When is it a good idea to implement ratings & reviews campaign?
In just a few years, ratings & reviews have become a reliable source of information that influences consumers’ purchasing decisions. Based on our survey, almost 90% of respondents said they regularly read ratings & reviews before deciding on a product or service, both for online (83%) and offline purchases (60%). So when buying in stationary stores, consumers also rely on opinions and reviews they find online. They most often look for information in forums or on review sites (68%), on official manufacturer websites (56%), in social media (53%) and in online shops (52%). (Source: Ratings & Reviews Survey, TERRITORY Influence, August 2020).
Consumers have a need to reduce risks in order to make the best purchasing decisions. Especially since the pandemic, they pay more attention to the quality of the products they buy (61%) and make more careful purchasing decisions (52%). This change in consumer behaviour affects many sectors, but consumers are most careful when buying household appliances. According to our survey, 75% of respondents said they check reviews and testimonials before buying electronic appliances.
A study conducted by “The Rating Economy” underlines the benefits of ratings & reviews. According to the survey, conducted among managers of large companies, they are important for building brand awareness (81%), generating leads (74%), conversions (73%) and promoting premium products (68%). Well-rated products justify high prices, while poorly rated products drive prices down. Bazaarvoice also looked at conversion rates and found that the number of reviews also influences it. 50 reviews lead to a 30% increase, 100 reviews lead to a 37% increase and so on… (source: TERRITORY Influence & Gominga Ratings & Reviews Whitepaper)
Ratings & reviews also have their downsides. Consumers like to read them, but few share their personal opinions about products or services. Therefore, brands should proactively court ratings & reviews by activating their consumers...
Ratings & Reviews Campaigns
Ratings & reviews campaigns are marketing activities in which a selected group of people are persuaded to publish detailed reviews for a product or service in selected channels (online shops – eCommerce, review portals, search engines, social media, etc.).
At TERRITORY Influence we have found 3 ways to generate high quality reviews: Activation of buyers, recruitment of consumers (so-called nano-influencers) and involvement of users from CRM databases.
Each of the above strategies should be considered depending on a brand’s marketing objectives. Activating shoppers will work well if our brand has a large number of regular, returning shoppers who have had the opportunity to try our products and can be activated for our campaign. On the other hand, when we launch a new product, it’s a good idea to work with nano influencers and offer them to test our product or service for free in exchange for them sharing their opinion on selected platforms.
Best times to implement raitings & reviews campaigns
Launching a new product or service
Introducing a new product without reviews can deter potential customers from buying. Customer reviews and testimonials lend credibility to products and educate potential buyers. Running a ratings & reviews campaign before the product launch can build consumer confidence and increase sales.
How to increase sales of best-selling products
Product bestsellers are real marketing levers and should always be in the spotlight. Generating ratings & reviews for flagship products helps keep them online and increase sales.
Improving SEO
Did you know that customer reviews have a positive influence on search engine optimisation? Customer reviews contain keywords, which consequently contributes to the optimisation of product pages. Moreover, the presence of reviews on the Google My Business page is one of the most important parameters that the search engine takes into account when ranking websites (source: Search Engine People and MOZ).
Sales season
Websites convert much better when they include customer reviews. Posting reviews on an online shop can increase conversion rates by up to 270% (source: Spiegel via Adweek). Therefore, before a sales season like Black Friday or Christmas, make sure your product pages contain as many reviews as possible.
Influencer marketing campaigns
Influencer marketing and generating customer reviews are two strategies that complement each other. On the one hand, influencer marketing campaigns increase your brand’s visibility and drive traffic to e-commmerce platforms. On the other hand, reviews shared on websites provide your potential audience with important information, educate them and influence their buying decisions. To optimise results, it is worthwhile to operate these two marketing levers simultaneously.
Summary
Ratings & reviews are an important marketing tool. They increase the conversion rate of product pages and provide good visibility for your brand and products online. By running regular ratings & reviews campaigns, you can maintain your online position and optimise the effectiveness of all your marketing activities.