Understanding Social Proof and Its Importance
Most people think of social proof as a heap of random five star reviews, likes and testimonials. They donât care where they come from, whoâs writing them or when. But in reality, social proof refers to the trust built in a product or service by other customers who share their experiences. It isnât about how many positive reviews you have and more about how detailed, descriptive and authentic these reviews are.
It isnât easy to get customers to leave genuine feedback that inspires trust in a potential customer. Some brands resort to fake reviews but this is typically not only illegal but also damaging to a businessâ reputation. A user can sniff out something fishy and it can all go downhill from there. Social proof extends far beyond online reviews, it also includes influencer partnerships, customer case studies and PR mentions.
Social proof affects brand perception among potential customers that youâve been trying to convert for a long time. New shoppers are more likely to purchase from your business because others have had an excellent experience with your brand or product. They feel safer buying something that has helped others achieve their goals and solve their problems.
A piece of social proof that comes from a real customer goes far for your brand than anything you could say about yourself. And while it might seem like the value of social proof is diminishing with influencer saturation in the content space, it is still rather important for boosting sales - especially among Gen Z shoppers - because peer validation will always trump self promotion - no matter how much money a business spends on branding and PR initiatives.
Timing Your Review Requests for Maximum Impact
Most people tend to think that the best time to ask for a review is right after someone has bought something. And, in theory, thatâs fine â strike while the ironâs hot, keep the customer in that positive mindset, catch them when theyâre still excited about your brand. But most of us forget that the customer hasnât even received their item yet.
So, realistically, asking them how happy they are with their purchase isnât going to get us anywhere. The way I see it, the reality is that a review request only makes sense after the customer has had a chance to receive and use what theyâve bought. I mean, how can you talk about an experience if you havenât had it yet. The optimal timing for this isnât always super clear because it varies based on your shipping method or service speed and your buyer personas â but it should be far enough from the actual purchase date for them to have received and used what theyâve bought.
Not too long after â you donât want to lose their interest â but not so soon that you seem rushed or disingenuous. Thereâs also something to be said about understanding what your customer journey looks like and picking a stage where theyâre most likely going to be happy with you. The way I see it, requesting a review after theyâve interacted with your customer support team (hopefully positively) is a good way of ensuring that the feedback you get will be good because youâve just resolved an issue for them or handled an enquiry well. Review collection can feel like murky waters sometimes â but it doesnât have to be complicated if you know who your customers are and what keeps them coming back.
Crafting Effective Review Requests
Lots of brands assume a bold, direct request is the right way to ask for a review. But most of us have mixed feelings about review requests - we either hate giving them or receiving them. Some people even feel review requests from big retailers are intrusive and may end up unsubscribing from their marketing emails. Your email content and wording should align with your brand voice and values.
If youâd say âpleaseâ, âthanksâ or âit would mean the world to us if youâd share your experienceâ in person, you should say it online too. A B2B business may use a more formal and professional tone, while B2C brands tend to get personal and emotional. Itâs not easy for most companies to judge when customers are at the peak of their happiness and satisfaction. Many brands ask for reviews as soon as the product or service has been delivered, though some like to give customers a little more time to experience the purchase before reaching out.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution here - youâll have to experiment with different timings to find a sweet spot that works for your customers. Remember, a customer experience strategy is fairly not just about boosting revenue but also strengthening relationships and winning loyalty. You want happy customers who vouch for you without being pushed into doing so.
Sort of. Remembering that can help you craft sensitive and effective review request campaigns that help both parties.
Leveraging Social Media for Review Collection
Most businesses make a big fuss over reviews - and why wouldnât they. Thereâs a certain weight a review carries. I Reckon it feels good to get one, itâs almost like youâre getting validation for being on the right track.
But thatâs not all. There are benefits attached too - more reach, stronger credibility, better word-of-mouth marketing⌠the list goes on. But hereâs where it gets tricky, most businesses see reviews as something customers will write and share out of their own will.
While that might happen on rare occasions, most people forget about doing so unless prompted. A good way to ask customers for reviews is to meet them where they are - social media. Instead of waiting for them to come to you, why not go to them. Some people see this as being intrusive or pushy but there are many ways to work around this.
Send customers a DM after theyâve made a purchase with your business if you can have access to their handle or account. Or create posts asking customers to comment or send in their reviews for your business - which you can then use across other channels like your website and Google listing.
What makes this challenging is the trust aspect of it all. More or less. Many people donât feel comfortable sharing personal details or experiences with businesses on social media unless prompted specifically. Some are happy to do so if they know about your business beforehand or are curious about what you offer.
This is why itâs important to encourage action, especially if you want people who bought from you before to leave their thoughts or reviews. Social media has become a channel where anything goes.
You just have to know what works best for your audience and how you can drive action in the way that suits them best, both in terms of reviews and business objectives too.
Incentivizing Reviews: Do's and Don'ts
The old carrot-on-a-stick approach is still a hard habit for brands to break. Of course, plenty of retailers are quick to dangle those rewards to coax an avalanche of five-star appraisals. Some will promise discounts, gift cards, or outright cash for positive reviews - but while a little incentive can go a long way, thereâs more than one way this kind of strategy can backfire.
Fake-sounding reviews driven by compensation can make your claims appear inauthentic and even damage the trust youâve built with your community. It might sound like a scary thing at first - asking customers to spare their time for feedback without giving them anything in return. But Iâve realised over time that people quite like being asked. Especially when theyâre invested in your brandâs story and aligned with your values.
Often the best stories and reviews come from shoppers who identify personally with the uniqueness of what youâre selling. That said, you might still want to incentivise shoppers occasionally. Consider planning review collection activities that invite more genuine feedback: like competitions or even exclusive event invites (for their input). If you do decide to offer rewards, donât ask them for 5-star-only comments - let them know they can fairly be honest about their experience so you appear more authentic overall.
And thereâs the golden word - authenticity. Brands desperate for five stars straight across almost appear as if they have something to hide. Studies show that just under half of consumers are suspicious of perfection; so embrace less-than-positive feedback and encourage happy, loyal shoppers to share their stories too. Ultimately all customers value honesty more than any awkward discount placed strategically before them as incentive, and youâre likely to retain more trust when youâre transparent about this preference too.
Analyzing and Showcasing Collected Reviews
I think a lot of people think once you collect a review, that's it. You pop it on your website and move on to the next one. But thatâs not how social proof works.
Even with fantastic reviews, if you display them carelessly or use testimonials from just anyone, people are going to catch on that something isn't quite right. Reviews can make or break a business, even if the brand has great products and impeccable customer service. Iâve seen businesses miss out on potential conversions simply because they didnât know how to showcase their reviews in an effective way. And itâs not exactly black and white - one must review things like credibility (is the reviewer genuine.
), quality (does the review sound real or does it sound like a bot wrote it. ) and audience fit (is this person someone who would be part of my target market.
). These factors can make analysing reviews rather complicated. The best way forward would be to go about it strategically - perhaps even ask for more information from reviewers by using a form with questions specific to their experience with your brand, product or service. And then thereâs showcasing - while most brands pop reviews on their website to demonstrate credibility, some take it too far and publish every single review they get.
This is seldom where things get tricky because the number of reviews may have an effect on your social proof as well. It helps to have other options such as using social media posts, ads, partnerships etc to show the world all the good things people have said about you. Whether youâre new to collecting reviews or have been doing so for a while - there are kind of many ways to go about both analysing and showcasing reviews effectively so your business gets more conversions and increased credibility.