The advent of the World Wide Web has changed the way we make our purchases. Statistics show that 93% of people read online reviews before making a purchase. The impact of online reviews is undeniable. This led to companies using a variety of review management tools.
Whatever the industry, whatever the size, positive online reviews can play a major role in helping you connect with your customers, get people talking and increase brand exposure.
Why Does Your Business Need Online Reviews?
Take the example of ASOS, a company ranked high consistently. A renowned clothing brand, the company sells more than 850 brands and ships them to 196 countries. Even while operating on such a large scale, the brand enjoys amazing customer loyalty. Their online reviews are proof of their dedication to their customers.
It’s time you joined the ranks of such brands. Take a look at the reasons why your brand needs to give importance to online reviews.
- Customer purchases based on social opinion
- Buzz around the brand increases visibility
- Interaction with the brand leads to trust
- Expanding your brand reach
- Communication and feedback
Customer Purchases Based on Social Opinion
What influences customer purchases? The society. People around them. What others say matters.
If A is interested in buying a washing machine, he will find out what B and C have to say about the model and brand. He will make his decision based on what others who have already purchased the machine have to say. In the past, purchases were made based on what friends and family had to say. But now, opinions of strangers online hold more value.
Online reviews also help elevate your company in search results. Google considers reviews as an important ranking factor, and a weightage of 6.5% is given to reviews from customers.
Many shoppers admit to having stayed away from a product, because of negative reviews. As long as you offer a quality product and ensure good customer support, you will consistently rake in positive online reviews.
Buzz Around The Brand Increases Visibility
One of the most crucial aspects of promoting a brand is creating buzz. Your brand remains in the limelight as long as you are being talked about. Online reviews help customers reach out to others in an attempt to find out more about your product.
Major search engines and social networking sites is where all the action is. Customers talk about products and search engine algorithms look for fresh content to be indexed. This is how your brand shows up in the search engine results when shoppers search for products.
Expanding Your Brand Reach
One of the most important aspects of increasing sales is to expand your brand reach. Customers who like what you offer will be encouraged to offer good reviews on a variety of sites online. If they see someone asking a question about a product on a site they visit, they will automatically talk about your brand.
Just like word-of-mouth, your brand name spreads to different sites, including online review sites like TripAdvisor, Quora, Yelp, etc. These sites have a huge audience. Google and other major search engines collect data from such sites to show in the results.
An example would be when the Search Influence agency and GetFiveStars collaborated to promote Dr. K. Mathew Warnock, an orthopedic surgeon based in Houston. They reached out to patients and within five months, the doctor received 100 five-star reviews. These reviews were then posted on his website, leading to a 23% increase in organic search traffic. This in turn led to more reviews on major websites.
Brand expansion is an organic process that is a direct result of customer satisfaction.
Online Reviews Are The Best Marketing Tools
No amount of case studies and theories on paper will help a brand with sales, as much as online reviews do. Product reviews are the best marketing tools to reach out to thousands of potential customers online. As a brand, it’s time you established your identity online by using a good review management system.
