E-commerce has had such a massive surge in recent years, and it will only grow and adapt going forward. In the future, even more shopping will happen online, and more sellers will appear. What is the best way for a store to get noticed, build and maintain a reputation, and remain in customers’ minds? Product reviews. They guide and impact purchasing decisions. But they also do more than that. Reviews play a role in inventory planning, product visibility, brand reputation, and conversion rates. Reviews are essential to the decisions that potential buyers make.

The Basics

When customers buy from an Amazon seller, they can leave feedback comments and star ratings on the products and their experience with the store. If the rating is low, the store and products are less attractive to customers in the future.

How to Manage Your Reputation

Customers have a lot of choice online, and a great deal of product research happens online as well. Customers will read reviews when making decisions, and at the very least, they will check the reviews before ordering to make sure other customers were happy. Positive reviews matter because they build consumer confidence. A happy and satisfied customer does not always feel as motivated to leave a review as an unhappy one with a complaint to make. Reviews are powerful because satisfied customers tend to assume that their experience was normal, and an unhappy customer wants revenge or feels like a hero when they can warn others.

A Low Rating Hurts

A seller’s reputation is important and something to care about from the beginning. When a store’s reputation is low, it is harder to serve customers and to get new ones. As a seller, finding ways to encourage positive reviews is important. Amazon doesn’t allow stores to offer incentives for good reviews, and they make sure that the reviews are honest and given freely. Sellers can improve poor reviews by being aware of them and addressing them quickly.

Getting Positive Reviews

You can build a better reputation by encouraging happy customers to say that they are pleased, and by addressing the concerns of unhappy customers. Be sure that your customers understand that reviews are important to your store’s reputation, so send an email to follow up and remind them. Send emails to those who were unhappy to make it right. Reach out to customers on social media to let them know you are still here and still care.

Most of all, your online reputation depends on the customer experience you provide. Customers will be unhappy if the product they receive does not match expectations, so be sure that the listings are accurate and not misleading. Edit and rewrite descriptions so that customers know what they are getting what you say they are getting.

Request Help

Don’t ignore your reputation. Online, or offline, it matters to sales and profits. It matters even more in the virtual world, because it is too easy to forget, and a business needs to stay in the front of people’s minds. A 4-or-5 star rating is a good way to keep customers. Provide a good customer experience, address customer concerns, and send emails to follow-up with customers later. Also, hire help and find support.

There are a lot of skills that marketers and advertisers have that retailers and sellers don’t have, and doing business online brings more challenges in an ever-changing world. It can be overwhelming. Wizards of Ecom offers advice, support groups, training and tutorials that will help. Learn more here.

Photo: Pixaby