The complete guide to marketing with customer reviews: 2021 update

Trustpilot's complete guide to reviews

Marketing with customer reviews is a surefire way to build trust in your brand, and turn that into measurable ROI through increased web traffic and sales. In this practical guide, we'll show you 15 ways you can improve your marketing strategy with reviews.

I rely on reviews. You rely on reviews. 

We all rely on reviews. 

In fact, [consumer behavior](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/consumer-behavior-in-the-age-of-coronavirus-global-review-trends-by-industry) has evolved such that shoppers the world over are relying on reviews from their fellow customers to find the most up-to-date and accurate information about businesses in their local communities and beyond. 

So, if you’re wondering whether you could be doing more with customer reviews, know this: reviews can provide your business with so much more than feedback on your products and services. 

They're also a powerful marketing engine in their own right. Customer reviews are a way to build trust in your brand, and turn that brand trust into measurable ROI through increased web traffic, sales, and revenue. 

In this practical guide, we’ll show you exactly how to turn your customer reviews into better business results by putting them to work throughout your entire marketing strategy. 

And on the off chance you’re totally new to the world of reviews, we’ll start with a quick overview of their many benefits, and how they work together to propel business growth. 

## Why every business needs customer reviews and testimonials

We’ll keep this brief — the virtuous cycle of collecting reviews goes something like this: 

### 1. Build trust in your brand by collecting and responding to reviews.

Reviews are an opportunity for anyone familiar with your brand to publicly share what they love about your products, services, and [customer experience](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/5-reasons-why-customer-experience-is-the-pulse-of-every-business). So, having reviews publicly available conveys to potential customers that you’re safe to do business with.

Once you have some reviews about your business, you can:

### 2. Attract new customers by using reviews, ratings, and testimonials throughout your marketing strategy. 

Showing off your customer reviews is how you turn your hard-earned brand trust into measurable ROI. 

Whether you dream of becoming the search result they actually click, driving more traffic with your emails and ad creative, or converting more browsers into buyers on your site — [social proof](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/why-and-how-social-proof-influences-consumers) like reviews, star ratings, and testimonials can help with that. 

To meet the expectations of all the new customers you’ll attract from showing off your reviews, you’ll need to: 

### 3. Tap into the goldmine of fresh consumer insights within your reviews.    

You’ve built a trusted brand. You’ve attracted more customers than ever before by exuding trustworthiness in all of your marketing. Now you need to understand what all of your new customers thought about their experience with your brand. 

Reviews act like a window into the minds of your customers, allowing you to discover exactly what they want — and deliver it — so you can build customer loyalty, get even more customer feedback, and continue using that feedback to attract new customers.

Sounds good, right? It all begins with [getting reviews](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/get-reviews) for your business so you can start showing off the trust in your brand. 

This is especially easy for businesses built on major eCommerce platforms to get up and running thanks to Trustpilot’s native integrations for [Shopify](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/shopify-plus), [BigCommerce](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/bigcommerce), [WooCommerce](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/woocommerce), [Magento](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/magento-commerce), [PrestaShop](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/prestashop), [Shopware](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/shopware), and [OpenCart](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/opencart). 


complete-guide-to-reviews-img1

Trustpilot reviews displayed on a phone

## 15 Ways to use customer reviews in your marketing strategy

Once you’ve collected some reviews about your business, you can start showcasing the voice of the customer throughout your marketing strategy to increase organic traffic, dial up your paid digital campaign performance, and ultimately win more customers. 

## Improving organic SEO with customer reviews

With [91.5% of organic traffic](https://www.searchenginejournal.com/seo-101/seo-statistics/) going to sites listed on the first page of search engine results, we can’t overstate how important your organic search ranking is when it comes to attracting new customers. 

__With that in mind, here are five ways you can use customer reviews to improve your organic search rankings.__

### 1. Build strong off-page SEO by collecting reviews on a third-party platform. 

Off-page SEO describes any actions you take to build up a digital footprint outside of your actual website — whether it’s building credible backlinks to your pages, staying active on social media platforms, or even creating a profile on a [third-party review platform](https://thenextweb.com/contributors/2018/02/26/can-independent-review-platforms-make-google-love-site/) like Trustpilot. 


Off page SEO

off-page SEO diagram

Even though search engine algorithms are always evolving, the experts at [Moz](https://moz.com/learn/seo/off-site-seo) suspect that off-page SEO considerations like relevance, trustworthiness, and authority carry more than 50% of the ranking factor weight. 

Fortunately, building up your online presence with third-party reviews can help your business tick all three of those boxes. 

### 2. Drive more referral traffic from your Trustpilot business profile. 

On top of the off-page SEO benefits for your actual website, creating a profile on Trustpilot can also lead to a huge spike in referral traffic. 

That’s because when someone searches for reviews of a brand, they’re likely to find that brand’s Trustpilot [business profile page](https://support.trustpilot.com/hc/en-us/articles/360013930439-Introduction-to-your-company-profile-page) at the top of the search results. Why, you ask? 

We don’t mean to brag, but Trustpilot’s [domain authority](https://moz.com/learn/seo/domain-authority) is strong. So, the more reviews you collect — and the more you [enrich the content](https://support.trustpilot.com/hc/en-us/articles/202616716-Customize-your-company-profile) on your business profile page — the easier it will be for search engines to associate your brand with ours, and show your presence on Trustpilot right at the top of search results.

This could be your competitive advantage since referral traffic is so often overlooked — even though it’s a free source of qualified leads, and can even [improve your organic search performance](https://moz.com/blog/organic-traffic-without-ranking). 


Learn how TaxSlayer used their enriched business profile page to generate a 500% increase in referral traffic to their site.

### 3. Get more organic traffic by displaying customer reviews on your website.

Featuring customer reviews on key landing pages is easy to pull off with review widgets, and this small addition to your website can improve how often your pages show up in organic search results. 

That’s because reviews are a form of user-generated content, and UGC is SEO gold:

- __Reviews increase the amount of text on each page.__ This extra text makes your page more valuable in the eyes of Google because you’re offering them more context for what the page is really about — and whether it should surface for the user’s search query. 
- __The ratings associated with your reviews help Google understand the quality of your products and services.__ At the end of the day, Google wants to show the most reputable search results in hopes of delivering the best experience to their users. 
- __Review text adds fresh content to pages that might not otherwise get frequent updates.__ This tells Google that the information about your business is recent and up-to-date, and is therefore worth surfacing for the user’s search query.  

These elements work together to [help Google understand your website](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/why-does-google-care-if-your-business-has-online-reviews-in-2019). Over time this can lead search engines to show your pages in search results more frequently, and drive larger volumes of high quality traffic to your site.


reviews are great for SEO because they provide fresh content and long tail keywords, both of which Google loves

complete-guide-to-reviews-img4

Google search on a laptop

### 4. Earn review snippets in organic search with product reviews. 

When marketers think about star ratings in search results, paid listings usually come to mind — and we’ll get there in the next section. But most marketers don’t realize they can also earn star ratings on their organic search listings and appeal to those savvy shoppers who might be [less inclined to click-through an ad](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/can-online-reviews-revive-consumer-trust-in-advertising). 

As it turns out, collecting [Product Reviews](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/product-reviews) can help you qualify for [review snippets](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/rich-snippets-stars-for-product-reviews-can-boost-seo) in organic search.  

And those shiny gold stars on your listings can help attract more attention to your product pages, and even improve your click-through rates by up to 35% in organic search. 

Not bad!

It’s not hard to do — our range of [eCommerce integrations](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/type/apps) allow you to make your Product Review data discoverable to search engines in just a few clicks that add some simple code (aka schema markup) to your product pages. This allows search engines to easily get a sense of your products’ overall ratings, and determine whether you meet their requirements for displaying review snippets. 

If your review stats meet [Google’s requirements](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/data-types/review-snippet), your product pages could appear with performance-enhancing review snippets in the SERPs. 


According to Conversion XL, review stars in search engine results can improve CTR by as much as 35%.

complete-guide-to-reviews-img5

According to ConversionXL, review snippets can improve click-through rate by as much as 35% in organic search

### 5. Rank for long tail search queries with product reviews.

Collecting product reviews can also amp up the SEO power on each of your product pages, and help you rank for a broader range of relevant keywords. 

It’s pretty straightforward. Allowing customers to leave reviews about your individual products — and putting them front and center on your product pages — can improve your site’s visibility for [long tail search queries](https://yoast.com/focus-on-long-tail-keywords/#:~:text=Focusing%20on%20long%2Dtail%20keywords,as%20they%20are%20more%20specific.), with no copywriting effort on your part.

Try as you might, thinking of every possible descriptor, use case, or problem your product solves can be difficult to say the least. Thankfully, product reviews let your customers become the copywriters, enabling them to share their own unique experiences with your products. 

The icing on the cake is that all this happens automatically — no extra copywriting or content creation for you.

## Enhancing paid digital campaign performance with customer reviews

Today’s consumers have seen it all — and many of them don’t want to see ads or slick marketing messages anymore. In fact, more than [75% of consumers](https://deloitte.wsj.com/cmo/2018/04/03/are-consumers-adlergic-a-look-at-ad-blocking-habits/) regularly use an adblocker.

To make matters even more challenging for digital marketers, research shows [fewer than 3 in 10 consumers](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/learn-from-customers/trustworthiness-in-advertising-what-consumers-have-to-say) report a solid level of trust towards digital advertising channels.  

__Fortunately, customer reviews and star ratings can enhance your digital campaign performance on the channels that have the [biggest influence](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/can-online-reviews-revive-consumer-trust-in-advertising) on consumer’s purchasing decisions.__

### 6. Qualify for Google Seller Ratings to improve Google Ads performance.

A close relative of review snippets in organic search, [Google Seller Ratings](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/how-to-land-great-reviews-and-boost-your-google-seller-rating) are a one-stop-shop for:

- Adding a healthy dose of social proof to your paid search listings.
- Making your business stand out from the competition.
- And increasing click-through rate on your Google Ads campaigns.

A higher click-through rate often leads to increased sales, and will usually improve your [Quality Score](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/140351?hl=en) — meaning you’ll get traffic at a lower cost per click. This in turn gives you a lower cost per acquisition, and frees up more budget for the rest of your business.

Just keep in mind that whether Google Seller Ratings display on your paid search listings is up to Google’s discretion in line with their [latest guidelines](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/2375474?hl=en) — which tend to stipulate that a business must have a certain number of reviews and a certain aggregate rating before those shiny gold stars will appear below your [Google Ads](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/browsers-to-buyers/why-wont-my-google-seller-ratings-show-up-and-4-other-gsr-questions).

Once you do earn them though, your [Google Seller Ratings](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/how-to-land-great-reviews-and-boost-your-google-seller-rating) will appear in Google search results, Google Shopping listings, and even on Google search partners’ listings. 

So if you ask us, it’s worth setting yourself up to qualify for them.

### 7. Enhance your retargeting campaigns with customer testimonials, reviews, and ratings.

[Retargeting campaigns](https://blog.alexa.com/retargeting-vs-remarketing/) can straddle a range of platforms using paid ads to re-engage potential customers who have visited your website or social media profiles. 

No matter which platform you’re using to run a retargeting campaign, you can see a [performance improvement](https://business.trustpilot.com/customer-stories/finance-insurance/why-taxslayer-chose-trustpilot-to-leverage-customer-feedback) if you include your reviews and ratings in the ad creative. This can look like:

- Quoting an individual customer review.
- Using your overall rating in your ad creative.
- Showing off how many customers have rated you highly.

The best part? Highlighting your reviews in ad creative can be done without design skills (or even an in-house designer) with some help from Trustpilot’s social media [Image Generator](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/social-media-tools).

With retargeting, you’re putting ads in front of people who have some existing relationship with your business. The extra social proof you add to your retargeting creative might be the deciding factor that nudges customers to purchase from you.


Learn more about Trustpilot's social media tools. 

## Getting more from your email marketing with the voice of the customer 

Though it’s a tough number to pin down, email marketing experts estimate that the average person sends and receives [126 business emails per day](https://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/knowledge-base/how-many-emails-does-the-average-person-receive-per-day/). That’s a whole lot of emails.

It’s easy to see why the average open rate for emails is about [22%](https://mailchimp.com/resources/email-marketing-benchmarks/) — and why it can be so challenging to cut through the noise with email marketing.

__Here are four ways you can let the voice of the customer do it for you.__

### 8. Boost email click-through rates by adding customer reviews and testimonials.

Every improvement in email click-through rate is going to drive more qualified traffic to your website and increase the odds of a conversion. So you might be interested to know that customer reviews can improve the click-through rate in all of your [marketing emails](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/browsers-to-buyers/4-email-marketing-strategies-to-unlock-black-friday-sales-volume-throughout).

Unlike channels with strict word counts and requirements for visual creative, with email you’re free to be creative with how you show off your reviews. You can even use them as the entire basis for different types of email content and CTAs. 

Whether you’re drafting a monthly newsletter, a seasonal product promotion, or a dynamic remarketing campaign – [highlighting a customer review](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/inside-trustpilot/social-proof-in-email-marketing-is-easier-than-ever-with-trustpilots-klaviyo) that’s directly related to your offer puts the social proof your customers crave right on a silver platter, and [increases the odds](https://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/email-marketing/2019/06/improve-your-ctr-using-social-proof/#:~:text=4.,a%2037.5%25%20increase%20in%20conversions.) that they’ll click-through to your landing page, and ultimately convert. 

And with [82% of shoppers](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/why-and-how-social-proof-influences-consumers) reporting that ratings and reviews in email marketing can make them more likely to purchase, that’s pretty promising.  

### 9. Let customer reviews do the talking in your welcome campaigns.

Welcome campaigns are your first opportunity to build a direct relationship with a future customer. Most of your email signups probably haven’t made a purchase yet, and they could even be brand new to your business.

This is your opportunity to convince them you’re a brand they can feel comfortable buying from — and it’s the perfect time to let your satisfied customers do the talking. 

Think of your reviews as a dynamic database of nuanced marketing content to make your campaigns as compelling as possible to your email audience segment. 

When you’re in the early stages of building a relationship with your future customers, it’s a good idea to: 

- Include a relevant customer review in each email, whether it’s about a specific product or your customer experience in general. 
- Feature your top-rated products and services based on your reviews. 
- Show off your brand’s personality by curating some surprising or funny customer reviews. 

This is just a sampling of the creative ways you can make a first impression through your customer reviews and generate warm responses to your email campaigns. 

### 10. Show off your trustworthiness in the email header, footer, and subject line.

Every email you send should include some proof of your trustworthiness. One easy way to achieve this is by including your star rating to your email template’s header, or adding a customer testimonial in the footer. 

With email [open rates](https://mailchimp.com/help/about-open-and-click-rates/) hovering around a modest 22%, it’s also in your best interest to lead with social proof right in the subject line. Here are some sample ideas to get you started:

*- "Our top reviewed products this month."*
*- "Thank you for making us a 5 star company."*
*- "5 ways we’ve used your reviews to improve our customer service."*
*- "Meet Sue, our top customer service rep."*
*- “We thought our teapots were great, your feedback has made them even better!”*
*- “The products you love.”*


Complete Guide to Reviews Quote Jillian Lore

Trustpilot logo Round Star BlueBG 420x420

Digital Marketing Specialist, Rush49

### 11. Abandoned cart emails are more effective with customer reviews.

No matter how watertight your online shopping journey is, abandoned carts are bound to happen. 

According to the experts at [Klaviyo](https://www.klaviyo.com/blog/whats-is-abandoned-shopping-cart-email), the average cart abandonment rate is about 70% on desktop and a whopping 85% on mobile — so it’s not surprising that abandoned cart email flows have become so popular. 

Many retailers rely on special offers and promotions in these email campaigns to lure would-be customers back to their website, but adding a testimonial, review, or rating can be more than enough to bring them back without compromising your precious margins.  

So if you’re putting together an abandoned cart email flow, consider including a few reviews about your customer experience or best-selling products to reassure any hesitant shoppers out there that your business is not only safe to buy from — but that there’s plenty to love about your brand.

No matter what type of email campaign you’re running, it’s easy to feature Trustpilot reviews with our integrations for major email providers like [Klaviyo](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/klaviyo), [Fresh Relevance](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/fresh-relevance), and [Movable Ink](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/movable-ink). 


Adding reviews to your cart abandonment email campaigns can boost CTR by up to 220%

complete-guide-to-reviews-img7

NewYorkDress saw a 220% increase in CTR after adding reviews to their cart abandonment emails

## Improving website conversion rates by putting customer reviews front and center

Today, [89%](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/4-things-every-business-owner-should-know-about-the-state-of-reviews) of consumers check online reviews throughout the online shopping journey. So, by the time a potential customer lands on your website, chances are they’ve already formed a first impression about your brand. 

If you want to make sure that first impression leads to a conversion, it’s a good idea to provide all the reassurance they need to click “BUY” right on your website. 

__Here are four ways to [improve your conversion rate](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/browsers-to-buyers/what-is-conversion-rate-optimisation) with customer reviews on your website.__

### 12. Use reviews to make a stellar first impression on your homepage. 

When you improve the trustworthiness of your marketing campaigns, you’re likely to drive a lot more qualified traffic to your website. If your goal is turning more site browsers into buyers, your website should be just as trustworthy as the marketing materials that led them there. 

When it comes to website optimization, the homepage is often overlooked in favor of product pages and the checkout page — and that’s a missed opportunity.

Even if the majority of your site visitors arrive via a specific landing page, there’s a good chance they’ll still want to check out your homepage, especially if they’re unfamiliar with your brand. 

With this in mind, try to highlight customer reviews as much as possible on your homepage. You could:

- Showcase the quality and quantity of your reviews — for example, *“We received 2,365 reviews this year, and 95% of customers gave us a 5/5”.*
- Feature 3-5 recent reviews to show off what your others love about your customer experience.
- Round up your most reviewed or highly rated products and services — for example, *“Here are some products our customers gave 5 stars”.*

Remember, your homepage is where site visitors turn to find [trust signals and other social proof](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/what-is-social-proof-and-why-is-it-important-for-marketing) for your brand — so don’t miss this opportunity to easily build trust with curious customers by showing off a highlight reel or some summary statistics about your customer reviews. 


complete-guide-to-reviews-img9

ThirftBooks have embedded customer reviews throughout the customer journey

### 13. Add review widgets to product pages to make the buying decision easy.

We’ve already established that product reviews are an SEO secret weapon — but they can also make [conversions skyrocket on your product pages](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/customer-stories/get-seen-in-search/ann-summers-uses-product-reviews-to-increase-sales-up-to-230). 

According to the experts at [Shopify](https://www.shopify.com/blog/15359677-why-online-store-owners-should-embrace-online-reviews), 79% of online shoppers trust information shared in product reviews as much as a personal recommendation. And other studies have revealed that [product reviews are 12x more trusted](https://econsultancy.com/ecommerce-consumer-reviews-why-you-need-them-and-how-to-use-them/) than manufacturer or product descriptions. 

In short, [showing relevant reviews](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/trustbox-widgets) on product pages makes the buying decision easier for hesitant shoppers. 

That said, not all reviews carry the same weight. 

Research shows that shoppers want to see real product images from other customers (aka [user-generated content](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/product-reviews)) when they look at product reviews:

- Millennials trust user-generated content [50% more](https://www.iab.com/insights/user-generated-content-for-marketing-and-advertising-purposes/) than traditional media and think it’s 20% more influential on their purchasing decisions.
- Consumers are [3x more likely](https://www.iab.com/insights/user-generated-content-for-marketing-and-advertising-purposes/) to perceive user-generated content as authentic compared to content created by a brand.

So if your goal is to increase conversions on your product pages, make sure your product review provider gives customers an opportunity to share their own photos.

If you display these on your product pages, your conversion rate is sure to thank you. 

### 14. Add star ratings to the site header and footer to make every single page more trustworthy. 

Depending on what they searched to find your business, customers can land on almost any page on your site from the SERPs. With this in mind, every page is an opportunity to convince them to make the critical decision to purchase.

The easiest way to make sure your trustworthiness comes across loud and clear — no matter where visitors land on your site — is to add your star rating to your header or footer.

It’s a small change that can make a big difference.

### 15.  Reduce your exit rate by highlighting reviews and ratings on exit pages. 

Every journey has a start point and an end point — and if that end point isn’t the order confirmation page, you should take every opportunity to increase your conversion rate.

First, identify any pages with high exit rates by checking out your [exit page performance](https://www.paperstreet.com/blog/how-to-use-google-analytics-to-identify-exit-pages-and-improve-them/) in Google Analytics and noting which ones have high traffic and a high exit percentage. 

With exit pages, it’s worth taking the time to look at the actual page and see if you can spot a problem:

- Are there enough calls to action on those pages to keep people on the website?
- Is the page a dead end on the website?
- And of course, are there any customer review sentiments that might help keep people on this page?

Once you’ve ruled out other potential issues, it’s worth exploring any opportunity to show off relevant reviews on your exit pages — and Trustpilot’s [Review Tagging](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/review-tagging) feature makes this easy.

Here’s an example.

If your Delivery and Returns page has a high exit rate, you might start tagging reviews that mention delivery or returns so you can easily filter reviews by those keywords. This should make it easy to find a testimonial or two that sings your praises about delivery and returns — so you can feature them on your Delivery and Returns page. 

This tiny consideration could lead to a meaningful drop in your exit rate, and more conversions down the line. 

## Grow your business by amplifying the voice of the customer

If you made it this far, it should be clear that there’s an infinite number of creative ways you can integrate reviews into your marketing strategy to attract more customers — and make sure they actually convert. 

As we laid out at the beginning of this guide — customer reviews are all you need to kickstart a sustainable cycle of business growth. 

1. __Build trust in your brand__ by collecting and responding to reviews.
2. __Attract new customers__ by adding reviews to your marketing campaigns and across your website’s shopping journey. 
3. __Tap into the goldmine of fresh consumer insights__ within your steady stream of new customer reviews.

And then the cycle repeats, all because you put your customers at the heart of your marketing strategy. 

And if you really want to make the most of your customer reviews in your marketing strategy, focus on growing your [review collection](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/review-invitations) until your [social proof reaches critical mass](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/3-reasons-why-you-really-need-to-get-more-reviews). This makes it easier to highlight your reviews across your marketing channels, and eventually tailor your review curation to campaigns and product promotions.

So, the next time you approach a marketing campaign or a business challenge — whether it’s online or [offline](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/ratings-and-reviews-in-above-the-line-advertising) — ask yourself if customer reviews could be used to boost performance results.

You heard it here first: the answer is yes. 


Speak to one of our review experts today. 

Trustpilot Consumer Insights: 2020 Holiday Readiness Guide, featuring 8 tips to help your customers buy with confidence in peak shopping season

2020 Holiday Report

Trustpilot Consumer Insights: 2020 Holiday Readiness Playbook

This holiday season is poised to mean more than ever to consumers, so we used Trustpilot consumer insights to create 8 tips to help your customers buy with confidence this holiday season.

Suffice to say that COVID-19 and the resulting global recession, disrupted supply chains, and mass uncertainty have had a lasting effect on [consumer behavior](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/consumer-behavior-in-the-age-of-coronavirus-global-review-trends-by-industry), with some industries seeing unprecedented sales as the world sought to entertain themselves with new hobbies during lockdown — and others finding themselves more [prone to fraud](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/2020-consumer-report-combating-misinformation-in-the-health-beauty-sector), disappointing customers who had less to spend in the first place.

According to the consumer sector experts at [McKinsey](https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/the-consumer-sector-in-2020-and-beyond), two pandemic-fueled consumer behavior trends are here to stay. The first is that in the face of widespread economic uncertainty, shoppers are more focused than ever on the perceived value of their purchases — a measure which tends to skyrocket when [the brand in question is trusted](https://www.inc.com/young-entrepreneur-council/how-to-increase-sales-by-building-brand-equity-shaping-brand-perception.html). The second is the obvious shift to making purchases almost exclusively online.

Some consumers are doubling down on loyalty while shopping online, purchasing only from [brands they already trust](https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/the-future-of-brand-strategy-its-time-to-go-electric). But some are taking chances on new brands and products now that their options have multiplied, in many ways leveling out the playing field and creating more opportunity for lesser known brands and businesses.

Either way, this holiday season is a huge opportunity for businesses of all shapes and sizes: consumers have shifted so much of their spend to online channels that eCommerce shopping levels have been tracking well above peak holiday shopping levels, and compared to predictions from the [2020 Adobe Digital Economy Index](https://www.adobe.com/content/dam/www/us/en/experience-cloud/digital-insights/pdfs/adobe_analytics-digital-economy-index-2020.pdf) for the period of March to June 2020, an extra $77 billion dollars have been spent online.

Image courtesy of the Adobe Digital Economy Index

Online Retail Spend Actual vs Expected via Adobe Digital Economy Index

Online Retail Spend Actual vs Expected Adobe Analytics

Whether consumers are tightening their purse strings or trying to forget the last six months by immersing themselves in holiday cheer, it’s safe to say that shoppers’ expectations will be higher, and businesses will be under the microscope.

And with recent action around the [Black Lives Matter movement](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/business/media/companies-marketing-black-lives-matter-george-floyd.html) placing an even stronger emphasis on corporate social responsibility and belief-driven buying (particularly in big gifting categories like fashion retail and health and beauty) this is the year to make sure your brand is trusted leading up to the winter holidays — and always.

To that end, we took a deep dive into more than 30 million consumer reviews on Trustpilot posted from August 2018 to August 2020 to uncover consumer behavior trends leading up to peak shopping season, and formulate some helpful tips to make sure your business is primed and ready to turn more browsers into buyers on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and beyond.

## Here are 8 tips to help your customers buy with confidence this holiday season.

### Tip 1: Timing is everything, so start building your online presence with third-party reviews by the end of October.

Collecting reviews for your business is always a good idea, but know this: in the world of eCommerce, not all reviews are created equal. Most major eCommerce platforms offer native review solutions, which can offer business owners perhaps too much control over the review process — and provide consumers little transparency into the origins and authenticity of the reviews.

[Social proof](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/why-social-proof-marketing-essential-business-growth) works best when consumers genuinely trust that the sentiments are authentic, and unlike native review solutions, third-party review platforms tend to have the proper [checks and balances](https://www.trustpilot.com/trust/combating-fake-reviews) in place to reassure shoppers that the reviews they encounter haven’t been curated or fraudulently sourced by unscrupulous business owners.

And that’s exactly why so many consumers consult the business profile pages on Trustpilot to research their purchases, especially leading up to the [holiday season](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/holiday-playbook-5-ways-to-win-over-wary-holiday-shoppers).


Consumers search for reviews more often leading up to the holiday rush

Traffic to Trustpilot Profile Pages by Industry

Our Trustpilot platform data from the past two years consistently shows a swift uptick in traffic to Trustpilot’s business profile pages in the month of October, as shoppers begin planning their holiday shopping hauls and researching the best businesses to buy from. Traffic increases have been significant year over year — especially in major holiday shopping categories like fashion apparel, electronics, health and beauty, and home and garden.

It’s no mystery why traffic across all categories has reached a new high watermark in April 2020. As consumers had to adjust their shopping behaviors in accordance with the coronavirus pandemic and resulting lockdown, they turned to [reviews to reduce uncertainty](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/the-importance-of-trust-in-uncertain-times) around potential purchases.

While we don’t have a crystal ball, it stands to reason that between the return of cold and flu season and a projected second wave of coronavirus, shoppers will not only carry out their entire customer journey online during peak shopping season, but rely even more heavily on third-party reviews to make sure their holiday season goes off without a hitch.

And if the past two years are any indication, it’s in your business’ best interest to have third-party reviews in place by the end of October. With that in mind, below are some helpful resources for getting a jump start on your [review strategy](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/learn-from-customers/the-complete-guide-to-reviews):

- [Intro to Automatic Feedback Services](https://support.trustpilot.com/hc/en-us/articles/360012437420-Introduction-to-Automatic-Feedback-Service-AFS-)
- [How are reviews collected?](https://support.trustpilot.com/hc/en-us/articles/223402468--How-are-reviews-collected-)
- [Send a basic review invitation](https://support.trustpilot.com/hc/en-us/articles/115008302187--Send-a-Basic-Invitation)
- [More is better: why review quantity matters](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/more-is-better-why-review-quantity-matters)

### Tip 2: Be ready to reply to reviews as they roll in, and don’t be afraid to reply retroactively — a late reply is better than no reply.

According to our platform data from the last two years, customers leave far more reviews beginning in November and lasting all the way through New Years. Sure enough, more transactions leading up to the holidays leads to more feedback from customers — and that’s a good thing.

Customers leave more reviews on Trustpilot during the holiday shopping rush

Customer Reviews Left on Trustpilot by Industry

More public customer feedback means more opportunities to show off what shoppers love about your [customer experience](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/5-reasons-why-customer-experience-is-the-pulse-of-every-business), ultimately building more trust in your brand. But more feedback can also highlight areas of improvement, and potential customers are just as interested in [how brands respond](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/dos-and-donts-best-practices-for-responding-to-reviews) and resolve any issues raised in their reviews.

The charts below show that most companies, regardless of industry, are mostly responding to reviews during peak shopping season — and responding to positive reviews far more often than they reply to negative ones.

This presents a unique opportunity to differentiate yourself by becoming the business that replies all year round to negative and positive reviews alike. This is an especially valuable opportunity in more saturated categories like fashion, home and garden, and health and beauty.

most companies, regardless of industry, are mostly responding to reviews during peak shopping season

Reviews with Replies by Industry

Companies mostly reply to positive reviews, even though negative reviews are more deserving of a response

Reviews with Replies by Star Rating

Taking time to respond, no matter the season or sentiment, will show potential customers that your business has integrity, cares deeply about its customers, and is therefore safe to buy from.

And if you’re lucky enough to have plenty of reviews from last year’s peak shopping season, don’t miss the opportunity to start replying retroactively. Believe it or not, shoppers understand that no one’s perfect, so a late reply is better than no reply. Going back to respond to unresolved reviews will show this year’s shoppers that you’re human, and help you earn their trust.

Below are some helpful resources for replying to reviews:

- [6 Ways to make trust your essential brand differentiator](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/6-ways-to-make-trust-your-essential-brand-differentiator)
- [Bad reviews: why people write them and what they expect](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/learn-from-customers/bad-reviews-why-people-write-them-and-what-they-expect)
- [How to respond to negative reviews](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/how-to-respond-to-negative-reviews)

### Tip 3: Show off your customer reviews on key shopping pages and landing pages.

Collecting reviews on a third-party platform is the crucial first step to building a trusted brand leading up to the holidays. When it comes to converting more site visitors into paying customers, however, [embedding third-party reviews](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/browsers-to-buyers/everything-you-ever-wanted-to-know-about-trustboxes-but-were-too-afraid-to) right on your site is the way to go.


Trustpilot data shows that impressions on TrustBoxes always see a spike around peak shopping season

TrustBox Impressions by Industry

Our data shows that [impressions](https://www.bigcommerce.com/ecommerce-answers/impressions-digital-marketing/#:~:text=Definition%3A%20Impressions%20are%20when%20an,intent%20on%20spreading%20brand%20awareness.) on [TrustBoxes](https://business.trustpilot.com/features/trustbox-widgets) always see a spike around peak shopping season, but they have also skyrocketed since lockdown began in categories like fashion and home and garden.

Displaying reviews right on site is a surefire way to improve conversions, increase basket size or order value, and even reduce cart abandonment. To level up with competitors in saturated categories and win the lion’s share of conversions this year, make sure you’re displaying reviews not only on product pages, but any landing page a potential customer might encounter along the buying journey.  

Here are some additional resources for how to best apply social proof on your website:

- [7 Tried and true conversion strategies: a guide](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/browsers-to-buyers/7-tried-and-tested-conversion-strategies-guide)
- [How luxury brands can use social proof to ignite high-ticket conversions](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/browsers-to-buyers/how-luxury-brands-can-use-social-proof-to-ignite-high-ticket-conversions)
- [5 Tactics to increase your eCommerce conversion rate](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/browsers-to-buyers/5-tactics-to-increase-your-ecommerce-conversion-rate)

### Tip 4: Double down on customer service and fulfillment leading up to — and throughout — the holiday shopping season

To get to the heart of what this year’s shoppers will care about most during the holiday season, we analyzed the most common 2-word phrases in both positive and negative reviews published between October and January from 2018–2020.  


For positive reviews left during peak shopping season, “Excellent Service” and “Customer Service” were among the most common phrases, showing up in about 5.5% of all English-language reviews from the time period.

Sentiments from Positive Reviews

For positive reviews left during peak shopping season, “Excellent Service” and “Customer Service” were among the most common phrases, showing up in about 5.5% of all English-language reviews from the time period.

Not far behind in popularity were “Highly Recommend”, and “Fast Delivery”, which were mentioned in about 4% and 3.5% respectively in favorable reviews left during peak shopping season over the past two years.

When it came to negative reviews, “Customer Service” was mentioned in about 20% of negative reviews left during peak shopping season between 2018 and 2020. “Money Back” and “Phone Call” were also mentioned in about 3% of negative reviews.



Sentiments from Negative Reviews

When it came to negative reviews, “Customer Service” was mentioned in about 20% of negative reviews left during peak shopping season between 2018 and 2020. “Money Back” and “Phone Call” were also mentioned in about 3% of negative reviews.

So, what can businesses take away from these trends in customer feedback?

According to holiday shoppers leaving positive reviews over the last two years, attentive customer service and quick delivery have meant the most. While it might be difficult to guarantee fast shipping with supply chains still reeling from the global pandemic, your customers will appreciate detailed shipping information and updated fulfillment times on your website so they can know what to expect.

And if you’re able, it’s a great idea to invest in customer service resources before and during peak shopping season. Even if it’s a short-term investment, having more hands on deck to help resolve issues and make customers feel heard will likely pay off in dividends — and even help you retain customers for life.

Here are some additional readings on how to tune up your customer service and customer experience leading up to the holidays:

- [6 Types of online customer service you can implement on your website today](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/6-types-of-online-customer-service-you-can-implement-today)
- [7 Ways to improve customer experience on your website](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/learn-from-customers/how-to-improve-customer-experience-on-your-website)

### Tip 5: Showcase your company's rating in Google Shopping listings

If you’re not familiar with how Google Shopping works yet, it enables users to view and buy products from merchants directly through Google. Merchants are usually charged a fee every time a shopper clicks on a listing and buys from a website. However, this has now changed in the US market.

In April 2020, Google announced that it’s now [free to sell on Google](https://blog.google/products/shopping/its-now-free-to-sell-on-google/) in the US, making it easier for retailers to gain visibility and sell on Google Shopping. Following their first April announcement, in July 2020, they also revealed that [‘Buy on Google’ is now commission-free](https://blog.google/products/shopping/buy-on-google-is-zero-commission/) in the US. According to Google, these changes will be made global by the end of the year.

They also announced two new integrations with Shopify and Paypal, which allow businesses to integrate tools they might already be using, whilst letting consumers checkout directly in Google, without having to go through their website at all.

This is great news for merchants wanting to get more exposure on Google. But how can you guarantee more sales this holiday season whilst trying to stand out from the new competition in Google Shopping’s free listings?

A recent Trustpilot and Canvas8 study found that, today, [89% of global consumers check online reviews](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/the-critical-role-of-reviews-in-internet-trust) as part of their online buying journey, and 49% of global consumers consider positive reviews one of their top 3 purchase influences.

Collecting reviews with a Google Review Partner can help you qualify for Seller Ratings, which you can then display in your product listings in Google Shopping.

Adding trust signals such as ratings and reviews to your listings can make a big difference when it comes to building trust and credibility earlier on in the customer buying journey — especially now that consumers can buy products on Google Shopping without having to go through the retailer’s website at all.

Being as transparent as possible by showcasing consumer trust in Google Shopping can help you stand out from the crowd, especially at the busiest time of year.

[This article](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/what-the-new-google-shopping-updates-mean-for-reviews) might be of interest if you’d like to learn more about the new Google Shopping updates.

### Tip 6: Use product reviews to earn Review Snippets and improve organic search performance

Organic SEO is a prime channel for product discovery, especially during the holiday season, and businesses who are looking to improve their SEO performance might be interested to hear more about reviews and Review Snippets...

If you’ve ever typed into Google’s search bar, you’ve seen Review Snippets in action. Yet not many people have heard of that term.

Review Snippets is the markup of your content with ‘structured data’ that allows search engines to better understand and index this information. This markup helps businesses stand out by displaying their star ratings in organic listings on Search Engine Results Pages. Showcasing trust signals so early in the funnel can help attract more attention, and can therefore help brands increase their click-through and conversion rates.


Example of review snippets in action

So, how can businesses obtain Review Snippets in time for Q4?

Review Snippets can be earned by collecting product reviews through a Google Review Partner, and adding a simple code to your product pages. If you meet [Google’s guidelines](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/data-types/review-snippet), you will then qualify for Review Snippets in organic search results.

But that’s not all. Product reviews can also help you rank better for long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords are usually a group of 3 or 4 keywords that are a lot more specific than normal keywords. They tend to have lower search volumes, but convert a lot more as they are so specific and are usually used by people on the lower-end of the funnel. Long-tail keywords can be anything from “best running shoes for women” to “Christmas trees with built-in lights”.

With customer product reviews, you’re essentially getting fresh content every month. Because reviews tend to be written in a familiar, more ‘human’ way, they’ll likely contain a lot more long-tail keywords than any other type of content. And with the rise of voice search, longer-tail keywords are a great opportunity for smaller businesses to stand out from the crowd.

Long-tail keywords from product reviews can be a great opportunity for businesses to start engaging with prospective customers who are already at the bottom of the funnel and looking to buy soon.

These articles might be of interest if you’d like to learn more about Review Snippets, and the importance of long-tail keywords for organic search performance:

- [The powerful SEO hack you probably haven't tried: Review Snippets](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/rich-snippets-stars-for-product-reviews-can-boost-seo)
- [The complete guide to reviews](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/learn-from-customers/the-complete-guide-to-reviews)
- [The new face of SEO: Answer Engine Optimisation](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/get-seen-in-search/the-new-face-of-seo-answer-engine-optimization)

### Tip 7: Use customer reviews to earn Google Seller Ratings and improve paid search performance

With shopping continuing to move almost entirely online, paid search is getting more and more competitive by the day.

Many businesses choose to spend a large amount of their digital budget on paid search, but don’t always see the results they’d hoped for.

So how can brands stand out in paid search during the holiday season?

If you’re not familiar with Google Seller Ratings, they are an automatic Google Ads extension that is displayed globally to customers to help them find businesses that offer quality services. The extension allows businesses to display their star rating underneath the URL on their Google Ads, like this:

Trustpilot profile pages often show up at the top of results and get thousands of search impressions per month

complete-guide-to-reviews-img6

example of Google Seller Ratings

Google Seller Ratings were created to demonstrate consumer trust in businesses. They can help brands stand out from the competition, and build trust earlier in the customer journey. Why? Simply because consumers are more likely to click on an ad with star snippets, than an ad without.

So how can you get Google Seller Ratings in time for the holiday season?

Well, Google displays Seller Ratings on a per-country basis, and requires at least 100 reviews per country in the last 12 months, and a rating of 3.5/5, to showcase the star snippets on ads. Collecting reviews through a Google Review Partner is a great way to start your Google Seller Ratings journey.

Showcasing consumer ratings directly on Google Ads can help businesses increase their click-through rates, and improve their overall search performance during the busiest time of year.

If you’d like to find out more about Google Seller Ratings and how they can help your paid search performance, here are some articles that might interest you:

- [Google’s new Seller Ratings threshold lowered to 100](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/google-new-seller-ratings-threshold-100)
- [How to land great reviews and boost your Google Seller Rating](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/how-to-land-great-reviews-and-boost-your-google-seller-rating)
- [How to calculate Google Seller Ratings’ effect on CTR for Google Ads](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/get-seen-in-search/how-to-calculate-google-seller-ratings-effect-on-adwords)

### Tip 8: Turn more browsers into buyers with a trustworthy presence online and offline

Today’s consumers no longer base their purchasing decisions on what they hear or read from brands. Instead, they turn to their peers for third-party validation and trustworthy information.

There’s no doubt social proof is now one of the most powerful tools available for businesses out there. In fact, Trustpilot research found that [66% of customers](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/why-and-how-social-proof-influences-consumers) said the presence of social proof increased their likelihood to purchase a product, and 82% said positive star ratings and reviews made them more likely to make a purchase.

A lot of brands already [display their customer reviews](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/what-is-social-proof-and-why-is-it-important-for-marketing) online — from their website and emails, to their social channels and paid ads. But what about showcasing reviews offline? 

A London Research survey found that [only 8% of businesses](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/ratings-and-reviews-in-above-the-line-advertising) using Trustpilot are harnessing their trustworthiness offline, compared to 84% online. 

An omnichannel presence is essential to ensure there is no disconnect in the customer experience — both online and offline – to create a seamless buying journey for consumers.

It’s all about creating as few barriers as possible, so that a customer would never notice a difference in their experience with your brand, whether they shop on your website, app, or in-store. And that works with trust signals too. 

Consider displaying and mentioning your reviews in-store, at the till or in the fitting rooms, in your TV ads, on the radio, on your packaging, and even on billboards. 

Those are all great places where you can showcase customer reviews to build confidence and trust outside of your online channels. Remember, many shoppers still like to browse in-store before they buy online, or vice-versa, and brands are missing an opportunity to harness their trustworthiness offline, especially during the holiday season.

## This year, showcase the trust in your brand

With so many choices when it comes to gifts, the best way to differentiate yourself and win customers this year is to cultivate a trustworthy brand presence online and offline. In the wake of the global pandemic and human rights movements this year, consumers are rightfully more skeptical than ever. This year shoppers will want to support the businesses who lived by their values, spoke up about important issues, and did right by customers when times were tough. 

So as we head into the peak shopping season of a high stakes year, why not align your business with a universal symbol of trust? Collecting reviews on Trustpilot will show customers that your business is not only a safe bet for a smooth holiday season, but also a brand they can feel good about supporting at a time when each transaction means more to everyone. 


### Methodology

We analyzed more than 30 million global reviews on Trustpilot within relevant online retail categories written between August 2018 to August 2020 to look at trends in review activity month over month, and uncover commonly used words and phrases in positive and negative reviews. The keyword analysis was carried out on an English-language subset of the reviews published within the peak shopping season of October to January between 2018 and 2020.  


Trustpilot Consumer Insights: 2020 Holiday Readiness Guide

7 Tried and Tested Conversion Strategies

According to research, in 2020, the average global conversion rate is [4%.31](https://www.invespcro.com/blog/the-average-website-conversion-rate-by-industry/). But in today's competitive landscape, it's getting harder for businesses to keep visitors engaged. So how can brands keep customers hooked and ensure their business generates more revenue?

In this guide, you’ll learn how to:
• Easily turn browsers into buyers
• Leverage your social proof to increase sales
• Use customer feedback to shape a great customer experience and encourage customer loyalty.

key cart abandonment statistics

## 1. Create an efficient checkout process

Needing as few steps as possible to actually complete the purchase process is a surefire way to increase conversions. Here are some of our top tips.

__Avoid complex clicks and unnecessary steps__

Make sure your checkout experience is completely linear - no confusing steps within steps. Never make objects clickable during the checkout phase so visitors get distracted and leave, abandoning their basket. You want the sole focus of the checkout page to be the checkout!

According to [VWO](https://searchenginewatch.com/2016/12/22/seven-fascinating-stats-on-ecommerce-and-cart-abandonment/), a confusing checkout is among the top five reasons for cart abandonment.

__Don’t push customers to register__

Make it optional to create an account. Some customers just want to buy their goods and be gone, and that’s fine. Have an express route for these shoppers. Baymard claims that [35%](https://baymard.com/lists/cart-abandonment-rate) of shoppers leave a purchase if they’re forced to create an account.

__Create a compelling checkout page__

We all like something to function and look good at the same time.

Think about the colours on your checkout page, the data fields you require, and even the calls-to-action you use. Don’t forget to add credibility to your checkout too by informing the customer what payment methods are accepted, or how secure their data actually is by adding security icons to your website.

Don't forget be clear about your final pricing so customers can see where their money is going.

__Reduce the amount of manual work__

A shipping address that is also the billing address by default can save the customer a lot of time in their purchase. You should also inform customers as early as possible if an item is unavailable or will be subject to delayed delivery, rather  than notifying them after they’ve gone through several steps.

Provide customers with a back button that leads to the previous page, so the customer doesn’t need to fill in their details again. Providing users with real-time support can also be a crucial tool to keep them on the path to completion.


## 2. Optimise your site for common web browsers

Different browsers – and even different versions of the same browser – see your site differently. When you’re designing your website, try to avoid to rely on browser-specific behaviour, and test its appearance and functionality on multiple browsers to make sure that all your visitors are getting the experience you’ve worked hard to create.

Once your site is up and running, be sure to retest at regular intervals and adapt where necessary. A site that is not regularly upgraded will not keep pace with new browsers or new versions of browsers affecting how the site is displayed. 

Don’t forget to consider your site’s overall accessibility. Not all users may have JavaScript enabled in their browsers and technologies such as Flash and ActiveX may not render well (or at all) in every browser. 

According to real-time web stats analysts [StatCounter](https://gs.statcounter.com/browser-market-share), as of April 2020, the top five browsers by market share are:

- Chrome - 64%
- Safari - 13.6%
- Firefox - 4.21%
- Samsung Internet - 3.4%
- Edge Legagy - 2.23%


## 3. Optimise your site for mobiles and tablets

It’s no secret that mobile ownership and usage [has surpassed desktop](http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/mobile-marketing-analytics/mobile-marketing-statistics/). 

Mobile marketing is arguably the closest you can get to the consumer, as there is no other device that is as personal or portable. 

If your website doesn’t automatically resize to fit the screen that it’s being viewed on, you are running the risk of losing a lot of business. More than this, Google might not consider your website as much if you avoid mobile adaptability, thanks to a 2015 update to their algorithms (popularly dubbed ‘Mobilegeddon’). Without a mobile-optimised site, your mobile discoverability will suffer.


## 4. Display online reviews to boost trust

There’s no better way to build consumer trust than by showcasing the experience of your customers with your company. 

Canvas8 research found that, in 2020, [89%](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/4-things-every-business-owner-should-know-about-the-state-of-reviews) of global consumers check online reviews as part of their online buying journey, and 49% of global consumers consider positive reviews one of their top 3 purchase influences.

Having customer feedback on display on your site gives customers the encouragement they need to complete a purchase. More than that, customer reviews give you unparalleled insight into customer trends. 

You might notice the same kind of feedback appearing again and again in reviews. If so, this tells you you’re either doing something great, or there’s something that requires attention. 

Make sure you’re encouraging customers to leave reviews - and quickly respond to all of them, whether they’re positive or negative. It shows that you are listening and that you care. No matter how great your product is, if people don’t trust you, they won’t want to engage with you. 

## 5. Use social media to drive online sales

Savvy ecommerce managers are now exploring social media as a tool to directly boost sales. Over a quarter of individuals say brands that are active on social media are more “human”, meaning they appear more approachable and helpful by having real conversations with customers online.

Don’t forget, there are customers and prospects out there ready to connect with you on social media. Here are some tips to transform your social media success. 

__Develop a content strategy for your social media channels__

Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin have become great vehicles for content, meaning brands are paying attention and making the space more competitive than ever. Make sure you have a well-thought out strategy around your messaging, what you want to promote, and how you’ll differentiate yourself.

__Use YouTube playlists to showcase your own products__

Cisco predicts that online video will account for [82%](https://www.businessinsider.com/heres-how-much-ip-traffic-will-be-video-by-2021-2017-6) of all web traffic by 2022. YouTube playlists allow channel owners to select which videos will play sequentially, so a company’s use of this tool enables it to present viewers with additional products they may be interested in, increasing potential sales. 

__Manage and monitor social media and customer feedback in one place__ 

To find succeed in social media, you need to effectively monitor it. Save time and energy by monitoring your online reviews and social media activity from one console. If you use Hootsuite, Trustpilot has just the [Hootsuite app for you](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/hootsuite).

__Share your customer reviews on social media__

Today, [90%](https://sproutsocial.com/insights/instagram-stats/) of people follow at least one business on Instagram. Instagram has become known as an ideal fit for eCommerce marketing. 

The social platform is often used as the discovery portion of the sales funnel. [83%](https://www.facebook.com/business/news/insights/how-instagram-boosts-brands-and-drives-sales) of Instagram users say they discover new products and services on the platform. That's why encourage businesses to share their customers' feedback on social channels too. 

It’s a great way to showcase great stories from your customers and convert prospective customers. If you're not sure where to start, check out Trustpilot's guide to [social media reputation management here](https://uk.business.trustpilot.com/reviews/build-trusted-brand/trustpilot-guide-to-social-media-reputation-management).

## 6. Dedicate staff to web design

If your company has separate departments or suppliers for marketing and web design, the responsibility for turning website visits into sales tend to fall between two camps. This can be bad news for any business hoping to turn their online investments into real profitability. 

A web designer is a technical expert who can dedicate their time to testing and retesting website variations to further optimise your website’s buying process. However, a marketer should have a unique understanding of the needs and wants of your customers, and therefore a valuable insight into what will convert visitors into clients or customers, and what won’t. 

Ideally, the staff dedicated to website conversions should have a background in both areas. Including financial incentives for reaching performance goals will also correlate in getting your conversion rates closer to where you’d like them to be.

If you’re working within a smaller budget, consider investing in a professional developer, or try Shopify, the leading e-commerce website building tool. With [Trustpilot’s online review app for Shopify](https://business.trustpilot.com/partners/shopify-plus), so you can design a sleek site that displays customer feedback in no time at all. 

## 7. Consider a retargeting strategy

Retargeting can help reduce shoppers’ concerns and turn hesitant visitors into happy customers.

Start by determining which shoppers have added something to their cart, but haven’t completed their purchase. Once you have identified your audience, it’s important to decide how long you want to target cart abandoners. 

Reaching consumers as soon as they abandon is a must, but the length of time you target them should be determined by the products your business sells. Bigger purchases such as furniture, holidays, or electronics can have a longer consideration cycle, whereas other products like clothes or cosmetics don’t usually have a very long decision-making cycle.

__SMS retargeting__

According to Search Engine Watch, SMS messages are more effective than emails. Consider sending a reminder to cart abandoners. Typically, [90%](https://searchenginewatch.com/2016/12/22/seven-fascinating-stats-on-ecommerce-and-cart-abandonment/) of all SMS messages are opened, and 90% are read within 3 minutes.

It’s a great way to convert those hesitant shoppers, but if you’d rather use display retargeting, here are some of our top tips.

__Display retargeting done right__

- Test the kinds of displays to show cart abandoners - personalised, or static? 
- Use a promotional offer like free shipping to increase conversions 
- Offer a discount on future products to encourage a repeat purchase.


## Key Takeaways

By now, you should have a long to-do list to ensure you’re optimising your eCommerce business for conversions and efficient checkouts. But if you need a cheat sheet, here’s a quick list of key points. 

Turn your ecommerce conversion rates around by: 

- Making sure your checkout process is optimally designed  
- Optimising your site for mobiles and tablets 
- Using social media to drive online sales 
- Making sure your site is optimised for your visitors’ browsers 
- Using online reviews widgets to boost trust 
- Assigning responsibility for online performance and conversion goals to a dedicated member of staff.

If you'd like to learn more about Trustpilot and how reviews can help you amplify your marketing efforts, request a free demo below.

7 Tried and tested conversion strategies

Skift travel report with Trustpilot

From the time travelers start planning a trip, to the moment they complete their booking, reviews help impact multiple stages of the purchase decision, allowing travel brands to gain visibility with potential buyers, establish their credibility, and help influence the ultimate purchase decision.

In 2019, Trustpilot and Skift launched an online consumer survey to investigate the role reviews play in travel purchase decisions. An overwhelming 88 percent of survey respondents said reviews played an
important role in influencing their purchase. And other sources back this up: [Data from So Connect](https://soconnect.com/blog/why-online-reviews-matter/) found that 49 percent of bookers would not book a hotel that has no reviews, and 88 percent of consumers trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation.

Though reviews are an essential component of the travel buying experience, many companies are missing an opportunity to use them more strategically. To do this, they need to take a step back from managing individual reviews and instead focus on the bigger picture: the hidden patterns and unexpected insights currently locked away inside of their review data. The travel industry now has tools to access these review insights, unlocking a wealth of opportunities to supercharge companies of all sizes.

### How important are other customers’ reviews in your decision about whether or not to buy a travel product?

Figure 1

It’s not just about having a five-star rating on the website,” said Glenn Manoff, senior vice president, Communications & Brand at Trustpilot. “It’s about everything from brand reputation to product development. Reviews offer businesses the opportunity to improve their services through continuous feedback, engage in an honest dialogue with customers, and use positive sentiment to drive further business.

This new approach has significant benefits. First, it allows travel brands to spend more time amplifying the positive feedback they already receive from satisfied customers. This builds credibility with potential buyers and reinforces the fact that they are open and transparent with customers. In addition, this approach can help brands better prioritize which reviews are likely to have the biggest impact on their reputation and then share them to the right teams to quickly handle resolution. Last but not least, it creates opportunities to uncover a treasure trove of customer insights that can help improve the personalization of marketing campaigns, inform product development efforts, and even provide new metrics to help evaluate company success.

What review strategies are travel brands already using to gain these benefits? Which companies are ahead of the curve in deploying these strategies to boost their success? Finally, what review-focused technologies can they use to make these strategies possible? We’ll investigate these questions and more in “Five Unique Review Strategies to Grow Your Travel Business,” offering those in the industry new opportunities to boost customer satisfaction, streamline operations, and increase profitability in the process.

## Strategy 1: Gaining customer insights and improving personalisation

In the current travel eCommerce environment, it’s essential to understand what customers want and need. Yet many travel companies struggle to use customer data to personalize their advertising, products, and services. According to the results of Skift and Adobe’s 2018 Digital Transformation Report, one-third of travel executives rated their companies’ personalization efforts as four points or higher on a five-point scale.

But now, travel companies have the tools to apply what they know about customers to generate actionable insights. This is possible thanks to the analytical capabilities embedded in today’s review management platforms.

As we’ll explain below, these capabilities provide travel marketers with a more holistic view of their customers’ wants, needs, and behaviors. With this information in hand, they can build more detailed customer profiles, develop more relevant offers, and cultivate ongoing relationships with travelers.

### How travel brands use review data to connect the dots

One way travel brands now use review data to improve personalization is within targeted customer email campaigns. Luxury travel company Butterfield & Robinson (B&R) utilizes review data to improve its email marketing messages for various trip products. “You can actually put in specific reviews that are related to the email content, which we found to be quite effective,” said Michael Bertrand, acquisition marketing manager for B&R. “When we’re sending an email on a specific trip, and we have a very powerful review on that trip, we’re going to feature that in the email.”

Another organization using reviews to support guest personalization is the French hospitality group, Accor. The company collects all guest reviews in a central database. This data is then available to employees, who use it to provide a more consistent experience to guests regardless of which Accor hotel they visit. “It gives our frontline employees the necessary information that they need in order to personalize the guest experience,” said Alison Broussy, vice president of customer experience and reputation guest services for the brand. 

This review-powered process has another benefit: It’s helping Accor cultivate an ongoing relationship with their guests by connecting the dots across properties, service lines, and transactions. “It’s all about building that complete experience rather than just the in-hotel experience,” said Broussy.

### Review tools help identify insights at scale

How do B&R and Accor identify the right insights to inform their personalization efforts? While it’s true that some companies do it manually by analyzing individual reviews, this can be a time-consuming process. Instead, more brands are now relying on insight analysis tools built into review platforms, which help them identify hidden patterns within the data. 

One example is Trustpilot’s Review Insights technology. The tool uses machine learning technology to uncover hidden patterns in customer sentiment and topics surfacing across multiple reviews. These patterns can then be used to deliver more precise marketing messages when it’s time to reengage existing and potential customers. 

Trustpilot’s Review Tagging dashboard can also help marketers organize the various insights scattered among different customer reviews. Tagging can attach a phrase or keyword to a review, marking that information so it can be easily tracked. In the context of personalization, a travel brand might use the feature to tag reviews related to specific demographic groups that value the brand differently, or by destination, which can help marketers get a sense of which trips had the best or worst reviews.

“If the brand knows the type of content that the person commented on in the review, there’s a couple of ways to help analyze that,” said Brandon Till, senior director of product marketing for Trustpilot. “You might segment it based on either your customers … whether it’s a man or a woman, or if it’s a family trip. Or maybe this is a romantic vacation? Tagging can inform the different types of packages they might offer.”

And for those travel brands using third-party business intelligence tools, Till says it’s easy to then export tags for further analysis. “The company
could download and analyze it using their own business intelligence tool. We also have dashboards where people can compare the different tags to one another to see what’s overperforming.” 

## Strategy 2: Monitoring and delivering customer service in real time

In today’s fast-paced consumer environment, travelers expect real-time responses when they make complaints or have a problem. One recent study from Hubspot found that 82 percent of consumers [expected an immediate answer](https://smallbiztrends.com/2018/07/real-time-response-to-customers.html) to their queries and suggestions. And additional 2016 research from Trustpilot found that 81 percent of travel consumers will not buy a vacation from a company known to have poor customer service.

In order to quickly address problems, travel marketers need better strategies to monitor reviews, designate the right team to handle the issue, and provide quick resolution. When problems are handled quickly and appropriately, consumers are quick to forgive. Fifty-seven percent of respondents in Skift and Trustpilot’s survey said they were less likely to leave a bad review if the company tried to fix the problem during their trip.

### Imagine you have a problem with a travel company during a trip. How likely are you to still leave a bad review if the company tries to fix the problem during your trip?

Figure 2

### Building a system to provide real-time support

UK-based travel company Trailfinders has recognized the importance of rapid response and has designated a specific team to provide timely support if customers have a problem while on their trip. “We have a specialist team here that handle client issues that have been raised while they’re away,” said Lee Holden, digital marketing manager for Trailfinders.

Marketers also need to follow up with the reviewer to confirm that the issue has been addressed. “We will often say to clients, ‘Are you happy that your
issue has been resolved?,’” said Trailfinders’ Holden. “That generally leads to a conversation where, if it has now been resolved and they’re happy, then they’ll take a fresh look at their review.”

Among the marketing agencies that work with travel industry clients, some say that it’s important to follow-up with customers who offer feedback whenever possible to gather additional details. “If you’re seeing one-off comments, that’s one thing. But act if you’re seeing people complaining over
and over that ‘The beds are uncomfortable,’” said Jennifer Baum, of marketing agency Bullfrog + Baum. “Reach out. If you can get people to talk more and give you more details offline...then you can create a strategy.”

### How review tools can streamline the response process

In order to streamline the response and monitoring process, many review platforms provide marketers with tools to gather feedback throughout the customer journey. This includes features such as:

- Automatic email invites sent to customers during key moments in their trip
- Embedded review forms that live on company websites
- Customer data APIs to help synchronize review data with customer data found in email programs and CRM software. 

By providing more ways to collect reviews, travel brands can make it more likely that travelers will share their input when it’s most convenient for them.

And as the number of reviews grows, it’s equally important to consider software-based monitoring solutions, which help summarize feedback and notify the right team. “A successful business may get 1,000 reviews a day, right? So, it’s going to be very hard to understand which ones it has to pay
attention to,” said Ramin Vatanparast, Trustpilot’s chief product officer. “As soon as reviews come in, the system automatically analyzes them, groups them together, and informs the person in that department.”

Furthermore, integrations with customer service tools like Zendesk make it easier to flag and share notable reviews with the appropriate support personnel. “We can route these reviews into different help desk systems in real time, so that customers who are out traveling or at an airport can get
responses from companies quickly,” said Trustpilot’s Brandon Till.

Once the issue has been fixed, travel companies should also ask the customer to update his or her review. Consumers that post on review platforms like Trustpilot “own” their reviews, making it easier to modify their original rating, or add additional information. This is a great way to turn a previously negative review into a positive recovery.

## Strategy 3: Informing product research and evolution

Many in the travel industry recognize the potential of innovation to help grow their business and satisfy customer needs. But testing new innovations can also be expensive and risky. That’s why review data is the perfect way to investigate the viability of new innovations before they are released to the general public. 

Reviews already have a strong connection to the innovation process. According to the [2018 Global Innovation 1000](http://usblogs.pwc.com/industrialinsights/2018/11/28/what-makes-an-industrial-company-stand-above-its-peers/) study conducted by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, successful innovator companies “base innovation on direct insights from end users.” And in Skift and Trustpilot’s consumer
survey, 73 percent of respondents said they were more likely to leave honest feedback if they knew travel brands planned to act on the suggestions.

### How likely are you to leave honest feedback in a review if you know a travel brand will act upon your suggestions?

Figure 3

Furthermore, providing feedback is a key motivator for customers to share feedback in the first place. Close to 25 percent of respondents in the Skift and Trustpilot study said the reason they posted reviews was “to help the company improve its products."

### What are your primary reasons for writing reviews to travel brands?

Figure 4

### How travel brands turn reviews into product ideas

Trailfinders is one travel company that draws inspiration from reviews for future product development. The company’s travel packages frequently require collaboration with local supplier partners in each destination. The Trailfinders “watch team” monitors review data and periodically feeds it to the product team and any relevant suppliers who can take action on the insights.

“It’s largely a matter of us making sure that anything relevant gets moved on to the decision makers in the company,” said Trailfinders’ Holden.

And at Accor, consumer reviews help reinforce company decision making about everything from guest recommendations to content marketing programs, allowing them to improve the activities, itinerary suggestions, and marketing materials they then provide to future guests. 

“We can push a little further to get more feedback from our customers on what they actually did while they were in town while they were on property,” said Accor’s Broussy. “It can be used as content for generating revenue and more information on the destination than the actual property itself.”

Yet another example is Booking.com. The online travel agency gathers detailed hotel review data from guests, who are asked to review specific aspects of hotel properties. Room cleanliness, quality of hotel facilities, and the in-room amenities are just a few of the metrics that are investigated. This information is then shared with hotel owners, who are encouraged to take action to address the findings.

### Finding product improvements by identifying patterns

It’s possible that a marketer might stumble upon a single review that leads to a brilliant product idea. But rather than relying on luck to find these
insights, more companies in the travel industry now find these insights by using machine learning software, which can pick up on patterns and common phrases used across multiple reviews.

“You can analyze your reviews and try to get those signals,” said Trustpilot’s Vatanparast. One way this might work is if a hotel discovered a repeated pattern of guest reviews which had negative comments about the bed. “If everybody is complaining about the small beds, or uncomfortable beds, that’s a sign that I have to do something about my beds,” said Vatanparast. “Maybe make them bigger, if that’s the sentiment around it. Or, make them more comfortable.”

## Strategy 4: Proactively managing online reputation

A travel brand’s reputation plays a critical role in establishing credibility and trust with potential customers. But in recent years, trust in brands has been declining. According to the [Edelman Trust Barometer](https://www.edelman.com/sites/g/files/aatuss191/files/2018-10/2018_Edelman_Trust_Barometer_Global_Report_FEB.pdf) study, less than half (48 percent) of the public said they trusted businesses, a number which declined from 58 percent the year prior. Another [study by Moz](https://moz.com/blog/new-data-reveals-67-of-consumers-are-influenced-by-online-reviews) found that businesses lose as many as 22 percent of customers after just one negative article is found online. In this environment, it’s essential for travel brands to promote review content in ways that reinforce consumer trust and help boost their reputations. 

### Amplifying positive reviews to improve discovery

The biggest opportunity for travel brands looking to burnish their reputation is to share positive reviews more widely. Tour operator Trailfinders uses its reviews on Trustpilot as an easily scalable marketing
asset. “We’re lucky enough to be rated number one for travel by Trustpilot, so we use that as a tagline, and depending on the advertisement, we might use excerpts and quotes from happy clients,” said Trailfinders’ Holden.

Trailfinders has integrated this five-star customer rating into a number of marketing channels. The company includes the endorsement in national newspaper ad campaigns, as well as within paid search campaigns on Google. Holden notes his team saw an increase in ad click-through rates after incorporating reviews into their display advertisements. The Trailfinders’ rating also shows up in the form of a carousel TrustBox “widget” that makes it possible to showcase customer reviews on the company’s website. 

Promoting this positive reputation is beneficial not just for existing customers, but for potential customers as well. “It’s putting us in front of new clients,” said Holden. “We were already engaged with our clients and trying to do the best we could in terms of responding to them as quickly as we could. What Trustpilot has given us is the opportunity to talk about that in the public arena in a way that the public trusts.”

Many travel brands also find that social media and paid search offer a powerful opportunity to put their positive customer ratings in front of consumers when they’re looking for company information. “If people are already looking to validate how good a company is, they’re going to search for reviews, and they’ll find them naturally on Facebook and Google,” said B&R’s Bertrand.

Bertrand says the company has found success integrating its positive feedback into Google Ads campaigns. As he notes, Trustpilot is one of a select group of trustworthy review partners Google allows to be featured in such efforts. “One of the big selling points was, I want to take advantage of seller ratings in Google Ads. To do that, you actually have to use a third-party,” he said.

### Using review tools to reinforce authenticity and transparency

Managing online reputation isn’t just about promoting good feedback. As more travel brands recognize, it’s also important to focus on review platforms that emphasize transparency and don’t allow them to hide negative reviews.

By focusing on these so-called “open” platforms, companies can signal that they have nothing to hide, helping to boost buyer trust and increasing their overall reputations. This stands in contrast to more “closed-loop” platforms, which hypothetically provide more control over which reviews are highlighted, but have hidden costs in the form of increased consumer skepticism. “If they are working with closed-loop platforms, then they have to manage online reputation by themselves,” said Trustpilot’s Vatanparast. “But, if they’re working with us, it’s much easier because we’re building all of our services and functionality around that transparency and trust.” 

One example of a product Trustpilot offers to reinforce trust is a tool called [Transparent Flagging](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/inside-trustpilot/creating-a-culture-of-transparency-and-trustworthiness-with-trustpilots-new). The feature adds data to the company profile page of any brand on Trustpilot, indicating the number of reviews the company has “flagged” (for violating platform guidelines), how many of those contested reviews were ultimately posted to the profile page versus deleted, and an indication about whether the contested reviews were found to be in breach of the guidelines.

“Providing this level of transparency helps businesses grow brand trust where needed and incentivizes good behavior,” said Stine Mangor Tornmark, senior vice president legal & compliance at Trustpilot. “We continue our commitment to combat any attempts to game the system and our fight for a reviews industry where businesses should not be allowed to censor what people can see and share.”

## Strategy 5: Redefine success metrics to include customer satisfaction scores

Travel brands already analyze their performance using metrics such as profit margin, occupancy rate, or revenue. But these measurements don’t always provide a comprehensive snapshot of the value the company creates for customers.

Consider the findings of a 2012 Harvard Business Review article titled, “The True Measures of Success,” in which author Michael J. Maubossin argued that companies “...need to assess nonfinancial measures such as customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, and product quality, and determine if they can be directly linked to the financial measures that ultimately deliver value.”

With this in mind, more travel brands are starting to incorporate metrics related to customer satisfaction and reviews into how they measure performance.

### How travel brands use reviews to measure company success

Accor is one example of a hospitality brand that uses review scores as a yardstick to understand the company’s progress toward key business goals. As company executives note, they keep track of a company-wide online reputation metric that is available to stakeholders across the organization.

“We have one major e-reputation score, used across our network, which enables us to manage the performance of our hotels at an individual level,” said Accor’s Broussy. “It’s part of our customer-centric approach. Even the support staff in our head offices is motivated by the overall experience that our customers are having with our products in the hotels.”

Even more important, Accor believes these positive guest satisfaction scores are closely correlated with online conversion rates for its hotels. “It’s a clear driver for web conversion,” said Broussy. “We closely follow the conversion rates for how customers that have consulted reviews for a particular hotel convert versus those that don’t.”

### Picking the right customer satisfaction metrics

As travel brands reevaluate how they measure success, they will increasingly need to consider how they can expand the range of indicators they use. For instance, indicators like the [Net Promoter Score](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_Promoter), which gauges customer loyalty, offer one potential option.

There’s also Trustpilot’s own “TrustScore” metric, which calculates customer satisfaction levels using an algorithm which blends both a company’s star rating and recency of reviews. Each individual indicator offers a specific view of success, and the best results can be achieved by combining various
views to create a holistic approach to brand success.

Another opportunity involves tracking changes in consumer sentiment over time. “You can choose 10 sentiments and follow the trend of those sentiments,” said Trustpilot’s Vatanparast. “Then you receive a report automatically, by email, on a weekly basis, which tells you what sentiments were positive or negative, and what are the areas of improvement. This means you don’t necessarily need to go through all the reviews. Trustpilot is doing the heavy lifting.”

## Conclusion

Reviews play a critical role in how travel brands boost their reputations and drive online business success. But even as more companies in the travel
industry internalize this message, many are still missing the larger opportunity. Reviews are not just something to monitor and manage. In order
to succeed and thrive in today’s highly competitive online travel ecosystem, travel brands need to think more strategically about the role review data
can play in helping achieve their business goals.

Today, a new review strategy is emerging. Thanks to powerful pattern analysis software and filtering tools, travel marketers can use review data to uncover unexpected insights into their customers’ habits and desires. This can help them unearth new product ideas or even to better personalize
the products and services they sell. It will allow them to quickly identify customer issues and respond before the complaint becomes a bigger problem for their brand. They will be able to easily promote positive reviews to potential customers, helping their company get discovered in customer searches. They can even use the data to capture a more accurate picture of their business success.

But in order to reap these benefits, those in the travel industry need to adopt a new mindset. Travel consumers are going to leave reviews, whether
those in the industry like it or not. The question those executives need to ask themselves is if they’ve put in place the proper tools and systems to listen, understand, and then act on what’s been said. “People are taking the time to post a review,” Baum said. “They often just want to be heard.”

__About Skift__

Skift is the largest intelligence platform in travel, providing media, insights, marketing to key sectors of the industry. Through daily news, research, podcasts, and Skift Global Forum conferences, Skift deciphers and defines the trends that matter to the marketers, strategists, and technologists shaping the industry. SkiftX is Skift’s in-house content marketing studio, working collaboratively with partners like Adobe, Airbnb, Hyatt, Lyft, Mastercard, and many more on custom projects to engage the world’s largest audience of travel influencers and decision makers.

5 Unique review strategies to grow your travel business

ROI revolution guidebook

### Why you should add customer reviews to your website (especially if you’re an ecommerce business)

We’ve said it once, we’ll say it again: [most digital ads don’t pack the same punch](https://business.trustpilot.com/guides-reports/build-trusted-brand/can-online-reviews-revive-consumer-trust-in-advertising) as they used to. 

With that in mind, there’s never been a better time to rethink how you can instil trust across not only your top funnel communications, but throughout the entire customer journey: from ads and retargeting campaigns, to email promotions, all the way down to your checkout page.

Over the years, we’ve learned that perceived trust matters quite a bit for success in ecommerce, with some early adopters of omni-channel social proof enjoying a [94% increase in CTR ](https://business.trustpilot.com/reviews/5-ways-vivint-uses-reviews-to-generate-quality-leads)in the competitive space of non-branded search terms. On top of that, displaying customer reviews across your marketing touchpoints also helps to increase basket size, reduce abandonment, and boost onsite conversions. 

When you make third-party validation part of your strategy on every channel, you boost customer confidence and demonstrate that your brand values customer feedback. What results is improved trust around everything having to do with your brand, and by extension, a higher likelihood that consumers will buy what you’re selling. 

### Building the bridge between progress and profit

If you want to get ahead of the curve of rising ecommerce trends and learn about the most effective marketing strategies for Amazon, Facebook, and Google, we highly suggest you check out ROI Revolution’s guide.

By the end you’ll be an expert on:

- How your brand can out-market competitors, whether it’s with human touches of social proof, or the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning. 
- The freshest multi-channel marketing strategies to boost profitability throughout the buying cycle.
- Promising ecommerce trends that drive increased customer value.

### [Download the Report](https://bit.ly/2vgvsAh)

Get the 2019 tech trends brand growth guidebook from ROI Revolution

Why retailers need reviews to increase conversions

why retailers need reviews to increase conversions

Crucially the resulting business decisions are not being made in a silo via brainstorming sessions or meetings. Instead, these decisions are being made by taking the customer into account directly.

Reviews provide a unique, real-time window into the customer – their likes, dislikes, wants and preferences, and that’s what we have built our community on. We believe that customers should be encouraging businesses to improve and those that do are rewarded by good reviews.

But it’s not just companies who benefit – customers do too. The customer’s voice is king, and online reviews are the new word-of-mouth recommendations.

Unfiltered, honest reviews help other customers make smarter purchasing decisions online. And as businesses place more weight in reviews and care about their trust and reputation, businesses across countries, industries, and the internet will all be working harder to satisfy the customers.

## Reviews – Not just one-way traffic

When it comes to reviews, the main focus for businesses tends to be around ensuring that the average star rating shows them in a good light – that their business is a trustworthy one from which people can expect a good experience.

That rating is visual and creates an immediate (and, arguably, lasting)
impression for people, so it’s very important to have a strategy for pushing
a rating up as much as possible. But reviews should not be thought about as
one-way traffic – just as your prospective customers gain information about
areas of your service from them, you too can regard reviews as valuable
sources of information.

These are not just opportunities for people to praise your performance or vent their spleen – they can also serve as highly valuable mechanisms for gaining feedback to help you understand how well your business performs, allowing you to adapt accordingly.

Many reviews are specific to a stage of the customer journey – which may relate to a product they purchased, the delivery experience, customer
service, and more. This report will examine how to use the different stages of online review feedback to gauge sentiment, how the different review stages yield different information, and what they can tell you about your offering, website, and operations.

## The frustration of not knowing

A retailer’s website can gather huge amounts of data – tracking what’s going on is not necessarily the challenge, it’s understanding why something is happening.

Take checkout abandonment rates for example. These are overall values – they may differ by device, referring channel or other variables. Information like this is useful for understanding performance, revealing
the ‘hard’ facts on what is happening, but it doesn’t on its own demonstrate why it is happening. You can always infer what caused it and, in some cases, may even be able to do so with a reasonable degree of certainty.

Some metrics however can show little change and seem frustratingly static, particularly if one such metric of yours (conversion rates, for example) has been lagging behind the sector average for a long time.

Perhaps the best efforts made in tweaking your merchandising and user experience have had little to no impact on driving it up.





Average conversion rates

There are so many factors that may be influencing customer behaviour in the shorter term, some of which cannot be controlled. The season, the weather, even a political situation can affect behaviour and skew results.

But there is one efficient way of establishing the pain points that exist for customers over the longer term, identifying friction points on the path to purchase and establishing any causes of frustration – this method is
listening to what customers are saying. Customers are often very willing to give feedback, even if it isn’t always entirely positive and businesses can learn from all forms of feedback.

### Encouraging reviews

Only 14% are ‘very likely’ to write an organic review (i.e. unsolicited) but when reviews are actively solicited, the response rate jumps to 29%. (Source – Trustpilot, How consumers use reviews today)

In this respect, online reviews are the surveys that you don’t need to run. They can reveal, explicitly or implicitly, customers’ preferences and what drives their behaviour. When a customer takes the time to express
their feelings in more detail, perhaps alongside a star rating, they can give a clear idea of how you could improve the experience, even if that customer did buy something and seems content enough. There is always room for improvement – after all, the pressure in today’s highly competitive market is to exceed expectation, not just meet it.

## The stages of review collection

Just about every stage of the online retail experience can inform a customer review and there are a good number of stages too. Each one can tell you something important – whether that’s about your product selection, delivery performance, customer service or post-purchase care. These reviews may help you to identify common themes and issues that require remedy.

This section considers some of the main stages of the experience that may inspire feedback from your customers – and how you might go about interpreting and using them.

### Product reviews

*“I love this camera, but the lens lets it down a bit.”*

The customer’s impression and experience of the product they bought will tell you, above all, the perceived quality of that product.

Note that, if it’s negative in tone, often the issue may be that the product doesn’t live up to expectation – it may not be that it is a poor product as such, but how it was marketed didn’t correlate with its reality. Potential areas to review include the product description, photograph, videos or other ways the product may be misrepresented on the site that is frustrating people.

Product reviews can also give you an indication of how to build product associations. If you find that customers generally like a product, except for one aspect, you can respond accordingly. For example, if you have reviews for a DSLR camera along the lines of ‘Great camera, but the lens could be better’, perhaps you should include another lens in a product bundle.

### Post-purchase

*“Took me ages to find the thing I was looking for.”*

A review of the post-purchase experience can offer a view of the on-site experience. At this stage, the reviewer has made a purchase but not yet received it. Uncoloured by impressions of a newly-arrived product, this is their impression of the site and the process of purchase.

It’s a specific time to gain feedback that may be among the most revealing in terms of where the friction points are on the path to purchase, and what a customer would like to see changed about the checkout process or site experience as a whole.

### Post-receipt of goods

*“I only ordered a USB stick. Did it really need such a huge box?”*

The arrival of the product can really make or break the overall experience for customers.

This is where you can find out about your standards of packaging, and the overall degree of customer satisfaction around delivery. Your customer may
be frustrated at the amount of packaging that was used to deliver a relatively small item, and this can be amplified if it means that a purchase that should have fitted through the letterbox becomes a failed delivery.

Similarly, a surly driver can sour the experience and damage your brand, even if the delivery was performed by a third-party provider.

### Customer service

*“The dress was the wrong colour. I called customer service and they sent me the right one straight away. They were incredibly helpful.”*

Good customer service can prevent the loss of a potential repeat customer – and turn a negative experience into a positive one – and in extreme cases salvage potential damage to your brand.

This specific feedback can indicate much more than your own general impression of how good you are at customer service. It shows whether or not you resolved an issue, how well you did, and how the customer feels about your brand afterwards. The feedback also provides a clear indication of exactly how the respondent would have preferred the interaction to go and will provide a blueprint for improvement.

### Post-return / post-refund

*“The bag turned out to be a bit different from what I wanted. But it was easy to send it back and swap it for a different one.”*

Does the shopper consider the return of the product / refund of their money as the conclusion of your business together – does the sentiment suggest that’s their last engagement with you or would they likely buy from you again? Is this just a product they didn’t like, even though they remain very fond of your offering and your brand more generally? If the customer was wavering on the issue of whether to shop again, did the return process drive
them away or save the day? Reviews in this area can help provide clarity around these questions.

### Device

*“The add-to-basket function was really clunky on my mobile.”*

A huge number of online shoppers use multiple devices on their path to purchase. Ideally, the customer experience across all channels would be seamless, and of consistently high quality. But reviews can tell you if that’s not the case – perhaps the smartphone experience is not matching the quality of experience compared to a tablet or desktop.

### Major sales periods

*“The site is really slow to load.”*

The date on which the customer wrote their review could have some influence on the content or tone of their review. For example, supposing the review came on a day like Black Friday, would the enormous sales event affect the sentiment? The customer may expect less – things like customer service may be less on their mind when huge savings take prominence. Or perhaps they expect more. The havoc of the day may inspire a greater need for customer service.

Christmas is an especially sensitive period for shopping. The pressure to get gifts in time leaves shoppers particularly intolerant to delays in delivery or difficulties in completing their purchase. This can amplify their criticism in reviews. The percentage of negative reviews increases in the lead-up to Christmas peak trading and doesn’t return to normal levels until January.

Percentage negative reviews

## Time to review the reviews

Gathering reviews is not simply about accumulating a good star rating. Of course, high-star reviews demonstrate a certain reputation, service and quality and play a huge role in attracting and converting new customers. However, reviews have proven to be useful in other ways too.

An aggregation of feedback from customers at various stages of engagement can clarify exactly where you need to improve the experience, so that you can retain their custom. Just as positive feedback can attract customers, negative reviews can help you keep them – if properly acted upon.

Customer-driven information can be gold dust. Hearing directly from shoppers about exactly what frustrates or inconveniences them can lead to much more immediate and precise improvements than wading through swathes of hard data.

In order to properly optimise your website and business performance using customer feedback, it’s important to consistently organise and process the feedback. The business needs to review the reviews, so to speak, on an ongoing basis.

If you'd like to read the PDF version by IMRG and Trustpilot, [click here](https://assets.ctfassets.net/b7g9mrbfayuu/v6XDu1gWY0maayYw8oWWG/df422d2b440f4f9a1208041c9c0b4bd7/IMRG_Report_2017_x_Trustpilot.pdf).

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