- 21
- Feb
Word-of-mouth-marketing has always been seen as one of the most trusted sources of information that a consumer can come by. I mean, if you can’t trust your best friend’s hairdresser on which diffuser (define) to buy, who can you trust? Well move over hairdressers of the world, there’s a new trusted source in town, and it packs quite a punch.
Yep. User reviews. The online form of word-of-mouth marketing. It can happen online anywhere, at any time. With just a few strokes on a keyboard and click of a mouse, a company can be rewarded or destroyed for the product or service that they stand behind. Now if you’re thinking, “But what do I do as local business owner to either take advantage of this or save myself from merciless consumers?” Well, it just so happens that Gregg Stewart wrote two informative articles just for such like-minded individuals titled Local Search Lives or Dies by User Reviews and Online Reviews: Tips, Tricks, and Secrets for Advertisers and Publishers.
Today, though, I want to dive deeper into who the users are that create and/or read reviews. According to a study put on by PowerReviews and the e-tailing group, a whopping 9 out of 10 US online buyers surveyed in February 2008 read customer reviews at least “some of the time” before making a purchase. And not only did they check reviews some of the time, 70 percent of consumers check at least 4 reviews before spending their money. So this goes to show that this trend is definitely on the rise.
But are these studies just accounting for those that are mostly paranoid about a purchase gone wrong on ebay (oh, and I’ve SO been there on that one)? Well, not exactly. According to this same study, there is definitely a need for consumer reviews. Nearly two-thirds of consumers surveyed said they wanted user ratings and reviews (I have to agree since I’ve never been the same since the ebay fiasco of ‘07…it has turned me into a hardened skeptic).
So now it’s come to the point that consumer demand is demanding consumer reviews. People want people, like themselves, to educate them on the latest Blue-Ray DVD player at Best Buy. And a lot of major players have already jumped into the ring. But 2008 is going to see this increase quite substantially. According to Scene7’s “Rich Internet Experience and Beyond” study, in the next 12 months, 36 percent of Web Site operators plan to implement a user ratings and reviews option for their users/consumers. It will be well-worth it, though. According to the same study cited earlier, 78 percent of those reading reviews spent over 10 minutes doing so. Also, half of the consumers that read user reviews go on to buy products online, 55 percent of the time.
Another recent report by Internet Retailer also showed that consumers who read online product reviews were likely to buy more while on an online retail site. Some 27 percent of respondants who read customer reviews reported average spending between 5% and 10% higher than those who did not read them.
And finally to kick ‘em while they’re down, another statistic from the earlier study cited claims that 82 percent of consumers prefer reading reviews to researching a product in-store with a knowledgeable sales associate. Now it just so happens that I am in the market for a new diffuser, and I won’t be needing hair services anytime soon. So it’s a good thing my hairdresser, Kelly, still gets paid for cutting my hair, because i’d feel pretty bad if i had to put her out of job because of user reviews.