few ways to help identify your happiest customers. Using your sales data, you can segment audiences to target candidates that are likely to speak positively about your business.
- Repeat Buyers: Target customers who have purchased the same product, multiple times. This is particularly powerful if you have a perishable product or one that customers tend to use regularly but will run out, e.g. makeup or soap.
- Bought/Spent A, Then B: Target customers that come back and spend more with your business. This is a clear indicator that the customer experience was positive enough to return and spend even more.
Put Yourself In The Customer's Shoes
Customers don't want to spend time reviewing products from every store with which they shop. If a customer gets an email asking for a review from a company they've only shopped with once, they may be annoyed the business is asking for a favor. It could even scare away some shoppers from making another purchase in the future. From website visits to purchases, ensure customers have interacted with your brand beyond a single purchase.
The Cost & ROI Of Customer Reviews
Many consider it best practice to offer a reward (discount, etc) in exchange for a customer review. It can help convert a higher percentage of those who are asked to review a product. If your online store lacks reviews, offering a unique discount code to each customer you ask can both improve their customer loyalty and quickly grow the number of product reviews on your site.
Product reviews can have a drastic affect on conversion rates, positive or negative. Asking the right customers at the right time can be half the battle, so remember