What to Know About Customer Reviews
Undoubtedly, customer reviews are a success indicator for businesses today. The internet revolution is at a point where people trust and search for reviews before deciding whether to make a purchase. There is a strong thread connecting the psyche of digitally savvy customers and the reviews of others, and the thread is, at the moment, an important aspect.
For internet natives who are less hesitant to experiment, the internet is their medium when finding, understanding, or reviewing a product or service. Recent surveys indicate how online reviews affect sales. They indicate that the importance of online reviews is such that positive local business reviews influence more than 63% of internet-friendly users before deciding whether to visit an offline store. While the numbers indicate that there is no respite for offline businesses from the influence of the internet revolution, for online businesses, the target is the online audience likely to read online reviews before purchasing a product or service. According to Dimensional Research, many internet-friendly users relied on positive reviews before clicking the final checkout button.
Reviews are sometimes a source to understand whether or not the people who bought the product or service earlier found it useful. People gauge the quality, durability, and performance of a product based on the sentiments of reviews. Statistically, where reviews are absent, people will choose the product depending on other distinguishable attributes, but their numbers are less than those with reviews. Therefore, building a positive online presence through customer reviews is a significant building block for your brand.
Why Are Online Reviews Important in Building a Brand?
According to traditional mass communication theories, word of mouth was one of the most important communication channels. However, there has been tremendous growth in internet use in recent times. As such, your brand’s online reviews have become an important factor in your online campaign.
Initially, before the internet, the decision to purchase was influenced by friends, family, and close associates. Today, the relationship with a buyer is a factor that affects the buying decision the least. With online reviews today, what matters is the overall sentiment shared, which can be negative or positive. Customer reviews can influence the buying decision of a productive internet-savvy client.
Why Do Consumers Trust Online Reviews?
Internet users, especially the youth, are keen on the experience of their peers before purchasing a product or service. Hence, using relevant information about your company and services online cannot be overemphasised.
Online reviews are an overview of other people’s experiences with your product or service. Furthermore, products are intended for the specific demands of a target audience. As such, the general sentiments aired through reviews are taken seriously.
But, Can You Really Trust Online Reviews?
The buying persona tends to trust negative reviews more than positive ones. With this perception, the impact it makes on your business is far-fetched.
According to a study conducted by Pew Research among online buyers in 2016, more than 82% of people believed that reviews were generally accurate. Since it is believed that overly positive comments and reviews about a product or service make a customer more sceptical about their authenticity, there is an increasing trend among online stores to seek negative reviews.
What Are the Benefits of Online Reviews?
- Online reviews are considered free advertising for your business in this current internet era. Most of them are posted on third-party websites like Yelp Reviews.
- You will likely improve your brand positioning when there are brand mentions across the web, giving you an edge if you struggle to beat the competitors due to a lack of trust.
- Chances of improved conversion rates
- Positive reviews boost your ranking in search engines. This is because search engines value the popular sentiments of the target audience.
- When you address customers’ negative reviews, you leverage their trust in your brand.
- With reviews, people can generally identify the issues faced by your customers and suggest actionable solutions.
The Downfall of Online Reviews
- There has been a growing tendency for buyers to doubt the authenticity of full five-star reviews.
- Negative reviews that remain unattended can deter potential customers
- Third-party reviews are costly, and your target audience may not frequent some
- If reviews do not come regularly, users may feel insecure seeing outdated ones
How Online Reviews Affect SEO
If you already have an online presence, reviews can help drive more users to the website. They help improve rankings on SERP. Reviews about your brand on social media indicate expertise, authority, and trust. Websites boasting a good online reputation are rewarded with a definitive edge by Google compared to those without. Below is how online reviews impact SEO in Adelaide and beyond;
- Google trusts online reviews for brands from its users. Online reviews are a quality signal, according to Google.
- Reviews impact local three-pack SEO.
- Reviews build brand awareness.
Conclusion
Online reviews’ impact on SEO ranking cannot be understated. More than ever, customers rely upon online ratings and reviews to determine the reputation and quality of products and services before purchasing. Therefore, many positive and attentive reviews lead to a higher rank in search engines.
