Everything You Need to Know About Online Reviews
Thanks to customer-centric businesses like Amazon and Apple, having exceptional customer experience has become the industry standard and a critical requirement for your business. A positive online reputation goes a long way in boosting business online and offline. A Harvard Business School study finds that when companies increase their Yelp rating by one star, they increase their revenue by 5 percent to 9 percent. Similarly, XAmplifier finds a direct correlation between the average online ratings of our clients and the number of inquiries they receive.
Often, when companies are looking for a surefire way to increase revenue and overall brand perception, enhancing customer experience will be the first step. Many businesses are taking that approach today. However, a massive undertaking can be overwhelming for a company to launch and manage effectively from within. Unfortunately, this generally leads to an inconsistent customer experience, thus diminishing the expected impact on revenue.
Online reputation is undeniably essential for any company with its eye on the bottom line. Luckily, there are a few things every company can do to improve their online reviews:
Online Review Generation
There are several ways to generate online reviews, such as:
Asking your customers to leave a review after their visit.
Sending out invitations to reviews via email or SMS.
Adding a call-to-action. Such as asking, "How would you rate your experience today?" on your transactional emails.
Regardless of your method for sending survey invitations, ensuring customers receive these requests is the most critical aspect of review generation. Studies have shown that 86% of consumers would be willing to write an online review. Simply displaying reviews on your website and various review platforms can increase conversion rates by roughly 270%.
When companies proactively manage their online review generation, the likelihood of receiving positive feedback increases tremendously. Alternatively, when companies need to provide a clear path for generating online reviews, the customers who take the time to leave one are those who want to bring an issue to your attention or warn others about their negative experience.
Engaging with Your Customers
It might be challenging to swallow negative customer reviews about your company. However, they are a great source of opportunity. Although you want to avoid negative reviews, interactions with unhappy customers can help strengthen your business.
First, it's essential to understand what proper engagement with your customers should look like, especially regarding negative reviews.
A satisfactory response to negative reviews should include all of the following attributes:
An apology for the customer's bad experience.
A solution to the problem
A follow-up to any subsequent message related to the issue left in the review
Negative reviews can boost your online reputation by promoting authenticity and building consumer trust. According to the Spiegel Research Center, the likelihood of purchase peaks at a star rating of 4.0 - 4.7 and then decreases as the rating nears a 5.0 rating. Rather than disregarding negative online reviews, respond to them promptly and professionally.
Additionally, a study by Marketing Charts concluded that 7 out of 10 consumers changed their opinion about a brand after the company replied to a review. You build brand loyalty when you take the time to show each customer how much you appreciate their feedback. Dialogue helps generate a community of brand evangelists who feel deeply connected with your brand and go out of their way to express positive feelings about your products and services.
Transforming Customer Insight into Future Solutions
Being proactive is always better than being reactive. This statement especially holds true when it comes to online review generation. While it's not always possible to know what a customer will need, proactively solving your problem has paid big dividends.
Online reviews provide:
An honest assessment of how well businesses are performing.
The quality of their products & services.
The level of customer experience they deliver.
Additionally, collecting information from online reviews can develop a foundation of compelling content to share with your customers and potential leads. For example, suppose you notice a pattern of complaints in your online reviews. You can respond with an article on your site to address your customer's concern and offer a step-by-step guide detailing a recommended solution. Engagement like this makes your customers feel heard and proactively prevents future complaints.
All of the above (and more) fall under the umbrella of online reputation management. To improve your online reputation and boost revenue quickly, hand over the reins to the experts at XAmplifier. Get started by filling out a contact form!