If your business doesn’t have any online reviews, it can be hard to convince consumers to buy from you. According to the Pew Research Center, half of U.S. adults under the age of 50 check online reviews before buying something.
Online reviews show shoppers that people trust your product or service, which encourages them to trust your business too. And with reviews and trust, you can generate more sales. Statistics show that reviews produce an average of 18% uplift in sales.
So, if you want to gain the trust of consumers and boost your sales, here’s how to get more online reviews for your business.
Set Up and Claim Your Profiles
The first step to getting more online reviews for your business is to set up and claim your profiles on review sites. Start by setting up your Google My Business account. Google is the most popular platform for online reviews. According to statistics, Google accounts for 57.5% of all reviews worldwide. It’s also the most common way for consumers to find information about your business online.
So, set up your Google My Business account and include details like your business name, address, phone number, website, and business hours. After filling in the details, make sure to verify your business so that your information is able to show up in Google Search and Google Maps.
You should also set up and claim your profiles on other review platforms like Facebook, Yelp, TripAdvisor, and TrustPilot. This lets you provide your customers with multiple different ways to review your business.
Create an Email Campaign
The simplest way to get more online reviews for your business is to just ask for them! In fact, according to statistics, 70% of consumers will leave a review for a business when asked. So, create an email campaign to ask your customers to leave you a review.
With email marketing, you can send your review request straight to the inboxes of your customers. Plus, you can automate your email marketing so you can send your message at exactly the right time. For example, after a customer makes a purchase, you can automatically send them an email asking for them to leave a review for the product they just bought. When your email message is personalized and timely like this, the customer will be more likely to write a review. The rideshare company Lyft does this by sending an email to customers immediately after their trip. Since the experience is still fresh in their mind, riders are more willing to take a moment to leave a review.
Ask Your Social Media Followers
Aside from email marketing, you can also ask your social media followers to leave your business a review. Your social media followers are your fans, so they’re likely to leave you a review if you ask them.
Social media feeds are crowded though, so a basic text post asking for reviews isn’t going to grab the attention of users. Instead, create an eye-catching image to go along with your post. You can easily create stunning images for social media using a free tool like Canva.
Use a Review Plugin
You should also use a WordPress review plugin to collect and display reviews on your website. Displaying reviews on your website is a form of social proof; when a visitor to your website sees glowing reviews for your products, it will encourage them to buy. According to social proof statistics, online product reviews about a specific product can increase conversion rates by 270%. So, be sure to enable reviews directly on your website.
With a WordPress plugin like WP Product Review Pro you can easily collect, manage, and display reviews on your website. Plus, this plugin lets you supercharge your product reviews with ratings, pros and cons, images, and more.
Give Customers an Incentive
Giving people a little reward for leaving a review will also help you get more online reviews for your business. The reward doesn’t have to be anything big either. For instance, you can offer customers a 10% discount off their next purchase for giving you a review or you can give them extra points in your customer loyalty program.
But, be careful when offering incentives to customers for leaving reviews. First, be clear with customers that you’re not rewarding them for a positive review; you’re rewarding them for their feedback whether it’s positive or negative. In addition, check the rules of third-party review sites like Google and Yelp because many have strict rules against offering incentives for reviews. You also have to make sure your strategy complies with the rules outlined by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
Over to You
With these tips, your business can generate a ton of online reviews. And with more online reviews, you can attract new customers to your business and increase your sales. Remember, along with the many positive reviews, you’ll probably get a few negative ones as well. Be sure to respond to those negative reviews promptly to show that providing superior customer service is a top priority for your business.
