Success on Amazon requires sellers to be extremely vigilant about their reputation as a seller, especially in the age of social proof.
The fact is, building and maintaining a strong reputation on Amazon is achievable. This requires hard work and can be complicated without the proper expertise and technology, but it is achievable.
Amazon product reviews are crucial to a seller’s reputation, and if that reputation is damaged, the seller may be alienated by customers and lose sales to competitors.
Sellers need to give buyers reasons to leave positive reviews; whether influenced by a seamless customer experience or post-purchase service. Here are five strategies you can implement to get customers to leave legitimate five-star reviews on your product pages.
01. Provide a first-class customer experience from beginning to end
Sellers should be honest with their customers from the beginning. When creating or matching product detail pages, they need to use unique standard identifiers (such as UPC, EAN or ISBN codes) and ensure that their product descriptions and condition notes are clear and understandable.
This helps avoid any confusion, false expectations or wrong shipments.
02. Send customizable follow-up emails to request feedback and comments
By taking the time to request reviews, sellers increase their chances of receiving reviews, which in turn can help generate demand and sales. They need to send emails soon after customers receive their products and make sure to personalize the message based on the product they ordered.
Sellers can also email customers who have left positive seller feedback but have not left a review. They can also include step-by-step instructions on how to conduct the review for easy review.
There are automation tools that can send customized feedback request emails at the ideal time.
03. Use social media to your advantage
A seller’s followers on social media are likely to have purchased a product from them in the past 90 days. Sellers need to leverage these audiences to encourage authentic product reviews.
04. Join Amazon’s Early Reviewer Program
To help sellers generate the first few reviews about new products, Amazon created the Early Reviewer Program.
Through the program, Amazon contacts a random buyer of one of the sellers’ products and asks for a review. Whether positive or negative, the buyer receives an Amazon coupon ranging from $1 to $3. The review will then appear on Amazon with an orange badge that says “Early Reviewer Rewards.”
Sellers are eligible for the Early Reviewer Program if their products have fewer than five reviews and cost at least $15.
Amazon charges $60 per SKU to participate in the program, which lasts for one year or until five reviews are generated. Merchants only need to pay $60 after they receive at least one review for their registered SKUs.
05. Thank buyers for every comment
Following up with each customer and thanking them for leaving a review will build customer loyalty and give them the desire to bring in another customer for future purchases.
