The global appetite for Indonesia’s authentic food and beverage offerings has been a contributing…
Valuing Customer Opinion
19 June 2017
The Importance of Online Reviews
Customer opinions and trends are important for businesses to continue being successful. They highlight the value placed on the company and its products. Customers give opinions on a range of issues such as: how good is the product? Does it do what it says on the tin? Is it spicy enough? Does it taste good?
There is a growing trend in having customer feedback on retailer websites on products purchased. Independent retailers have always been a good source for advice; however, an increasing number of consumers are seeking advice from a new source – each other. They are gaining this information using online reviews. As an example see here for reviews of Mrs Elswood slice cucumbers on Ocado.
Retailers Promote Online Reviews
Many retailers are providing and promoting online reviews as they value customer opinion. Offline is influenced by online: half of retail sales are now shaped by social media. Consumers love to give opinions and they value unbiased peer reviews. Restaurants and hotels have recognised this through services such as TripAdvisor, which now has 390 million unique visitors per month and over 450 million reviews and opinions.
How to Make Your Company Successful
Conducted research has highlighted that 92% of consumers now read online reviews, and 40% form an opinion from reading just one to three of them. This has increased from 88% in 2014. By providing this service, retailers are promoting continuous engagement with their business. Product opinions and customer trends are a key part of an extensive and integrated customer relationship management (CRM) strategy. Only 13% of consumers consider using a business that has a one or two star rating, highlighting how important it is for a business to monitor customer opinion.
57% of consumers would consider using a three-star rated business whilst 94% of consumers will consider using a business with a four star rating, meaning there is an increase of 37% in consumers who would consider a business just by the virtue of having one more star.
As purchasers are actively seeking information and advice for decisions, retailers are enabling customers to give unbiased opinions. This builds trust and makes customers feel part of the business – a key aspect of effective customer relationship management.
Why Online Reviews Are So Important
A positive reputation is one of the most powerful marketing assets a business has, as it helps to convince new customers to contact them. The social proof contained within reviews and star ratings help consumers cut short their research and make decisions faster and with an increase in confidence.Star rating is the number one factor used by consumers to judge a business or a product, clearly showing how influential they are and the overall importance of online reviews as a whole.
The growing quantity of online reviews and review sites covering more industries and services and products provides huge benefits to both consumers and the businesses that fully embrace reputation marketing. 74% of consumers say positive reviews make them trust a local business more, and 84% of people trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation.
Users, who read consumer-generated content online, including reviews, make purchases 73% more often in low-cost product categories such as food and beverages.
We here at KLBD Kosher also value our customer opinions greatly, ensuring we continue to be a leading international kosher certification agency.
