79% of all consumers read product reviews early in their decision making process. And there is plenty of review information out there, most of the time published by eCommerce sites. This real-time volume of information supplied by consumers who have purchased a product is gold. Gold on two fronts.
1. Product Performance metrics are used across departments.
- Product Development – This department can make quick same year changes and accumulate great information for the following year’s designs.
- Sales and Marketing – Their messaging ought to reflect the messaging of consumers, as well as address common complaints and questions, especially with low hanging fruit complaints like “color not the same as shown online”.
- Customer Service – Reviews provide advanced warning to Customer Service about problems and wins. Managers can prepare their teams with the right response messaging for phone calls, chats and emails.
2. Predictive Analytics is another powerful benefit.
- 10% of all consumers who purchase a product write a review. While this is a sliver of the pie, it is the most traceable statistic we have to measure what the other 90% is thinking…. and telling their friends… and telling their family…. all offline in an untraceable format. Measure the 10%. Big leverage here.
- The more a brand’s product reviews are published, the more likely they will get read. The fact is, when ordering something online, there are a lot of unknowns. Having a good volume of real consumer comments – which are highly trusted – is likely to answer questions and typically instill the trust to click “buy”.
- A good volume of positive reviews means a possible positive effect on retail sales, but it also works the other way around with negative reviews. If there is little chatter, you can expect the product isn’t trending and sales will follow suit. And that’s why we call it predictive analytics.
In conclusion, brands must do a better job of collecting and measuring product reviews. It is the second hardest metric behind retail sales.
Channel Signal aggregates consumer reviews about your products into one simple report, and can even compare your competitors’ product reviews. Learn more.