In the competitive world of digital marketing and web-based sales, customer reviews are a powerful tool. They’re easy to solicit, low or no cost to acquire, and they do the selling for you! What’s more is that reviews offer a genuine perspective that no direct to consumer marketing can provide. 

Seeing a friend review a product online is a powerful form of personal recommendation. These reviews help consumers find new products and help businesses find qualified leads. 

A few benefits to consider: 

• They can serve multiple purposes -- positive reviews get visitors to your website, help you attract potential new leads, and can be used to market to your existing customers. 

• Reviews can be embedded on your website or used on print materials to up the exposure of your brand.

• They’re especially helpful for new businesses who are looking to establish credibility in the marketplace.  

Many customers are willing to provide a review, but you have to make the process easy and be sure to ask your customers at the right time. You’ll want to watch out for signs that your customer is happy with their experience so far. A few tip offs that might write a good review? They’ve referred someone else to you, they’ve repurchased a product, they’ve tagged you on social media, or they’ve spent a lot of time browsing on your website.

To make sure you get it right, here’s four ideas to help you gather more online reviews: 

1.     Leverage social media. Social capital is a powerful tool – if your friends or acquaintances are using a product you’re more likely to give it a try. In addition to the built in referral network social media provides, most platforms provide a great channel for soliciting and sharing reviews. Don’t just ask for new reviews, be sure to share the positive ones you’ve already received! In addition to providing free promotion, they’ll also help give your customers ideas on what to post in their own reviews.

People who have purchased or repurchased products are the perfect target for reviews. Tailor an email or social media campaign directly to these customers so you can don’t miss out on the chance to collect high-quality reviews.  

 2.     Ask more than once. Asking for a review once isn’t always enough – you don’t want to bug people, but you do want to give them ample opportunity to share their thoughts. Different people will want to share their reviews on different platforms and at different times, so be equipped to ask for reviews in a number of ways. Train your team to solicit reviews, add a link into your email campaigns, and incorporate review options into your website pop-ups and landing pages.

3.     Make a direct appeal. If you work as an account manager, are a B2B sales rep, or have a one-on-one relationship, ask your customers directly for a review. Keep it conversational, but inquire how they’re enjoying their experience with your product or service so far. If the response is positive, see if they wouldn’t mind sharing their feedback online. If they have a negative response, see what you can do to fix the problem before inquiring about them giving public feedback. 

 4.     Create Incentives. Offer a future discount, add a bonus product to their order or enter them in a drawing in exchange for their feedback. Be careful you don’t compromise the integrity of the review – you shouldn’t force people to leave a positive review, rather an honest review. 

A few additional tips:

• Accept reviews on multiple platforms like Yelp, Facebook, Google Business, Zillow and more. Everyone has a favorite method of reviewing, so don’t loose out on a good review by limiting people’s platform options. But keep in mind that people tend to trust Facebook reviews more because they’re connected to individual profiles that people can verify the legitimacy of. 

Further Reading: Want to learn more about how to handle a bad review? We’ve got a separate post that goes in-depth on the topic. Check it out here.

• Be sure to respond to all reviews – especially the negative ones! Respond thoughtfully (without getting defensive). In addition to improving the relationship with that individual customer, you’ll also be demonstrating good customer service that shows potential buyers you care and are willing to listen. 

• Make it easy! Cut out additional steps wherever possible and it will up the chances that your customers will take the time to leave a review. Include a direct link so they can head straight to the product page, make login seamless, and provide them with sample writing prompts. 

Have a tip that we should have included? Drop us a comment below – we’d love to learn more about what’s worked for you in the past (and what hasn’t). 

Hue & Tone Creative: Social Media + Graphic Design

Need someone to take the headaches out of your automated emailing and social media planning? We’re here to help. Whether you’re looking to increase your views or simply need a break from handling your account, Hue & Tone Creative has you covered for all things social.