Introduction
Customer reviews are one of the most important factors that influence the buying decisions of online shoppers. According to a study by BrightLocal, 84% of us trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations and 92% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses. With statistics showing that a mere 5% of customers that make a purchase on Amazon leave feedback—having a process in place for collecting feedback and dealing with negative feedback is crucial for all sellers, particularly established ones.
Amazon, as the world’s largest e-commerce platform, has millions of customers who rely on reviews to choose from the vast array of products available. Therefore, getting positive reviews from your customers can boost your sales, ranking, and reputation on Amazon.
So, how can you get more customer reviews on Amazon without violating the rules and risking your account? Here are 10 tactics that you can use to encourage your customers to leave honest and helpful feedback for your products.
- Provide High-Quality Products and Services
The first and foremost tactic to get great customer reviews on Amazon is to provide high-quality products and services that meet or exceed your customers’ expectations. No matter how much you ask for reviews, if your product is defective, damaged, or does not match the description, you will likely get negative feedback or no feedback at all.
Therefore, you should ensure that your product is well-designed, well-packaged, and well-delivered. You should also provide clear and accurate product information, such as features, specifications, images, and videos, that match the actual product. Additionally, you should offer excellent customer service, such as fast shipping, easy returns, and prompt responses to queries and complaints.
By providing high-quality products and services, you will not only satisfy your customers but also impress them enough to leave positive feedback for your product.
- Follow Up with Your Customers via Email
Another effective tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to follow up with your customers via email after they have received their orders. Email is a direct and personal way to communicate with your customers and remind them to leave a review for your product.
However, you should be careful not to spam your customers with too many or too frequent emails. You should also follow Amazon’s guidelines for sending emails to customers, such as using the Buyer-Seller Messaging Service, respecting the customers opt-out preferences, and not including any marketing or promotional content.
A good practice is to send one or two emails to your customers within a reasonable time frame after they have received their orders. The first email should thank them for their purchase, confirm that they have received their order, and ask them if they have any questions or issues with the product. The second email should politely request them to leave a review for your product, explain why it is important for you and other customers, and provide a link to the review page.
You should also personalize your emails by addressing the customer by name, mentioning the specific product they bought, and using a friendly and professional tone. You can use tools like FeedbackWhiz or Salesbacker to automate and optimize your email campaigns.
- Insert Review Request Cards in Your Packages
A creative tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to insert review request cards in your packages. Review request cards are small cards that you can include in your product packaging that ask your customers to leave a review for your product.
Review request cards can help you stand out from other sellers who only send emails to their customers. They can also create a positive impression on your customers by showing them that you care about their feedback and appreciate their support.
However, you should make sure that your review request cards comply with Amazon’s policies and do not offer any incentives or rewards for leaving a review. You should also avoid asking for positive or five-star reviews, as this might bias the customer’s opinion or violate Amazon’s guidelines.
Instead, you should simply thank your customers for their purchase, ask them to share their honest and unbiased feedback, and provide a QR code or a short URL that leads them to the review page.
You can use tools like AMZFinder or SageMailer to create and print customized review request cards for your products.
- Use Product Inserts to Provide Additional Value
Another way to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to use product inserts to provide additional value to your customers. Product inserts are any materials that you can include in your product packaging that offer extra information or benefits to your customers, such as user manuals, warranty cards, thank-you notes, coupons, or free gifts.
Product inserts can help you increase customer satisfaction, loyalty, and retention by providing them with useful tips, instructions, or bonuses that enhance their product experience. They can also encourage your customers to leave a review for your product by showing them that you value their feedback and want to improve your products and services.
However, you should be careful not to use product inserts to manipulate or incentivize reviews in any way that violates Amazon’s policies. You should also avoid including any marketing or promotional content that might divert your customers away from Amazon.
Instead, you should use product inserts to provide genuine value to your customers, such as helping them solve a problem, answer a question, or enjoy a benefit related to your product. You should also include a subtle and polite request for a review, along with a QR code or a short URL that leads them to the review page.
You can use tools like Vistaprint or Canva to design and print attractive and professional product inserts for your products.
- Respond to Customer Reviews and Questions
A simple tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to respond to customer reviews and questions that you already have. Responding to customer reviews and questions can help you build trust, rapport, and engagement with your customers and potential customers. It can also show them that you care about their feedback and are willing to listen and improve.
By responding to customer reviews and questions, you can also increase the visibility and credibility of your products on Amazon. According to a study by Bazaarvoice, products with Q&A content have a 447% higher conversion rate than those without. Moreover, responding to negative reviews can help you mitigate the damage and turn unhappy customers into satisfied ones.
Therefore, you should make it a habit to monitor and reply to customer reviews and questions on a regular basis. You should thank your customers for their positive reviews, address their negative reviews with empathy and professionalism, and answer their questions with clarity and accuracy.
You can use tools like FeedbackFive or BQool to manage and respond to customer reviews and questions on Amazon.
- Join the Amazon Early Reviewer Program
Another tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to join the Amazon Early Reviewer Program. The Amazon Early Reviewer Program is a program that helps sellers get more reviews for their new or low-review products by offering customers a small reward (such as a $1-$3 Amazon gift card) for leaving a review.
The Amazon Early Reviewer Program is different from other review programs that violate Amazon’s policies because it is run by Amazon itself, it does not influence the customer’s opinion or rating, and it is transparent and disclosed to the customers.
To join the Amazon Early Reviewer Program, you need to meet the following criteria:
- You must be a brand registered seller on Amazon.
- Your product must have less than five reviews and cost more than $15.
- You must pay a one-time fee of $60 per SKU.
Once you enrol your product in the program, Amazon will randomly select customers who have purchased your product and ask them to leave a review in exchange for a small reward. The program will run until you get five reviews or one year, whichever comes first. You can enrol your products in the Amazon Early Reviewer Program through Seller Central.
- Join the Amazon Vine Program
Another tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to join the Amazon Vine Program. The Amazon Vine Program is a program that helps sellers get more reviews for their new or pre-release products by inviting trusted and experienced reviewers (called Vine Voices) to provide honest and unbiased feedback.
The Amazon Vine Program is different from other review programs that violate Amazon’s policies because it is run by Amazon itself, it does not influence the reviewer’s opinion or rating, and it is transparent and disclosed to the customers.
To join the Amazon Vine Program, you need to meet the following criteria:
- You must be a brand registered seller on Amazon.
- Your product must be new or pre-release and have no or few reviews.
- Your product must be eligible for FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon).
Once you enrol your product in the program, you need to provide free samples of your product to Amazon, who will then distribute them to selected Vine Voices. The Vine Voices will then leave honest and helpful reviews for your product within 30 days of receiving it. You can enrol your products in the Amazon Vine Program through Seller Central.
- Optimize Your Product Listing
A simple but often overlooked tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to optimize your product listing. Optimizing your product listing means improving the quality and relevance of your product title, description, images, bullet points, keywords, and other elements that appear on your product page.
Optimizing your product listing can help you attract more customers, increase conversions, and reduce returns by providing clear and compelling information about your product’s features. benefits, and value proposition. It can also help you avoid negative reviews or returns by setting realistic and accurate expectations for your customers.
Therefore, you should make sure that your product listing is optimized for both search engines and human readers. You should use relevant and high-ranking keywords, catchy and descriptive titles, detailed and informative descriptions, high-quality and appealing images, clear and concise bullet points, and other best practices that can help you rank higher and sell more on Amazon.
You can use tools like Helium 10 or Jungle Scout to research and optimize your keywords, titles, descriptions, images, and other elements of your product listing.
9. Encourage Social Media Sharing
Another way to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to encourage social media sharing. Social media sharing means asking your customers to share their product experience, feedback, or photos on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Pinterest.
Social media sharing can help you increase your brand awareness, reach, and reputation by exposing your products to a larger and more diverse audience. It can also help you generate more customer reviews on Amazon by creating a social proof effect, where customers are more likely to leave a review if they see others doing the same.
However, you should be careful not to incentivize or reward social media sharing in any way that violates Amazon’s policies. You should also avoid asking for positive or five-star reviews, as this might bias the customer’s opinion or violate Amazon’s guidelines.
Instead, you should simply ask your customers to share their honest and unbiased feedback, along with a link to your product page or a hashtag that relates to your brand or product. You should also thank your customers for their social media sharing and engage with them by liking, commenting, or reposting their posts.
You can use tools like Loox or Pixelfy to create and track social media sharing campaigns for your products.
10. Provide Incentives for Repeat Purchases
The last tactic to get more customer reviews on Amazon is to provide incentives for repeat purchases. Repeat purchases mean asking your customers to buy from you again or buy more products from you in the future.
Repeat purchases can help you increase your sales, revenue, and profitability by retaining your existing customers and increasing their lifetime value. They can also help you get more customer reviews on Amazon by creating a loyal and engaged customer base that is more likely to leave feedback for your products.
However, you should be careful not to provide incentives for repeat purchases in any way that violates Amazon’s policies. You should also avoid offering any discounts or free products in exchange for reviews, as this might influence the customer’s opinion or rating.
Instead, you should provide incentives for repeat purchases that are based on the value and quality of your products and services. For example, you can offer free shipping, free samples, coupons, loyalty programs, referral programs, or cross-sell or upsell opportunities that can entice your customers to buy from you again or buy more products from you.
You can use tools like Feedback Genius or ZonMaster to create and send coupons, offers, or recommendations to your customers based on their purchase history.
Conclusion
Getting great customer reviews on Amazon is not easy, but it is not impossible either. By using the 10 tactics mentioned above, you can increase your chances of getting more honest and helpful feedback from your customers that can boost your sales, ranking, and reputation on Amazon.
However, you should always remember that the best way to get great customer reviews on Amazon is to provide high-quality products and services that delight your customers and make them want to share their positive experience with others.
If you need any help with customer reviews on Amazon or further regarding Amazon, you can contact us at eStores Expert.
