Four ways to encourage online reviews

By now, you’re aware of just how powerful online reviews can be for your business. By educating consumers on writing reviews, you’re allowing them to help to instil trust in your product or service and position your brand as a credible one. 

This helps increase customer acquisition rates and ultimately, sales. But, in order to reap the benefits of reviews, you need to actively encourage your consumers to write them. 

Here are four ways to get your customers to share their feedback online:

1. Get your timing down

As we’ve mentioned before, timing is everything when it comes to obtaining a review. The best time to ask for a review? When your customer has just had a great experience with your company. If a customer compliments you (online or off), thank them – and then ask them to write you a review. 

But, what about the times when you haven’t directly interacted with a customer, or when you have no idea how their experience was? If you’re an e-retailer, or have a sales team, this may apply. In these cases, you’ll need to be strategic about when you’re going to ask for a review. Ask too soon, and you risk putting your customer off; ask too late, and your customer may not remember the details about their experience that would make for a great review. 

All businesses are unique, so to identify the best time to ask for a review, put yourself in your consumer’s shoes, and determine at what point in the funnel they’ve had the full experience of your product.

2. Ask in the right way

The way you ask for a review is just as important as when you ask. Whether you use email, SMS, or ask in person, remember that your request has to be aligned with your business’s identify. 

When possible, reach out in person. By establishing an emotional connection, a consumer is more likely to write a review. If you can’t ask in person, the next best (and easiest) thing is automated email. 

This method of asking for a review can still be personal – it’s all about how you word your request. Spend some time crafting a short, succinct, personalised email that embodies your company’s personality. Save time and simplify the process by using our Email Management tool, specifically built to make crafting, sending and monitoring your email review requests super quick and easy.

3. Authentic, personal requests always win

In an age of sponsored content, today’s shopper values authentic communication above all. When sending review requests out via email, instead of your business name, or a generic ‘sales@companyX.co.za’, sign off with a real name. 

Even better? If the name on your email request is that of the salesperson the consumer dealt with throughout the purchasing process. 

The more authentic your request, the more effective it is. Local cookware company YuppieChef has excelled at adding a personal touch to what could otherwise be another faceless brand. Every order includes a handwritten note, addressed to the consumer by name, and referring to their exact purchase. 

Small touches like the above are extremely powerful – they establish a relationship between your business, and your consumers. Being authentic results in a memorable moment that can convert a one-time shopper into a lifelong consumer. 

While manually writing thank you notes may not be a viable option for every business, think about the ways in which you can personalise your requests for a review.

4. Use visible reminders to nudge your customers towards writing a review

Another effective way to encourage your consumers to write a review is to use Hellopeter tools to subtly remind them that you’d love to hear their valuable feedback. 

Display our downloadable widget in your emails, on your invoices, or on your website. The aim of this is to include several visual cues that signal you’d love to have your consumers turn their feedback into a public, online review. 

Ideally, these reminders should be visible both in the lead up to a purchase and straight after the fact. By the time someone has become a customer, they should’ve seen these visual hints enough times that they’re compelled to write a review. 

To further increase your chances of receiving a review, send out a personalised email request post-purchase to encourage those who haven’t yet written a review to do so.

Reviews on Hellopeter have helped over one million consumers make better choices. Had an experience you’d like to tell us about? Leave us a review here.