Most customers already know precisely what they want. If your Shopify store contains the product they’re looking for, then you’d likely expect to get a sale. But before they make a purchase, they’ll likely peruse your product reviews.
Few things make a customer retreat more quickly than a store with no or mostly negative reviews. No one wants to spend their money on an unverified product. This conundrum may leave you scrambling to learn how to get customers to leave reviews for your store.
Shopping isn’t as straightforward as it once was. Previously, a customer paid for a product, and the transaction ended. A satisfied customer would return and perhaps recommend the retailer to friends. If they left disgruntled, they’d find another retailer and may discourage acquaintances.
Either way, one customer’s word didn’t necessarily break a business. These days, it certainly can. The team at Bear North Digital, a Shopify marketing agency, created an in-depth guide to help you earn more reviews for your Shopify store.
Why Customer Reviews Help Your Business Grow
When customers see page after page of reviews, they feel compelled to spend time on a product or service page. They are also more likely to purchase from your store. If they don’t purchase during their first session, they may revisit your store.
Consider store reviews from a customer’s perspective:
- No reviews: The store looks new and may have questionable products or services.
- One or two reviews: Some store owners may post fake reviews. Therefore, a store possessing less than five reviews may offer scam products.
- A few reviews: Once a store gathers more reviews, its credibility and trustworthiness increase. A dozen or so reviews mean the store fulfilled numerous customer orders.
- A moderate number of reviews: A store with a few dozen reviews looks much more appealing. It has established a customer base and a reputation.
- Hundreds of reviews: This store satisfactorily fulfills customer orders and grows its base steadily and continuously. Plus, the customer has plenty of information to glean and can discover more about how a product fits their needs.
Although you want primarily positive reviews, negative reviews also serve an essential purpose. First, they assist you in improving your customer service, product, and marketing efforts. Second, they help customers make the right purchasing decision. Your products aren’t for everyone, and those who won’t fully benefit should make an informed purchasing decision.
Finally, a sea of customer reviews provides free, user-created content. Expounding on your product’s advantages in digital marketing materials works well enough, but adding specific context authored by real customers works best.
How To Get Reviews
How does a newly opened store earn enough fair, authentic reviews to develop a positive reputation? Discover how to get customers to leave reviews using the methods below.
#1. Simplify the Review Process
First and foremost, experience the buyer process. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes and purchase an item from your store. Doing so gives you firsthand insight into what puts a buyer off of leaving a review.
The user experience should flow seamlessly from start to finish. After finalizing the purchase, you should easily access various review options from your fingertips. If you deploy complex forms requesting in-depth information, nix those forms. The customer will already provide a wealth of information to acquire their product.
Use a familiar review system, like Amazon’s iconic five-star rating system, with an optional input field for further details. Your customers should provide as much or as little information as they want. Ensure they can do so.
#2. Consider Your Customer’s Thought Process
When drafting calls-to-action or review prompts, go beyond overused phrases like the following:
- Please leave a review!
- Tell us about our product!
- Did you enjoy your experience with us?
These phrases may come off as presumptive, demanding, or desperate. Instead, the copy should feel grateful, cheerful, and suggestive. Use personalized greetings featuring their name. Phrases such as, “We hope you enjoyed your experience with us!” read as warmer and more inviting.
Experiment with the tone and word choice that will best match your branding.
#3. Join a Product Review App
The next phase involves putting your brand at your customer’s digital location. Many Shopify users flock to review platforms like Loox, Rivyo, or Fera.ai to post widely read reviews. Make your brand available on these applications. Create and update your profile regularly, changing business information as needed and responding to various reviews.
#4. Meet Them Where They Are
Being present at your customer’s location also requires making social media profiles. Although social media profiles allow users to connect with other individuals, businesses use them to develop their customer base. Consider the following popular platforms:
- TikTok
Customers can interact with, converse about, and explore your brand further on these platforms. Additionally, your presence on social media further develops your brand’s social proof for potential shoppers.
#5. Choose Your Request Method
After sufficiently fleshing out your brand identity and garnering more interactions with customers, you can finish developing your review request method. Most marketers recommend choosing two to three different methods like email, SMS, and other commonly used methods. Then, explore how other Shopify store owners collect reviews using these methods.
#6. Develop Some Templates
If you deploy automated emails or text messages, you’ll need a solid template to relay the information in an organized manner. Premade templates provide an excellent starting point. You can find them for both text and email review requests.
Experiment with the templates from the customer’s point of view. Choose ones that match your brand and purpose.
#7. Make the Right Request at the Right Time
You’ve nailed down the content. Now, you have to launch requests at the best time. Early requests may reach your customer before they’ve received their product or had a chance to use it. They’ll likely ignore or forget about late requests.
Communicate with your shipping partner to gauge each product’s time of arrival. Then, automate your post-purchase emails and text messages to send between four and seven days following delivery. The customers have time to use the product and will likely have an opinion to share.
#8. Use a Subtle Call-To-Action
Asking for a review is a type of CTA. When you develop a CTA, you want it to gently lure the customer into providing feedback. For example, many automated review requests offer a minimalist popup featuring five interactive starts.
The prompt may have a line that reads, “What did you think?” The customer can respond by touching or clicking the stars beneath the prompt. Once they interact with the stars, they’ll automatically navigate to a traditional review link where they can expound upon their experience.
This CTA is subtle and invitational without overwhelming the customer.
#9. Go the Extra Mile
Everyone loves freebies. Most customers appreciate when vendors recognize and appreciate their purchases. Therefore, a cost-effective token of your appreciation can build the relationship between you and your customers.
Review incentives encourage current and new customers to interact with your Shopify store in a myriad of ways. Some popular incentives include:
- Discount codes in exchange for reviews
- Free samples with their next purchase
- Giveaway raffles for participants who leave reviews
These suggestions add value to your review request and demonstrate gratitude for the time the customer offers.
Alternatively, you can send semi-personalized thank-you notes. Add them to the shipping package or send them with your request texts and emails. A little gratitude goes a long way in the modern consumer climate.
#10. Implement Surveys Following Live Chats
Stellar customer service catches everyone’s attention. In an economy where businesses increasingly automate their customer service outlets, many consumers grow increasingly frustrated with the noticeable lack of human connection throughout the buying process. If you employ live representatives in any way, use their presence to your advantage.
Customers who call or initiate a service chat with a person remember how the business values their presence and time. It automatically gives a business an edge over the competition. Following a discussion with a customer, request that they complete a survey. The survey should only contain a single question.
They can answer it with a short text input or the five-star rating system. Either way, the short survey results in another review to publish on your store. These survey responses may also boost your overall rating due to thoughtful customer treatment.
#11. Use Constructive Feedback To Improve
What should you do when you receive negative reviews? Don’t fret! You can use bad reviews as well as good ones.
Bad reviews demonstrate a store’s authenticity to new viewers. Stores that only display positive feedback may discourage potential customers. They could perceive the store as manipulative since some brands delete or hide negative reviews to project a perfect image.
Some customers may also view the store as a potential scam. Scam businesses may sell low-quality products to turn a high profit. They’ll accept only good reviews, thinking the positive ones will attract more customers.
Plus, you can use criticism to improve multiple aspects of your operations, such as:
- Customer service and attention
- Order fulfillment
- Product design
- Branding and marketing efforts
Negative feedback helps you fine-tune your overall approach.
Finally, constructive feedback provides you with an opportunity to communicate with dissatisfied customers publicly. You can improve customer satisfaction with a brief apology and a discount or full refund, depending on the situation. This instills a customer’s faith in your business and portrays your brand as a trustworthy establishment that cares about customer satisfaction and retaining their business.
#12. Showcase the Reviews on Your Store
Not only do diverse reviews attract more customers to your store, but they also provide strong marketing content. Highlight recent reviews within your store’s text content. Recent reviews encourage new customers to complete purchases and make their own.
You can also invite your social media following to interact with your store by posting a product review and asking what your audience thinks about that particular product. Provide a link that takes them to the product. They’ll either leave a review or make a purchase.
Let Bear North Digital Show You How To Get Customers To Leave Reviews
Ready to learn more about how to get customers to leave reviews on your Shopify store? Look no further than the talented team at Bear North Digital. Our skilled marketers can assist with and improve your customer acquisition methods. Schedule a free strategy session or call (218) 216-8692 to learn more today.