3 Proven Ways To Increase Customer Product Reviews

Why Online Stores Need Reviews Reviews add real value, which is probably why today’s consumers are highly dependable on them.

• 95% of consumers turn to product reviews.
• 86% of shoppers consider reviews an essential resource to help them make more informed purchasing decisions.
• 79% of consumers trust consumer product reviews just as much as they do personal recommendations.
• 63% of shoppers will buy from a website that has product reviews.

Past customers who leave reviews can let hesitant potential customers know if your shoes typically run a size smaller than their normal shoe size or if a sweater’s material is strong enough to hold its color and stay intact even after several wears and washes. There will always be outrageously harsh reviews and others that just seem fake because they’re too positive, but there will also always be a middle ground of customers who give practical and constructive feedback. When consumers have this kind of useful information, potential customers can make more informed buying decisions that will equal fewer product returns. Effectively delivering the product information consumers are searching for, apparel retailers can improve their conversions, customer experience and trust level with consumers all at the same time. You’ll also reap numerous SEO benefits, like increased click-through rates and improved rankings for product pages and long-tail searches. And since 35% of shoppers start their buyer’s journey on a search engine, your store needs a strong presence on various search engines, most notably Google, which useful reviews help you gain.

How to Increase Customer Product Reviews

There are a handful of ways you can motivate your customers to leave more product reviews. Below are 3 ways we’ve found to be especially helpful for our clients. 1. Send customers to websites they’re familiar with. Your eCommerce site isn’t the only place customers can or should leave reviews on. Sites like Google, Yelp, and Amazon are other places that accept reviews and people turn to read reviews. And for me personally, when I see a business has dozens or hundreds of positive reviews on one of these sites, then I feel like I can trust them enough to buy from them. However, you can’t just expect people to visit these sites on their own and leave a review. Those who typically leave unsolicited reviews are the ones leaving bad reviews, which you don’t want. To get more positive reviews on third-party reviews sites, there are 2 things we suggest doing first:

• Ask your family and friends (who have worn your apparel) to leave a review.
• Ask customers to leave a review in your post-purchase email workflow. Say something along the lines of, “We loved doing business with you, and hope the feeling is mutual. Please review us on Google or Yelp so we can ensure we continue giving our customers the best service and products!” And link to those sites to make the process as easy as possible for them.

2. Deploy follow-up emails once customers use a product. Too often companies don’t ask customers to leave a review. And I’m baffled why they don’t. Asking is the simplest way to get customers to write a review, so don’t overlook it. Like just mentioned above, asking in follow-up emails after purchasing is the best way to do it. Some companies use the transaction email that’s sent right after purchasing, but your customers need more time to actually wear your apparel and decide their feelings about its quality. Ask them when the purchase is fresh on their minds while still giving them enough time to have actually worn your product, like a week or two for clothing so it gives them multiple chances to wear, wash and accessorize with your items. And ask them to upload a photo along with their written review. You need to add your own high-quality product images, but customer photos are real-life photos, and that can more often be the key to increase customer reviews and getting a new customer to purchase. Seeing your dress on real people rather than models paints a more accurate picture of what the dress will look like on them so there will be fewer surprises when the dress arrives on their doorstep. Images also help improve your website’s visibility, so online shoppers who do an image search are more likely to see your store pop up through one of the displayed images. 3. Offer discounted or free products for an honest review. This should be more of a last resort tactic. You don’t want customers to expect a freebie for every review they leave, nor do you want them to leave a fake positive review just because they know if they do they’ll get some kind of discount from you. Ethically, you can’t bribe someone. But, you can encourage a customer to leave a review and share their feedback in exchange for a discount on their next purchase from you. And make it a steep discount with some requirements. For example, you could say you’ll give a customer a free ring or tie of their choosing if they leave a review on your website, a review on Amazon and post a picture wearing your apparel while giving a shout out to your company on Instagram. Even the smallest incentives, like free shipping or a $5 coupon, can have a major impact on how engaging your customers will be with your brand. User-generated content, in the helpful form of customer product reviews, is how your company can provide a distinct experience for both online and offline shoppers while also meeting the increasing demands of information-hungry consumers.]]>