A Cost-Effective Marketing Tool
November 7, 2023

As a consumer preparing to make an online purchase, have you ever made a buy without reading some customer reviews? One of the most common examples of customer reviews-propelled buying is when we choose hotel stays. What those before us have said about the venue, the food, the service and the attractions in the area really do matter as they convince us to spend money on something we have yet to experience. But are marketers using this digital marketing tool well enough to push products and services to customers?

When a product or service has not yet been tried, the element of trust remains up in the air. But trust is extremely important. The best way for potential customers to establish trust is to tap the experience of someone who has purchased the product or service before him or her. Thus, trust is established via reviews.

The good, the bad and the ugly

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Yes, positive reviews are great for propelling your brand forward, but the other side of the coin- negative reviews- can sound the death knell of a brand. It’s not about the lost sale; rather, it is about the misplaced trust that will result in higher customer turnover and will ultimately damage your brand’s reputation. 

So, how does one turn around a bad review? Immediate acknowledgement and damage control. The moment a negative review is posted by a customer, instead of deleting the comment before it is viewed, the business must show empathy towards the customer. Ask for details on what went wrong. Give the customer a call and discuss how the problem can be rectified. Apologise and request the customer the opportunity to make things right. This experience alone is quite likely to rebuild the customer’s trust in your brand more so than they had before. Furthermore, if they are very satisfied with your business’ handling of the issue, they are more than likely to go back and leave a stellar review. 

How to use reviews

Positive reviews can be displayed on your company website, and be included in your direct mailers and even social media posts (with permission, of course!). Such reviews also build relationships around your brand; like-minded customers can connect over their shared experiences and boost brand loyalty. A good example of this would be vehicle after-sales services. If several customers leave positive reviews of a company’s after-sales service of a certain vehicle, its customers will most probably start conversing with their counterparts on the social media platform and compare notes on the vehicle, etc. So, for instance, if one customer comments on the efficient after-sales service, another customer is likely to add notes on the vehicle’s fuel efficiency, etc., as an added advantage. These ready-made communities are a veritable gold mine. 

Positive reviews can also crank up in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). When a customer searches online for a certain sports shoe, for instance, the positive reviews generated by your customers will drive your brand of shoe to turn up amongst the top ranks. 

Furthermore, you have got to love those unboxing videos. Yes, these are reviews too. Whether it be done by a social media influencer or a regular customer, unboxing videos create hype around the product, making it exciting to the viewer. Encourage customers to post unboxing videos by offering them an incentive to tag your brand alongside it.

Monitor, monitor, monitor!

We can’t say this enough. Monitoring reviews is paramount because as suggested earlier, negative reviews (even one among the positives) need to be addressed and dealt with to prevent them from spinning out of control.

Given that reviews can be posted across multiple digital platforms in real time, you have your work cut out for you. But no; it doesn’t mean that your marketing team has to lose sleep over this. Simply automate. Review monitoring tools and tracking apps such as Google Alerts, ReviewPush, and ReviewTrackers are among the many that are available to help you out. These will notify you when your brand is mentioned, allowing you to track and respond to reviews. Your response should not only be for negative reviews. Also, appreciate the positive feedback; customers will love that you have taken the time to acknowledge their contribution.

Chase those reviews

Who said you have to wait for reviews to be posted? Request happy customers for feedback. Go the extra mile and also request previously unhappy customers for feedback on how you dealt with their issues. I have encountered many, many online vendors who check whether the product I ordered reached me, and then request for a review if I am happy with it.

Direct message your customers, email them or even share your brand’s QR code with them so that they can share their feedback easily. 

Valuable insights

DirectPayNet says that paying attention to the emotive language used by customers in their reviews is important to help build a stronger brand. When customers say they ‘loved’ or ‘hated’ a product, they are attaching emotions to their purchase which can help you make important decisions on how your brand needs to improve or change. 

You might also be able to collect valuable information on certain aspects of your brand through trends that emerge in such reviews. If there are consistent mentions of how your brand’s delivery is delayed, then you know that your delivery partner needs changing- something that can be easily done since it is external to your brand’s efficiency.

At the end of the day, keep it honest, keep it authentic, and keep it diverse. Your reviews should represent your customer base across age groups, genders and locations. When customers know that you mean well, they will meet you halfway.

(Anouk De Silva)

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