Customer feedback can help you grow page count, distribution, and increase advertising revenue. That’s why it’s important to encourage customer reviews and ratings.
When it comes to purchasing decisions, today’s consumers rely heavily on the experience of others. So building relationships with customers is an essential aspect of business success. By creating loyal customers who act as your brand ambassadors, you can expand your reach, generate more leads, and drive more traffic to your site. All of this increases the likelihood of conversions and helps drive success.
Keep reading to learn why customer feedback is so important and how to encourage customer reviews and ratings for increased growth and revenue.
Key Takeaways
- Customer feedback provides a personal experience so others can set realistic expectations for online purchases.
- Among other benefits, customer ratings and reviews help build trust, drive traffic to your site, and expand your reach.
- There are several ways to encourage customer reviews, from incentives to personalized requests.
Why is Customer Feedback So Important?
While the convenience of online shopping is extremely appealing, customers lose the benefits of an in-person sales experience. They can’t feel and touch a product or closely examine its features and functionality. Instead, they must rely on an online description and photos to determine whether that good or service will meet their needs and solve their problems. For this reason, more consumers are relying on the feedback of others to learn about the reality of what they see online.
Today, 98% of people read online reviews for local businesses. Hearing from those who have seen and experienced the product or service firsthand helps set a more realistic level of expectation and can give people the confidence they need to finalize a purchase. Or it can be the warning they need to abandon that purchase and continue their search. Either way, customer feedback is extremely powerful, and companies should encourage customer reviews.
Customer reviews are important because they can:
- Build trust: When the real-world experience aligns with the company’s description of a product or service, people feel they can trust the business’s word.
- Strengthen your reputation: Consistently delivering products and services as promised helps establish your company as a reputable business that people want to patronize.
- Drive traffic: A large number of positive reviews can signal consumers that people have good experiences with that brand, so they’ll be inclined to visit your site to learn more.
- Boost engagement: As customers share their personal experiences and answer questions, they’ll begin to form a community of shoppers who are all talking about your brand.
- Widen reach: When someone has a good experience, they will likely share your information with their contacts.
- Help lower business costs: Satisfied customers serve as ambassadors, saving you money on advertising and marketing.
When you encourage customer reviews and ratings, you help build a stronger foundation for your brand, resulting in recognition, loyalty, and a higher chance of sales.
5 Ways to Encourage Customer Reviews
Even though people have a positive experience with your magazine or newspaper printing services, they don’t always take the time to leave a review on their own. Sometimes you need to prompt them to share their customer journey.
The following video shares useful ways to encourage customer reviews:
Here are five things you can begin doing now.
1. Simply Ask
The easiest way to get people to provide feedback is to simply ask them. At the end of every transaction, ask your customer if they would be willing to share their experience on your website or social media page. Include a link in your email campaigns, create a social media post, or offer a QR code on your printed materials. There are several ways to ask for reviews, and most satisfied customers are happy to spread the word.
2. Offer an Incentive
Taking the time to leave a review can be more enticing if there’s something in it for the customer. Offer an incentive to encourage customer reviews and persuade people to share their feedback about your newspaper printing or magazine printing business. Incentives are meant to be a thank-you to your customers for sharing their thoughts and could include:
- Discounts
- Free give-away
- Account upgrade
- Recognition on social media
- Downloadable content
It’s important to emphasize that all feedback is welcome. You’re not trying to bribe people for a positive review. After all, even negative reviews can be invaluable to your business. They reveal areas where you could improve and provide an opportunity to develop meaningful relationships with your customers.
3. Target Satisfied Customers
Whether it’s an in-person encounter, an email, or a social media comment, if a customer has mentioned their positive experience, capitalize on that opportunity. Focus your efforts on these people and ask them to share their feedback with the public. If you know you have a satisfied customer base, send them a survey to complete. Post those results so prospective customers can gain the confidence they need to make their purchase with you. Any surveys that return negative comments can help you improve and, when they’re satisfied with your solution, can lead to positive reviews.
4. Keep it Simple
Make it easy for customers to leave feedback. Provide a direct link that takes them to the review page. Automate the process with a platform that sends instant requests and leads people straight to Facebook, Yelp, or Google. Provide a template, so people don’t have to spend too much time deciding what information to leave in their testimonial. By making the process easy and efficient, you increase the chances that people will leave useful reviews and ratings for your business.
5. Personalize the Ask
Building a deeper, more meaningful relationship with your audience helps to encourage customer reviews. However, part of that equation is creating a personalized experience that makes people feel appreciated and valued. When you ask customers to leave feedback, it’s important to personalize the ask. This could be a phone call, a reference to their specific purchase, or simply using their name in your automated surveys.
Whatever you do, remember to always put the customer first. After all, even though customer reviews help your brand immensely, they’re really a way for you to provide excellent service and products to your current and future consumers.
Earn Positive Customer Reviews
BOOM Communications delivers marketing and advertising solutions that help you reach your goals.
Contact BOOM Communications today to learn how we can help you encourage customer reviews for continued growth and success.