TCM 035: Don't shy away from asking for more reviews

 Don't shy away from asking for more reviews 

TCM 035 / Sunday, 21st April 2024 / Read time: 5 minutes 

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Evening one & all! (This list is growing rapidly; I'm beyond grateful for your time and attention.)

If there's one secret in the ecommerce space that seems so darn obvious yet is all too often overlooked, it's the power of customer reviews.

Scroll to the bottom for an action plan.

Ironically, as most businesses get larger they get lazier in asking for them. That's expected to some degree; they can afford a dip in efficiency... maybe. 

However, if you like making honest money and serving your customers (which I assume is why you're here) then these golden nuggets of customer feedback are your silent salespeople, and they can do wonders for your conversions. 

Why Do Reviews Matter In Ecommerce at All?

When someone walks into a physical store, there's an opportunity there and then for a salesperson / business owner to build trust and present testimonials face to face:

"Our customer Jenny has been using this for 6 months and her results have been like nothing else. Her skin cleared up almost immediately when she... [and so on]"

It builds trust – there's emotion, empathy, tonality, body language, and so many other physical cues we can communicate in person. 

Yet when a customer stumbles into our virtual store, all we have is what's on the screen (and it's likely a small screen in someone's hand at that). 

One of the biggest advantages we can have is a credible customer living on your product pages – telling their story of success, satisfaction, and of finding a solution. 

In an arena where a potential customer can't touch or see products in person, reviews bridge the gap. 

How to Gather Impactful Testimonials

"Tom, we've got review requests going out already. Our platform automatically handles it. What else do you want me to do?"

Yup, you and everyone else running an online store (I hope).

It's the bare minimum, but it's not enough – not if you want to get ahead. You're not going to get ahead by doing what everybody else is doing. 

One of my favourite testimonials from a client in the last year is:

"Every time I ask for reviews I keep hearing Tom's voice in the back of my head:

"Hound those first 50 customers for reviews."

33 days in and we're way past with 500+ orders since launch..."

There's a reason I told Andrew to pursue reviews like a raging maniac and why he so quickly grew to 500+ orders on an $89+ product. 

Social proof & a great product.

After a customer makes a purchase, follow up with a personalised email expressing your genuine gratitude and gently ask for feedback. 

How do you make it personalised?

Google them. Check if they're following you on Instagram. You may even see them using your product in a social post and giving feedback somewhere else. Or you may find their LinkedIn and discover they're the buyer for a retail store you'd love to be found in.

People love to be heard, and if they're thrilled with your product, they'll often be all too happy to share their experience. 

So better yet? Pick up the phone. 

"Hey is this [NAME]? You recently bought [YOUR PRODUCT] from [YOUR BRAND]. I'm the owner and wanted to call firstly to say an enormous thank you and see how your experience was. Is there anything we could do to improve it for you personally?"

Let them talk. 

Do you know how many brands actually call their customers to say thank you?

Almost zero.

Want to know how you stand out?

Care obsessively and make your customer feel important. Because they are, they're literally funding your business.

Can you imagine how many friends & colleagues they'll go and tell in the days, weeks, months and years to come following that call? 

"You'll never believe what happened – I bought [PRODUCT] online 2 weeks ago and the owner just called me asking for MY feedback and how they can improve. At the end of the call, they asked if I'd be against writing a review on their website, sent a review request there and then, and gave me a $10 gift card in return!" 

Maximise The Impact

Once you've got those reviews, flaunt them. This isn't the time to be modest.  

Put them front and centre on your product pages, in your ad copy, in your cart, on your checkout page... 

Let that positive experience of others be a beacon to guide potential new customers toward that all-important 'Checkout Now' button. 

Also, make sure you're syncing them to Google Shopping, to the Shopify Shop app, to snippets so they appear on search results (reviews will also help with your SEO efforts), and anywhere else you can possibly think of. 

Your Action Plan

1) Download your order delivery records for the last 24 hours and import these customers into a Google Sheet. 

2) Spend the first hour of your day tomorrow morning writing personalised emails to these customers who now have your product in hand, and/or pick up the phone and start talking to some people. 

This doesn't need to be fancy, or expensive. And if you're coming from a place of good intent, no customer is going to bite your head off. (Unless they're having a really bad day, which isn't on you.)

Columns in your sheet:

• Name
• Product purchased
• Purchase date
• Delivery date
• Emailed?
• Called?
• Positive or negative?
• Notes
• Review request sent?

3) Now repeat daily.

Uncle Momentum is going to be on your side.

Asking for feedback becomes addictive and will give you one heck of a buzz to get started every day.

And for those positive reviews you get, take a second to actually congratulate yourself for building a business that positively impacts the lives of other human beings.

If you're anything like me, you're terrible at celebrating the milestones and never take a second to appreciate the work you've achieved over the years.

You've built something pretty freaking awesome.

Most people talk a good game of starting a business – you actually went out and did it. (And now you've got thousands of reviews to prove it!)

Alright, that's me out. 

Have a wonderful evening and a great week ahead!

And seriously if you've got questions, hit that reply button. 

Cheers,

Tom

P.S. To the 51 of you who have already pre-ordered the 2024 edition of The Ecom OS – one enormous thank you for your trust! I'll do everything I possibly can to overdeliver for you.