Today, most consumers based their buying decisions on the reviews or feedback of the products they’re looking to purchase. People want to know the opinions of others before they even choose to buy from a store. That said, it’s important for businesses like yourself to provide your target market with product reviews, encouraging quick and more sales.
Prior to promoting your products and brand through this user-generated content, you first need to generate as many reviews as you can. But how can you do that? Here are seven strategies to help you get more genuine product reviews from your customers.
1. Ask in a personal and unique way
It’s not enough to plainly ask for a review request from your customers. Apart from sending them templates for feedback, you can curate a more personal request. You can create engaging video or blog content thanking them for their purchase and requesting if they can give you feedback. Doing so will help you increase your submission rates.
Apart from that, striking up conversations is a unique way to approach your customers and personally ask them about their experience. If your customers don’t feel like talking or providing feedback, don’t force it as this can only impact your reputation.
Want a more effective and personal approach? Ask for customer feedback in person. This can be intimidating at first but it’s also a quick way to know what they think about your product. At the same, you also get to express your appreciation in that same moment.
2. Make it easy for your customers
Anyone would be too lazy to leave you a good review if the process itself is already taxing. Provide them with an easy way to leave you a feedback. For instance, don’t pop in any validation if they are already logged into the website. You can also use gather feedback in channels that most of your customers are already present and most active. Furthermore, instead of asking people to click links on your emails, let them give their reviews by a direct email response. Having any potential barriers can put off your customers and will make it hard for you to collect more reviews.
3. Send out review request emails
Speaking of sending emails to customers, email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to collect reviews. After an interaction or purchase, you can readily send them a feedback request using a simple and short form. Sending your review requests shortly after the purchase is a great time since it’s still on top of your customers’ minds. You can request customers to give a rating for product-specific reviews, or opt for an open-ended request.
4. Provide an incentive
If you want to encourage more people into giving reviews about your products, you can try offering them something in return. A little incentive won’t hurt your marketing budget after all. For example, you can consider gamifying your feedback collection by providing customers with free content or swag when they leave a review.
You can also hold a contest like a monthly prize draw that offers rewards for people who send out their feedback at a particular time. You don’t necessarily need to promote this across your channels. You can just mention it on a flyer in the packaging or on your post-sales emails.
5. Post both good and bad reviews
Let’s get real, there will always be negative reviews from time to time, especially if you’re just starting out in the business. Also, most consumers expect to also see bad reviews. If every piece of review about your products is glowing, customers will find it suspicious and won’t even trust what they read. Let the negative feedback about your review be present online and focus on responding to their concerns instead of putting them down.
If you’re working with a marketing agency, discuss how you can properly publish both good and bad reviews, and how to better monitor and respond to them. You’d also want to find a company that specializes in your industry. If you’re a cosmetic brand, opt for a beauty marketing agency. If you’re running an HVAC business, it only makes sense to hire an HVAC marketing expert. This ensures that the publishing of reviews and additional marketing efforts would be appropriate for your business type.
Collecting and sharing customer reviews can be beneficial for the growth of your business, regardless of what industry you’re in. they can boost social proof, create customer loyalty, increase rankings, and resolve customer concerns. Just make sure to analyze every feedback you receive and use them to better your products and services.
