Learn all about getting more customers reviews on your Shopify store. 

A customer’s purchase decision is heavily influenced by the insights given by other consumers who have purchased a similar product or service. These insights typically include takeaways from customer reviews, product reviews, ratings, etc.

Although reviews and ratings have always been important, the purchase behavior and the proliferation of new digital channels during the COVID-19 pandemic mean that customers today demand more transparency with respect to the product they are purchasing.

Product reviews have become a critical aspect of the purchase process. Whether you are debating on whether to eat at that new Italian restaurant or if you are looking to buy the latest flagship phone out in the market, customer reviews make all the difference.

But exactly how important are customer reviews?

As it turns out, nearly 72% of customers won’t take any purchase decision until they’ve read at least ten product reviews. And what’s more, customer reviews do have a significant impact on the bottom line.

Research shows that when a product gets five positive customer reviews, the likelihood of purchase increases by a whopping 270%! And what’s more, when higher-priced items have reviews, the conversion rates increase by nearly 380%.

Clearly, the numbers speak for themselves.

Now, while customer reviews play a huge role in influencing a consumer’s purchase decision, getting those positive reviews can prove to be a difficult feat.

In this guide, we’ve covered everything you need to know about customer reviews and how you can get more product reviews on your Shopify store.

What are customer reviews on Shopify?

Customer reviews are nothing but feedback from consumers on how they have been faring with their purchased product or service. They can come in multiple forms like online ratings, written reviews, customer testimonials, product review videos, etc.

Let’s take a look at the different types of customer reviews and how they can impact your business.

1. Product ratings

Perhaps, the simplest form of customer feedback, online ratings are nothing but a very basic yet effective representation of what your customer thinks about your product. Some ecommerce businesses ask customers to rate a product or service out of five stars where one star reads as the worst experience while five stars indicate a great experience with the product. Research shows that 42% of shoppers are likely to be influenced by higher star ratings.

Similarly, some other ecommerce businesses use a numerical system where customers are asked to rate their purchases on a scale of 1-10 where 1 reads the worst and 10 is the best rating a customer can give.

2. Product reviews

Customer reviews, like ratings, are a reliable source of customer feedback. However, unlike online ratings, customer reviews offer more insight into how a product or service has been working out.

Often customers leave very detailed reviews on their experience with a purchase either on review sites like Yelp or on the website from where they purchased the product. This can prove to be quite useful to their peers who are looking to purchase something similar.

Product reviews are quite important because they throw light on how a product or service has helped a customer resolve their pain points and also builds trust and credibility in your brand. Case in point, 72% of customers say that positive reviews and testimonials make them trust a business more.

3. Customer testimonials

Say you’re thinking of purchasing a laptop. One with the highest specs available. Ofcourse, it’s going to cost you a fortune so you need to hear some solid feedback on the product before you spend all your hard earned bucks on it.

What do you do?

You look out for customer testimonials.

Customer testimonials, although very similar to reviews, are much more effective in that it is a highly detailed endorsement of your product or service. Where reviews can be wrapped up in a few sentences, customer testimonials dive deep into the entire shopping experience, product details, and more. They are honest, reliable, and more importantly, can be used in your sales and marketing campaigns to convince your potential customers.

Since customer testimonials are highly detailed and unique, they are also that much more difficult to get. Often customers give out testimonials only and only if their overall experience before, during, and after buying a product is exceptional.

4. User generated content

User generated content refers to photos, videos, blog posts, social posts, etc. that are created by customers and are available on public platforms for everyone to see. User generated content is produced more frequently these days with the advent of platforms such as Tik Tok and Instagram. It includes content such as unboxing videos, influencers talking about their experience with a product, discussions on public forums, comments on social media pages, and more.

With user generated content, potential customers get a glimpse into how a purchase has been impacting the people they follow and respect. A number of such user generated content showcases various use cases for a product and even include hacks, tips, and instructions to make the most out of their purchases.

What’s more? They serve as a more authentic form of product reviews that consumers tend to trust more.

Now that you know the different types of customer reviews, let’s look at how you can get buyers to share these on your Shopify store.

How to get more customer reviews on your Shopify store?

1. Make them easy to submit

This may sound redundant but the truth is most businesses lose out on receiving customer reviews and feedback simply because the entire process can be too painstaking for consumers.

Ensure that it is easy for your customers to leave their reviews, especially on mobile. It is also equally important to make sure that your review section is super easy to find on the website.

2. Follow up with your customers

Say a customer just bought your product. Or maybe you helped one of your customers resolve an issue they faced with your product. Either way, it is important for you to send out a follow-up message to collect customer feedback on the same. Timing is quite important here since the experience needs to be fresh enough in your customers’ minds in order for them to be enthusiastic about leaving feedback.

To ensure your request is timely and does not go unnoticed, we recommend setting up smart automations on email, SMS, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp at the minimum. This helps reach out to the consumer on a channel of their preference, leading to higher engagement on your campaigns.

3. Incentivize customer reviews

Another great way to get more customer reviews is to appreciate your customer for their time by giving them an incentive for their feedback. Special discounts, gift vouchers, freebies, etc are all great ways to incentivize your customers and get them to leave a review.

But we have found that the one reward they happily share feedback and customer reviews for, is store credits. Store credits make it a lot more simpler for consumers to make their next purchase, making it a reward of their preference.

4. Make use of product review tools

Review management tools enable you to easily collect reviews from your customers and then collate it so that it is visible to anyone who visits your website. Such tools allow customers to engage with each other, ask questions about their experience with the product, and so much more.

A good product review tool also comes with different types of widgets that enable you to display the social proof across your website in different layouts and styles; this makes them easily browsable, searchable and hence aids in nudging new visitors towards making a purchase.

5. Post on social media

4.7 billion people around the world use social media. This means that at any given time, a fraction of these people are highly likely to come across anything that you post on your company’s social media accounts. Why not make use of that to draw attention to how customers are reacting to your offerings?

Showcase positive ratings and reviews on your social media pages with the help of clear, innovative, and creative designs and add a review link along with your post to encourage other customers to leave reviews as well. Shoutouts are a great way to encourage other customers to share reviews too!

6. Focus on converting your negative reviews

Four out of five consumers change their minds about a recommended purchase after reading negative online reviews.

That’s a dismal stat considering the effect that every negative review could have on your business.

But, don’t worry even if you have a few negative reviews online. What matters is how you deal with these reviews. Every time you receive a negative review, it is important to let customers know that you’ve seen what they had to say about you and you will do your best to resolve the issue.

You can contact a customer who has left negative reviews through a phone call or by emailing them or by reaching out on social media. The key is apologize and act immediately and see how you can get them to retract their review if it is a possibility.

Negative reviews can be a learning opportunity and can help you figure out how your product can be made better. You can also request the customer to change their review on successfully resolving the issue.

7. Get your customer support teams to help

Your customers are probably in constant contact with your customer service team. Equip your agents to follow up with customers regularly and learn how they are doing with their purchase. It also helps to follow up once an issue has been resolved and ask for the customer’s feedback. This would not only ensure customer satisfaction but also help agents understand how they can improve when it comes to supporting the customer.

The untapped hack to get more customer reviews: Gamify customer rewards

Getting customer reviews can be challenging, which is why a number of businesses are opting to incentivize their customers for every review.

While incentivizing your customers is definitely a great way to get positive customer reviews, it can be elevated even further to make it more effective. This is where gamification comes in.

Sounds odd?

Well, it’s actually way more impactful in getting your customers to participate than you would think.

Gamification is simply adding typical elements of gaming to your customer feedback strategy in order to engage with customers and encourage them to be involved.

For instance, say you give 10 store credits for every review a customer leaves. Sounds enticing but at some point the customer loses interest. Instead, you could gamify the whole process.

For example, a single rating or review could earn them 5 store credits. Adding a picture could earn them an additional 5 credits. Now, if the same customer were to add a video review, it could unlock an entire 10 credits!

This way customers are highly engaged with each step and are more likely to leave honest and detailed feedback.

If you were to simplify it, it’s all about creating an entire path in order to keep your customers intrigued with rewards.

Conclusion

88% of customers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. Additionally, customers are likely to spend 31% more on a business with excellent reviews. Evidently, customer reviews have a huge impact on your bottom line.

Customer reviews are key to increasing brand credibility and trust. It increases the likelihood of customers engaging with your brand and also helps you understand how customers perceive your business.

However, getting customer reviews is easier said than done. You can use any one or a combination of the above methods to get reviews. However, it is important to remember that customers need more than a nudge to get them to review your product or service.

What you need to do is create a win-win situation where customers feel that they stand to gain something whenever they share their feedback publicly.

For instance, say you want to add more customer reviews on your Shopify.

Flits, a Shopify customer account page app helps you deliver a great experience through personalized shopping spaces similar to that of Amazon. But in addition to the same, it’s add-on feature, lets you set up a gamified rewards program for customers that lets you give out store credits in lieu of customer reviews.

Integrating customer reviews within the customer account page has enabled leading online brands to win at getting more social proof.

Interested to know more? Check out Flits and how it can help you with a free trial!