According to consumer behaviour research for 2023 and 2024, customer reviews play a significant role in purchasing decisions in both Europe and the US. Here are a few facts based on statistics.
- According to an Emplifi survey, 87% of product customers believe that reviews and ratings by other real customers are more determinative in their purchasing decision than reviews written by celebrities and influencers. More than half of the consumers surveyed (58%) place a high value on product pictures or videos posted by other real-life customers when researching products online.
- Authentic content is becoming a key factor for customers. According to a report by Exploding Topics, fake reviews are a major problem in the e-commerce market, so customers are becoming increasingly prudent when reading product reviews.
- According to a survey by McKinsey, customers are becoming more conscious and, before making a purchase, carefully make some product research based on reviews in particular. In addition, in the context of economic uncertainty, customers in Europe and the US are paying more attention to value for money.
- In the US, 47% of customers say that reviews and ratings play a crucial role in their purchasing decisions, especially during peak sales periods.
- In the UK, there is an increase in search engine queries containing keywords such as ‘reviews’ and ‘comparison’, demonstrating customers’ desire to make more informed decisions.
Thus, we conclude that reviews are an important part of a shop’s reputation and a potential driver of sales. Consequently, customer reviews require your attention as a Seller, and you should not be shy to ask customers for a review. For more details about asking customers for reviews on Flowwow, please keep reading this article.
Impact of customer reviews on Flowwow
Customer reviews have a significant impact on several key shop metrics.
1. Ratings and visibility. Reviews affect your shop’s overall rating, which in turn affects its visibility on the search results page on Flowwow. Highly rated shops enjoy a priority position on the search results page, which increases the number of impressions and, therefore, the conversion rate.
Supershop status. To earn the Supershop badge, shops are required to meet specific target indicators on Flowwow and maintain them within the set range.
- Complete at least 10 orders.
- Get at least 10 reviews, with an average rating of at least 4.8.
- No more than 10% of cancellations within a month.
2. Acquiring new customers. Positive reviews help to gain the trust of potential customers. Customers are more likely to place an order with highly rated shops with a number of positive customer reviews, as they are perceived as more reliable.
3. Reputation. If you are not improving your product and customer service and keep getting justified negative reviews, this adversely affects your shop’s reputation and rating. If your shop’s performance is persistently poor, Flowwow, acting as a platform, may ban your shop.
How to motivate customers to leave reviews on marketplaces
Make leaving a review as simple as possible
The process of leaving a review should be as simple as possible. Here are a few recommendations.
- Instructions for writing a review. Send customers a step-by-step guide on how to leave a review immediately after their purchase. This could be an automatically generated email with a link to the feedback page or a short private message.
- Minimising effort. Give customers a few suggestions for their review. For example, ask them to specify how much they liked your item, to rate its design or taste. This will simplify the task and speed up the process.
The good example contains a polite request, motivates the customer, includes specific questions guiding customers when writing a review, and states the importance of their opinion. The bad example gives the customer no motivation, and your request sounds more demanding, lacking a personal touch.
Offer incentives
One of the most effective ways to motivate customers to leave a review is to offer them a small reward for doing so. For example, you can add a complimentary item (for example, a piece of candy or a pack of tea) and a card asking the customer to leave a review.
Remind customers that they can still leave a review
You asked the customer for a review, and nothing happened? The customer did not respond and ignored your message? Please feel free to give them a polite reminder. Send the customer another message and politely highlight that you would appreciate their feedback.
Conclusions
Reviews play a vital role in shaping the reputation and determining the success of a shop on Flowwow. Directly affecting a shop’s rating and visibility, customer reviews are one of the key metrics for getting the Supershop status, which offers additional customer acquisition tools. Positive reviews help to gain customer trust and increase sales.
To effectively collect reviews, it is important to make the process as simple and as easy to understand as possible for customers. Polite and motivating requests for reviews that include specific questions and, if necessary, incentives will help increase the number of positive reviews.
Thus, customer reviews are much more than just a form of feedback—reviews are becoming a crucial tool for reputation management and promotion on Flowwow.
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