“Less is more" can apply to a lot of things in life, but not when it comes to collecting online reviews.
While review quality is an important metric to consider when setting up a profile on review sites, equal weight is given to review quantity. Many businesses that depend on online reviews to drive conversions suggest that the number of reviews significantly impacts consumer behavior.
Increasing review quantity should be at the center of your review assessment strategy if your business is committed to getting more out of your review profile. Having more reviews drives customer experience and product awareness, and shows you believe in receiving consistent feedback.
Why the number of reviews matters
Various factors come into play when a customer interacts with your product. Customers who leave reviews are likely to describe their experiences, challenges, likes, and dislikes. As a result, some thoughts may be expressed more strongly than others. Customers in their decision-making phase tend to read multiple reviews instead of focusing on a select few.
45%
of customers say will not buy the product or service if it doesn't have reviews.
Source: B2B Reviews
Review quantity also helps ensure your business is seen as more trustworthy and authoritative. This happens as a direct result of the number of people reviewing your product. If you have 10,000 reviews versus a competitor with 5,000 reviews, prospective buyers are immediately drawn to the sheer size of your user and review base.
Enhances social proof
Social proof reinforces the idea that humans tend to follow each other’s patterns. When looking to buy a product, browse through customer reviews, and you’re likely to understand what people think of the business.
Products are constantly evolving to meet user needs. Potential customers also go through more recent and new reviews that align with their purchase timeline.
Whether positive or negative, old and outdated reviews are seen as a poor sign of customer engagement and feedback. This ties in with the fact that users tend to favor products with a higher number of reviews compared to product ratings.
In B2C, 85% of buyers don't read reviews older than 3 months. More specifically, G2 has found that 65% of shoppers don't read reviews older than 3 months.
Tip: Make sure you always have recent reviews on your G2 profile by exploring these best practices for running a review generation campaign on G2.
Converts more customers
Customer reviews are known to increase a company’s online visibility and improve its reputation. Both facets help convert visitors into customers.
When there aren’t enough reviews for customers to read and glean insights from, prospective buyers can get the impression that you’re not selling to enough people to receive feedback on your product. This perception can nullify the effect of qualitative reviews.
The importance of review quantity is evident when businesses evaluate the relationship between review volume and conversion rates. Although there is no magic number to how many reviews are needed to boost sales, the more, the better, especially in the eyes of the customer.
It's also important to consider that reviews are the gateway to good standing in G2's Scoring Algorithm. Review quality, quantity, and recency are all key factors taken into scoring consideration to help facilitate a connection between buyers and sellers. When brands want to stay competitive on the G2 Grid or work up the ranks, collecting reviews will always be a must have in your strategy.
Improves review collection
Collecting reviews and customer feedback go hand in hand. However, getting both of them right can be a challenge. It’s important to get as many product or service reviews as possible to receive valuable feedback on your goals when collecting reviews.
While creating your review collection strategy, keep in mind that customers may not pick products with fewer completed reviews even if they’re rated higher. This is especially true for businesses trying to introduce new products to the market. Focus on the number of reviews more than content and stars or numbers.
To increase the number, incentivize your customers to leave reviews on your website and other channels. One way to do this is through review invitations. These are simple but effective in getting existing customers to provide feedback on a form or an email invite.
For best results, optimize your invitations by keeping your target audience and communication method in mind. And don’t be afraid to send reminders and follow-ups.
Reduces the impact of negative reviews
Negative reviews are inevitable, but mitigating their effects is entirely possible. While it’s essential to get as many reviews as possible, put consistent effort into getting more positive ones.
Reviews spread like wildfire, so it’s always better to have happy customers talk about your business to attract new visitors. Positive reviews help prevent customer hesitation and overcome the effects of negative reviews.
When you have more positive reviews, the negatives are outweighed, and your overall ratings increase. Make sure you reach valuable and satisfied customers at the right time (during or after the purchase) to write reviews.
Improves the quality of page content
Review quantity improves page content quality. This helps your website rank higher in search results since your content is user-generated and authentic. A large number of reviews indicate your content is user-targeted and engaging, making you appear trustworthy in the eyes of search engines.
User reviews are considered the best source of information and product credibility. Encourage customers to leave reviews useful and valuable to other visitors by striking a balance between review quantity and page content quality.
Emphasizes the voice of your customers
Modern businesses focus all their attention on customer-centric activities. What calls for a customer-first approach more than the reviews written by the users?
Reviews are a way of communicating with customers. They can act as a direct marketing source for your products or services. By ensuring that you develop strategies for collecting customer reviews and feedback, you’re indirectly investing in growing your customer base and building a solid online reputation.
Need an example? Learn from Salesloft and how they used the customer voice through G2 reviews as a strategy to drive major pipeline and revenue growth.
Reviews matter when there are a lot of them
Customer reviews are a sure-shot way to establish trust, satisfaction, and feedback systems. Additionally, they show that you care about customer interactions and are willing to engage in a dialogue with them. Collect more reviews to create a strong presence and relationship with your stakeholders.
The more reviews the better -- so learn how to make the most out of every review that comes your way.
by Kristen McCabe