By Jim Clanin
Our buying choices are heavily influenced by the opinions of our family and friends. In the same way, most online shoppers trust the information provided by fellow shoppers over the information provided by retailers. Even if we don’t personally know someone, we believe that the people who provide reviews and ratings online are on “our side.” They want to know the truth, not a polished product description peppered with clichés.
Take the Bad with the Good
Displaying reviews and ratings can generate conversions by 25% or more. Personal stories can elicit trust, help potential customers connect with your brand, and create memorable impressions. They give you authenticity and accessibility.
While the fear of negative feedback is certainly valid, remember that reviewers are twice as likely to write good reviews. John McAteer, the director of Google’s retail industry, says, “No one trusts all positive reviews.” Having a few negative reviews can help visitors understand what could go wrong with a product, validate the credibility of your brand, and even elicit people to write positive reviews in defense of a product that was reviewed unfairly.
Plus, you can gather some really good information from negative reviews. They might not be fun to read, but it can help you weed out issues with your products and focus on your best sellers.
Giving your competitors access to plant fake reviews is also a valid concern, and moderating abusive or untruthful reviews is one solution. Just be careful not to start deleting everything you don’t like. Keep in mind that negative reviews can be good for your business, so approach your reviews with humility and moderate responsibly.
While displaying reviews and ratings is really helpful for ecommerce purposes, it’s also great for your SEO. It allows Google to find great content and good keywords all in one place. Remember that while customers don’t like waiting for content to load, they don’t mind scrolling. Consider presenting it the way Amazon does.
Ratings
Ratings are a fast and simple way to collect valuable information from users. They don’t require a lot of time from users and thus don’t interrupt them from their main objective. Use standard conventions, such as a 1-5 rating system using stars, or a thumbs up/thumbs down system. 10 stars may be appropriate for a very expert or detail-oriented audience.
Invite users with simple, straightforward language, such as “rate this product,” let them rate with a single click, and show the results immediately. Remember to display the number of votes each product has received. One 5-star rating is nice. 50 5-star ratings is better, and display the ratings prominently along with the product.
Collecting Reviews
Here’s the bottom line: if it’s not easy, users won’t do it. Make the process of providing a review super simple. To get more reviews, you can ask customers to write a review by sending them an email, but choose your timing carefully, and don’t send too many. By sending them too many emails, you’ll only get ignored. If you’re concerned about the quality of your reviews, provide users with a preset list of pros and cons.
Allow users to preview and edit their review before they submit it, and consider giving yourself the ability to moderate reviews before you post them.
Displaying Reviews
There are lots of ways to display reviews and ratings on your website, but the key is that they are easily scannable. Potential customers need to be able to make a connection with the person who wrote the review to establish trust. Displaying the reviewers name is a great way to help readers connect with him or her. You should also display at least an excerpt of the review itself, as well as the date and overall rating of the review. Make it possible for visitors to rate the helpfulness of reviews.
Rewarding your active reviewers can be a great, but be careful when providing bonuses or discounts. People are really good at sniffing out a company that’s trying to influence them.
Consider adding a feature where users can sort reviews according to rating, helpfulness, or whatever options might be relevant to your customer base.
Creating Interaction
The interaction created by user reviews can be one of the most powerful parts of your ecommerce website. By enabling feedback on reviews, you give users the chance to participate, react, and even minimize the effect of an unfair review as other users rate it down or comment on.
Enabling your users to vote on reviews is another way to create trustworthiness and authenticity around your brand and offerings. While some people won’t take the time to write a review, many will read them and won’t be able to resist voting on the reviews they read. This can elicit some healthy competition and involvement.
Most of the time, comments on reviews adds real value for customers. Users can offer feedback, recommendations, corrections, links, and more. You can also use it to respond to commenters who are critical f your products, showing honesty and trustworthiness.
Make it easy to read the ratings and reviews on your ecommerce website design, and make it easy for users to provide their feedback and interact with other users. It can be a great way to show people who you are as a company, and responding to criticism publically can easily turn a negative review into a positive one. Just make sure you have someone who is committed to handling communication within your reviews section! Make your ecommerce website an inviting place for users to express their opinions and focus on really listening to what they say. Additionally, discover our review management services today.
Related Post: How Important are Online Reviews?
