Why a Brand Needs to Communicate on Review Sites
Our life is influenced by the opinions of other people. We ask for advice when it comes to finding the dance classes in our area or choosing new headphones. The digital age has made Google searches the new word of mouth, and the COVID-19 pandemic has made online shopping a familiar part of our lives.
Here is why your brand needs reviews on the Internet and why you should take a closer look at review sites.
How Reviews are Useful for a Brand
The usefulness of consumer reviews might be surprising to some. Here are several reasons brands should pay attention and utilize reviews:
Most People Study Reviews Before Buying
According to an online survey by AliExpress, 9 out of 10 orders are made after studying the feedback. However, this applies not only to online stores. Regardless of the scope and scale of your business, the detailed and unbiased reviews positively affect the purchase decisions of others.
When a client studies reviews, they answer the question: “Is this product suitable for me personally?” This reduces the chances of getting a “pig in a poke”.
Reviews Help Identify Growth Zones
Customers usually pay attention to problems that are not always obvious to a business representative. Thus, they help the brand to become better by identifying specific areas for improvement.
Answering Reviews is a Good Tool for Cultivating Loyal Customers
Reward is not the main motivator for customers. Most online shoppers leave reviews to share their opinion and help others make a choice. Thank your users for that and make them see that the company cares! Satisfied customers will feel a connection with the brand, while negativists will feel heard. The brand then earns additional points of authority in the eyes of the audience.
Reviews are Great Stuff for Social Media
Detailed reviews with photos are especially helpful. Remember that UGC — content created by the brand’s audience — is now at its peak and it helps to grow customers’ trust.
We Already Have Reviews on Our Website and Social Media. Why Use the Review Sites?
It’s great if you engage your loyal community and motivate users to write reviews. However, online reputation is not bound by brand resources. When a client is searching for information about a product, they may come across some negative comments on a third-party forum or review site.
Who writes them? Unhappy customers who could not solve the problem on the seller’s side, your competitors, and even former employees. In other words, review websites become targets and landing zones for negativity.
If you ignore the review websites, they become a blind spot in your online brand reputation.
Now, let’s take a look at how to work with review websites to turn them from a target for negativity into a helpful reputational resource.
Organizational Checklist for Working with Review Sites
Step 1. Study the existing review sites and select the key ones. Here are three groups to consider.
Sites with Reviews on Various Topics
These are worldwide such as trustpilot.com, https://www.yelp.com/, https://www.sitejabber.com/, Amazon customer Reviews. There are also a lot of local review websites which can be found on the first page of a Google search.
Navigation Sites
For example, Google Places. By typing the name of your brand into Google, each user sees a company card with up-to-date information.
Also keep in mind Yahoo! Local Listings and other local listings.
Industry-specific Single-topic Review Sites
This group may include sites like https://www.booking.com/ and https://www.tripadvisor.com/ for travelers.
Step 2. Learn how the selected sites work.
Each site has its own restrictions, rules for publishing, and moderation. Learn more about them to avoid problems when posting reviews and replies.
Step 3. Evaluate the current position of the brand on the selected sites. There are two main problems you may face.
- There are already many bad reviews that need to be answered.
Respond to all negative reviews and don’t ignore them. This is useful not only for solving the problem of a particular user but also for reputation because these reviews can be read by your potential customers. We advise you to follow these principles:
- Apologize only if the company really messed up.
- Show empathy. A good answer sounds polite and humane. Avoid too much formality as well as copy-paste. Never resort to accusations towards a customer.
- It’s good if the review is written clearly and to the point, but this is not always the case. Emotional responses without specifics need to be brought to a constructive basis with the help of clarifying questions.
2. There are no reviews at all.
Create a brand card on the reviewer site if you don’t have one, and place some reviews.
Here are the possible ways to get them:
Step 4. Monitor reviews on the selected sites regularly.
In this step, you estimate the approximate scale of work. How many reviews do you get on each site in a day or week? How fast will a review be answered? Who will do this? It is good if the same employee answers on behalf of the brand as an official representative and on a regular basis.
Create a special table where incoming reviews and responses to them are recorded. Also record the reviews that you have published or plan to publish.
And finally:
- Respond to all negative reviews.
- Positive reviews also require a response. Thank the customer by showing that their opinion is valuable. This shows gratitude for their contribution to your reputation.
- Working with reviews is working with consequences, so it’s better to start with the inner workings of the company. Do not make empty promises. If you promised to improve the identified shortcomings, keep your word.
Well structured feedback management helps to create a positive information field that improves the online brand reputation. We hope that the article was useful to you and that you’ve learned something new for yourself. Good luck!
