You may already know first-hand how impactful capturing 5-star online reviews is to your business. Research shows that nearly all customers (95%) will read reviews before making a purchase and that 93% of consumers use those reviews to determine the quality of a business.
Not only is it common practice for people to read online reviews before making a judgment about your company, but the quality of your reviews and the higher your overall rating, the more sales you’ll make. A Harvard Business Review study found that for every star increase a business gets on Yelp, they’ll see a 5-9% increase in revenue.
Studies also show that the more reviews you have, the higher your sales will be. Womply found if a business has over nine up-to-date reviews, they’ll earn 52% more than the average. When that number increases to 25 reviews, that number increases to 108%. And, Psychological Science reports that when consumers are faced with two similar products, they are more likely to buy the product with more reviews.
If the quality and abundance of your reviews play such a poignant role in your sales, it makes sense to do everything you can to get more 5-star reviews, even if it means buying 5-star reviews online, right?
Wrong. This article will delve deeper into the following topics:
- Can you buy 5-star online reviews?
- Is it a good idea to buy online reviews?
- How can brands capture more 5-star reviews the right way?
Can you buy 5-star online reviews and is it a good idea?
Technically, you can buy positive reviews online. According to investigative research by Buzzfeed, there are private Discord servers, subreddits, invite-only Slack channels, closed Facebook groups that will offer merchants positive reviews in exchange for a fee.
While it’s possible to sneakily buy fraudulent reviews, it’s extremely unethical. To give you a bit of context, purchasing online reviews is akin to buying a college degree or pretending you have certain qualifications to land a job.
It’s possible to fake it, but it’s highly dishonest, and if (when) you get caught purchasing online reviews, it could hurt the reputation of your business. Not to mention, it does little in terms of actually building real relationships with customers.
Additionally, retailer bigwigs like Amazon have no qualms about chasing down sellers of bogus 5-star reviews with hefty lawsuits.
It’s hard not to agree with Amazon when its representatives say fake reviews undermine the trust of consumers, tarnish the brand, manipulate consumers, and violate laws such as the Washington Consumer Protection Act and the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act.
While buying 5-star reviews is a no-no, the good news is it’s possible for brands to ethically capture new 5-star reviews on various platforms. Let’s talk about how.
How can you get your customers to leave more 5-star reviews?
Now that the idea of buying 5-star reviews is out of the way, let’s talk about best practices to get more high-quality and authentic reviews:
- Follow up with buyers and ask them to leave a review. One of the best ways to capture more reviews is to have a member of your full-service review team follow up with happy customers and ask for reviews.
- Say thank you. Showing your customers your gratitude by saying thank you is an integral step in building an ongoing, loyal relationship. This can lead to referrals and more positive reviews in the future.
- Contact those who leave negative reviews. Reaching out to people that leave positive reviews isn’t the only way to boost the number of good reviews you have. When you reach out to customers that have had a bad experience and solve their problem, it’s possible they will change their negative review to a positive review. I’ve read several updated reviews and am always impressed by the high-quality customer service.
- Incentivize reviews. It’s also smart to offer your loyal customers an incentive for a review. Consider offering a discount in response to a thoughtful and honest review.
- Get help from a full-service review company. It’s difficult to manage the reputation of your company all on your own, especially as your brand begins to scale. However, you can’t let your reviews go unanswered. The solution is to hire a full-service, highly-skilled review company to help you monitor your reviews, respond appropriately, and add the personal touch that makes a difference.
Check out Let Us Respond for help capturing more 5-star reviews!
While it’s possible to buy Google reviews and to buy Yelp reviews, it’s always a bad idea, especially if you’re looking to honestly grow the reputation of your company.
The alternative is to hire a full-service review company like Let Us Respond to monitor your online reviews, reach out to customers, and build real relationships that last.