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They say “Money Talks” But,
In the current world scenario…
I have noticed,
“Online Reviews Talk Louder”

Have you ever read a self-help book?
If you have read a few of them you might know, all of them speak the same story and scream nothing new at all!

But still, we can find ocular and drastic changes in one’s lifestyle, attitude, and mindset that consequently helps one being a big success.
Has it ever come to your mind, why and how does it all happen?

This is all psychology!
The human mind tends to believe and take action faster than usual if it finds a social proof of it.

The science of psychology and particularly the theory of social proof plays a significant role in the marketing of any business, be it online or offline.

But, eCommerce isn’t that easy and to create online store, sell products online and mint great money with almost no investments at all is not a cakewalk. Because, to cut down the noise of extreme advertising, online visitors are turning to options like ad blockers, cord cutting, and even media fasting. With customers taking such great degree measures to avoid advertisements at any cost, it is becoming rock-hard for eCommerce businesses to market their products well and not to dim the alluring shine of their ‘best business’ medals in the digital landscape. Thus, social proof marketing tactics tend to play an even more significant role in online businesses.

Social Proof marketing tactics, if performed efficiently can serve as one of the best eCommerce solutions services, being able to picture your brand as organic, build consumer trust and elevate your customer base.

What is Social Proof?

According to the dictionary meaning, “Social Proof is nothing but a psychological phenomenon, wherein people assume the actions taken by others in an attempt to reflect correct behaviour for any given situation.”

Cutting the long story short, Social proof is “you doin’, what they doin’ ”. It is a typically involuntary impulse that instigates people to take the same action as others are taking.

Often it is found that in situations where we are confused or uncertain about what should be done or what to do, we involuntarily assume that the people around us (maybe celebrities, friends, herd, etc.) have more knowledge of what should be done to overcome the trouble.

This is the very same way people choose your product when you use social proof marketing. They don’t choose your product because it is the best thing available in the market. Neither do they buy it, because they wanted to buy it! They cart the product only because they read the top 5 reviews while going through your website, which repeatedly told your customer that the product is not worth a miss. The product is a value for money product and the product has 5 stars and the product is …and the product is …and the product is …!

Why Online Reviews?

There are practically many ways where you can apply the principle of social proof and make your eCommerce site do well. But the most effective and most importantly the free of all is collecting online reviews from your customers. Okay, Let’s do this little exercise!

When was the last time you loved a product very much and immediately returned back from the site as soon as your eyes read “Be the first one to review this.”?
How often have you bought that needless extravagant dress of yours; for the reviews on it were amazing?
Have you ever bought an electronic piece without checking its reviews?

Always remember your customer is just like you.

Ads may be blocked, influencers may be costly but collecting reviews just needs the right questions and right tactics to grow your eCommerce business.

SEO Friendly

Google always ranks the regularly content producing websites higher than others. Online reviews are a source of pure, regular, fresh, and original content for any eCommerce website builder. Thus, posting customer reviews makes your site more SEO friendly and brings it amongst the top-ranked sites without burning your bank balances that usually happens when you pay for Adwords.

Free of Cost

All other means of online marketing are costly and involves loads of money for advertising. Online reviews are the reviews posted by your customers. Thus, these reviews market your product for free if a customer gets pleased by your stuff.

Increases eCommerce Credibility

Online reviews are the reviews not written by the insiders. Thus, being written by outsiders/ customers who purchased the product, online reviews give your eCommerce store credibility. Customers trust the authenticity of the brand, when they can easily see what others have shopped for. They, however, get even more influenced if the majority of the buyers have had an amazing experience after buying the product.

Please Note the word “majority” well. We’ll soon get back to it.

A Chance for Improvement

Gone are the days of traditional marketing which focused on blindly selling what the manufacturers produced. The current scenario completely respects the belief “The CUSTOMER is the king”. Thus these days eCommerce is more about selling what the customer wants rather than what the manufacturer produces. Online reviews help you in knowing just that.

Literally, the reviews act as a bridge between the demand of the customers and the supply of the manufacturers. Online reviews are more like the critical feedback for the business. As they say “First product is never the best product”. Thus these reviews help you serve your customers better by passing you hints of improvements; the list of dos and don’ts; customer likes and dislikes; current trends and competitors and much more.

Boosts Sales

When your site is ranked higher for its original content and the majority of the reviews spread a positive appraise of your product, the new visitor on the site starts trusting the veracity of your product. Look at the statistics below:

  • 90% of customers say that online reviews influence their decision to purchase.
  • 63% of customers are likely to purchase from the website that has reviews.
  • Customers spend 31% more on the business with amazingly wonderful reviews.
  • 72% of customers purchase the product only after reading a positive review.

Thus online reviews act as a catalyst fastening your transactions, instigating your customers to take actions and boosting your sales.

How to deal with Negative/Bad Reviews?

We live in the real world. Your product may be 100% perfect, but still, there is no way that can guarantee you that it is going to please all.
But worry not! It was not designed to please all. Your product should be accepted by the majority to do well (and that’s the reason I told you to save this word for later).

It is completely fine to have negative reviews but the problem comes when there are too many bad reviews. There is a very thin line between hate and constructive criticism. Some review want you to improve and some want to degrade your reputation

Everybody has a different way to deal with hate. What I would suggest you is “Honesty is the best policy”. Be honest and accept if you have made a mistake; improvise and strive to supply better products every single time.

How to Get More Reviews?

Studies show that customer service apps help in collecting reviews two times faster than usual. You can go for customizable eCommerce mobile apps and customer support apps that collect testimonials and reviews in accordance with your business type and needs. Not only this, eCommerce app builder platforms like BuildaBazaar offer much more than this. Buildabazaar provides complete eCommerce ecosystem including technology, catalogue, logistics, marketing and payment support. This platform offers an exemplary opportunity for all categories of retailers, wanting to expand their business globally with friendly SaaS pricing models.

I recently came across this amazing tactic for getting more reviews initiated by some sellers on eCommerce Gaint Amazon. These sellers would offer their customers lucrative cashbacks up to 10 %, or maybe 20% for giving a high rating to the product. However, you may have to think twice before offering such cashbacks, if you are in your starch days.

Yet other options can be offering free or discount vouchers( they give you assurance of the next sale) to your customers for reviewing your product or maybe a more innovative brainchild of yours! Think…Experiment…Repeat. And always remember every business action has an equal and opposite reaction.

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