How to Encourage More Customers to Leave Reviews


Are you looking for a way to grow your business and build rapport with your audience? If so, it’s time to start thinking about how to get more customer reviews.


Reviews give us a detailed look at what customers think of our brand. When you know how people see your products, content, and website, it’s easier to make smarter marketing and design choices.


New visitors will also appreciate seeing reviews on your site. This information provides social proof, which is a phenomenon where people are more likely to make a purchase based on others’ opinions. Evidence suggests that this type of feedback can improve conversions by 270%, which truly highlights the importance of obtaining and showcasing reviews.


Now that you know why reviews are crucial for happy customers and your continued success, it’s time to show you several actionable strategies you can use to get more feedback.


Let’s get started!


Ask at the Right Time


The best way to encourage customers to leave more reviews is to ask. It’s shocking how many businesses don’t bother following up with users at critical points in their journey to find out what they think. But asking is only half of the battle.


If you want to maximize your results, you have to ask customers to leave their input after they’ve had enough time to see the value in your product or service. In other words, if you ask someone who just bought your SaaS to leave a review, they probably won’t. They haven’t worked with your service enough to give their honest opinion.


By the time they have come to a conclusion about your product, they likely forgot about the email you sent out that asked them to write a review.


One easy tip for overcoming this barrier is to create trigger campaigns through email and on-site popups that trigger after a person becomes a customer. For example, you could schedule an email that asks for a review one month after their purchase. Not only will this make it easier to reach your customers at the right time, but it will also free your team up for other pressing tasks.


Simplify the Review Process


Odds are, you’ve started leaving a review on a product, only to back out because the process was long or complicated. We’ve all been there before. But you never want to make customers feel that way about your brand.


Simplifying how customers leave reviews will result in more submissions, especially from people with good things to say. You can make this step easier by streamlining your review form. Instead of including a long, drawn-out questionnaire, try to limit your review form to 5 fields. Research shows that forms with 3-5 fields see a 20% conversion rate. After five fields, conversions will start to dramatically decrease.


You should also consider making long-form responses to questions optional. If you ask your audience to answer something specific, there’s a good chance some people will back out because they don’t know what to say. However, if you make these fields optional, people experiencing feedback paralysis can move on to the next question.


Mobile responsiveness is also a must for getting more reviews. A whopping 51% of all internet traffic comes from smartphones. Imagine trying to fill out a form designed for desktop on your tiny phone screen. Sounds frustrating, right?


Use a mobile-responsive form builder, so you have a better chance at getting people to leave their feedback, regardless of which device they decide to use.


Reward Users for Speaking Up


Let’s face the facts; users are more willing to leave a business review if they are getting something out of the deal. The best part about this arrangement is the people most likely to leave a review in exchange for a promotion or gift are also fans of your business. It’s unlikely that someone would leave a bad review so they can get something from a company they don’t like.


You’ll want to make the incentive known before the user fills out your form. We suggest including a note on your contact form or email that lets users know what to expect in exchange for their opinion.


The type of incentive you pick will depend on funds, your industry, and your audience’s needs. For example, you could ask customers that use the free iteration of your software to leave a review in exchange for a discounted rate on the premium version.


It’s also possible to get more feedback by giving users other unique perks like free shipping, a mystery gift, or an extension of their subscription. Think carefully about what will inspire your audience to speak up, and find creative ways to let existing users know about the offer.


Respond to All Feedback


Finally, if you want users to voice their opinion, you should try responding to feedback that already exists. This is an effective strategy for building rapport on your website and through email, but this tactic truly shines on social media.


Speaking of which, did you know that 43% of all consumers say they research products they want to buy on social media?


When these people find your brand page, they want to see what other people say about your company. If they see a bunch of reviews but no response from your brand, this could send a signal that you don’t engage with your community.


If you want to get as many reviews as possible, respond to both positive and negative feedback. When someone reports a positive experience, a simple thank you can go a long way. If possible, put your brand personality on display and show potential customers that you are committed to excellence.


Negative reviews are tricky but still manageable. The first thing you’ll want to do is apologize for the inconvenience and then immediately try to pull the conversation away from the public eye. You can tell the user to send you an email, direct message, or get in touch with your customer service team.


Once you have them in a private place, start working out a solution that resolves their issue and exceeds their expectations. If you can turn their sour experience into something positive, there’s a good chance they will remove their negative remarks and may consider writing a positive review about how you helped them when they needed it the most.


Final Thoughts


It’s clear that there are numerous ways to get more feedback from your customers. We revealed a couple of effective strategies you can use to get more honest opinions from prospects and customers through all of the major marketing channels.


Reviews can help you fine-tune your marketing and website design, increase social proof, and give you a closer look at your target audience. There are plenty of options for businesses of all sizes and in all industries. It all starts with figuring out how, where, and when to ask.

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Author: Syed Balkhi


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