Ratings and reviews are incredibly important in online shopping. Why? Because, unlike physical shopping, potential customers can't tell what the actual product looks like.
And before they purchase your products, consumers read online reviews first. They need to know everything they can.
That's why online reviews will help your prospects know what existing customers say about your products, especially if they have already tried them.
So, let me tell you this. If you're not yet displaying reviews on your eCommerce website or social media platforms... you need to do it now.
Because in this blog, you'll find out the 7 reasons why online ratings and reviews are crucial to the success of your eCommerce brand!
The importance of ratings and online customer reviews for your eCommerce brand
Customer feedback can...
1. Speed up the decision and buying process
Before potential customers buy from you, they need to learn everything about your products. And they can achieve that by reading reviews.
For example, your prospects are already aware of your brand and now considering buying from you. They need more motivation, so they look for positive reviews.
If they see that your store has a lot of customer reviews, that will speed up their decision process because consumers trust online reviews.
So, if they can't find an online review about your brand and products, this might slow down their decision process as they need to conduct more research. Or worse, they'll go to your competitors.
Online reviews can also...
2. Increase your sales
Online reviews can encourage your prospects to buy from you. Again, they need more reasons why they should buy from you.
And having many online reviews will help increase your sales. After all, that's one of your biggest goals as an entrepreneur.
So, you're losing potential customers if you're not yet utilizing online reviews! And not only that, but online reviews can also...
3. Enhance brand reputation
You can enhance your online presence and brand reputation through online reviews. For example, your eCommerce store has an average star rating of 4 stars.
That will affect how existing and potential customers view your brand... even if some of them haven't purchased from you yet.
If they see that your brand has many positive reviews, they will be more convinced to buy because they'd know you sell good products and offer excellent service.
And that also helps if you want to...
4. Build trust among prospects
Prospects haven't bought from your eCommerce store yet. They have no idea how long it takes for you to ship the products or if the quality of the products is impressive.
And before you can convert them into actual customers, you need to gain their trust. That includes personal recommendations and positive responses from those who have already transacted with you.
So, you should strive hard to gain more reviews. Also, ensure to avoid fake reviews at all costs because prospects would know if they're genuine. That wouldn't help gain their trust.
Another benefit of customer feedback is to...
5. Improve your products and services
Valuable feedback can help you improve your eCommerce brand... including negative reviews.
Yep, receiving a negative review can help you know which areas to improve when running your business.
For example, a customer said that delivery is too long. Maybe you can fine-tune your shipping dates or find a more efficient courier.
Or say that a customer said they couldn't reach you for inquiries. Maybe you should improve customer service to avoid this in the future.
While you can use the positive feedback to know which areas of your business are doing great. And, of course, improve them to get better customer reviews.
Because having more positive online reviews means you can...
6. Strengthen marketing efforts
Whenever you get positive reviews on your eCommerce website, third-party review sites, or social media platforms... you should take advantage of them to improve your social proof.
This way, more people will know that your products are great. You can use customer reviews on ads and social media content or just display them on your website.
But here's the kicker... you need to get permission from your customers if you're monetizing off their reviews. Sometimes, some customers want to hide their identity as well.
Just ask permission and be honest about where you will use their content or online reviews.
To further strengthen your marketing efforts, online reviews can also...
7. Improve search results
When you search for a product or brand on search engines, what's the first thing you see? It can be their landing pages, reviews through Google Reviews, or snippets of reviews from their website.
Whatever it is... online reviews can improve what others see about your brand when they go on search engines.
Remember, search results are the first organic thing they'll see about your brand when they search for keywords related to your brand and products.
So, reviews can enhance your online visibility on search engines.
Now, what's the next action?
Generate more reviews for your eCommerce website!
If you want to take advantage of these benefits, you should choose an efficient review app that will help you...
- Improve SEO results
- Protect your brand reputation
- Manage and collect reviews effortlessly
And that's Debutify Reviews. It's a powerful tool to help you enhance your social proof without the hassle.
