Double your website's conversion rate with online reviews
You can tell people how good you are, show them, or let other people say it. The third one converts best. How to build a review process that runs itself.
There are three ways to influence how people perceive your product or service:
- tell them how good you are
- show them how good you are
- let other people tell them how good you are
That last one is why online reviews are so powerful. At least, when they are real. In this article we show you how to build a review strategy that lifts the conversion rate of your website.
If you put out positive messages about your company or product but have no testimonials, you lose to the companies that do have them. Reviews from other people work better than announcing how fantastic you are yourself. People buy from people.
Positive word of mouth is fantastic advertising, and the online equivalent of word of mouth is a good review. Research reported by Inc. found that the large majority of consumers trust online reviews about as much as a personal recommendation. So as a company you want those reviews visible: on your website and on all your channels.
We have plenty of clients whose review page is one of the most-clicked pages on their website. They notice that their positive reviews contribute strongly to winning new customers.
Four key points in a review strategy
- getting the review
- giving the review substance
- making the review visible
- turning all of that into a process
How do I collect reviews?
A Google Business profile is what you need. Collecting reviews there is straightforward: take your place ID, append it to Google’s write-review link, and turn that into a short link.
After finishing a project or a sale, email that link to the customer, automatically if you can. That makes it easy for them to leave a review, which then shows up next to your company name when people look you up on Google.
What makes a good review?
If you want to share reviews with your customers, they have to be good reviews. That means more than just positive.
A review along the lines of “we were helped very well and we are happy with the service” does not say much. It is too general, and people get little out of it. Potential customers want to know why somebody else is happy with your service, and how they were helped.
So look for four things in a review
- what was the situation before?
- how did the company solve it?
- what was the result?
- how are things now?
Those four give a review substance and answer the questions a potential customer is already asking. They see what your company meant for somebody else.
Show real reviews and win trust
You can integrate Google reviews into your website easily. Make a separate section where all your customer testimonials live.
Do it in text and in video. The advantage of Google reviews is the clearly visible Google mark, which builds confidence and helps prove that your reviews come from real people.
You can also share those reviews on your social channels. Put the text into a creative video or image, and make the logo of the platform the review came from visible too, so potential customers can look it up and verify it themselves.
Making reviews a process
As a company you want to turn everything into a process, reviews included. First you create your review link. Then you send a template email with that link to the customers whose project or sale you have just completed successfully.
Want to automate it? Email software will do that for you.
You can encourage customers to leave a positive review with a reward, a voucher or a discount for instance. Be aware that this can undermine the integrity of your reviews.
Conclusion
- implement reviews, raise your conversion rate and exert more influence on potential customers
- collect them on your Google Business profile or on Facebook, and show them on your website and all your channels
- automate the process so positive reviews come in every week
That gets more people seeing you as an authority in your sector, which always leads to more customers, more sales and more revenue.
Want to collect more reviews but short on hands? Get in touch.
In short
How do reviews increase a website's conversion rate?
Reviews increase a website's conversion rate because letting other people say how good you are works better than saying it yourself. A good review is the online equivalent of word of mouth, and research reported by Inc. found that most consumers trust online reviews about as much as a personal recommendation. Many businesses see their review page among their most-clicked pages.
How do I collect more Google reviews?
Collecting Google reviews starts with a Google Business profile. Take your place ID, append it to Google's write-review link and turn that into a short link. After finishing a project or sale, email the link to the customer with a template email, automatically if you can through email software. That makes reviewing easy and turns collecting reviews into a weekly process.
What makes a good customer review?
A good customer review is more than positive: it explains why the customer is happy and how they were helped. Look for four things: the situation before, how the company solved it, the result, and how things are now. A general line like "we were helped very well" says little, while those four points answer the questions potential customers are already asking.
Team Stigo, Stigo Digital Agency
Writes about what actually happens inside the campaigns we run from our own location in Antwerp. Questions about your own numbers? Book a call.
