How Can Retailers Thrive in Review-First Shopping?
Online reviews have boomed in recent years. Once just another step in the customer decision-making process, they are now a pervasive part of daily life.
It used to be that if you were thinking of buying something, you might check out product ratings on a reviews site (or not) and then go to a store or order online. Now, you can review brands, products, business locations, service professionals, and everything else. You can even rate the driver who dropped you off at the store — and he or she can rate you, too. The new reviews-first commerce environment has upended the traditional customer decision-making process, and for retailers hoping to stay ahead in this new era, a serious review strategy is crucial.
This is because, when evaluating a business or product, people place greater trust in the opinions of their fellow consumers than ever before. And with Google now factoring number and quality of reviews in search rank, an effective reviews strategy is no longer just about winning hearts and minds with good service. It’s about whether you show up in search at all.
While this can be alarming for retailers, there are concrete steps that they can take to get the reviews they need to compete, in the places they need them.
Three Types of Reviews
There are now three separate types of reviews that brands need to cultivate:
● Brand Reviews : Reviews of your company displayed on your Facebook brand page, or on business reputation sites such as TrustPilot and Better Business Bureau (BBB). These impact a brand’s reputation.
● Product Reviews: Reviews of a specific product for sale on your own website, or on an eCommerce site like Amazon. Product reviews impact demand.
● Location Reviews: Reviews of a specific business location displayed in search results, mapping apps, or local search sites like Yelp. For businesses seeking to drive foot traffic, location reviews are the most important type, because they impact behavior.
For years, brands have managed and optimized their online brand and product reviews (especially true for big national brands) and many have developed world-class strategies. But if you don’t have a reviews strategy down to the individual location level — establishing processes for managing, monitoring, and quickly responding to location reviews — you’re missing out on customers every day.
Location reviews are how consumers choose to visit your locations or your competitors’. With advances in intelligent search, and the ubiquity of mobile devices, this only becomes more urgent. Today, consumers seek out an average of 10.4 pieces of information before making a local purchase — and 63% of decisions are reached in under an hour.
Here are four ways to define your location strategy for today, so that you’ll star in search tomorrow:
1. Encourage customers to leave reviews on your website
Those stars that Google shows in search results come from your website. If customers can’t leave reviews on your website, you will never get stars on Google, and your competitors will outrank you.
2. Engage customers who leave reviews on local listings sites
In search, local listings sites (like Yelp) come directly after local search results. Turn your attention to driving reviews from customers to these sites, and be sure to engage and respond to each one that’s added.
3. Set up a review monitoring tool
Often location reviews don’t include the brand name because the consumer is already on the brand’s profile. Be sure you are aware of each and every customer review — as they are posted.
4. Fire up your fans
Most people only think to leave reviews when they have had an extreme experience, be it positive or negative. This means that if you are passive with review generation, you are defined by the outliers, not by the majority who have had good experiences with you. Take control of your reputation by actively reaching out to your loyal customers and asking them to leave you a review. After all, you want an accurate representation of your customers, not just the vocal ones. Seven out of 10 people will leave a review for a business if they are asked. So ask! Make it easy for your customers to give you feedback in the right places, and send feedback requests regularly.
Always remember to show appreciation regardless of sentiment. Telling customers how much you value their feedback can go a long way in minimizing the impact of negative reviews, and signals to potential customers how much you care.
A reactive approach to reviews simply does not suffice today. The battle for prospective customers will be won or lost in online reviews. And if you lose that opportunity to bring them to your doorstep, you won’t ever have a chance to turn them into loyal customers. It’s time to be proactive.