By Matt Parsons, PowerReviews
There’s no denying that ratings and reviews have become a powerful tool for consumers and retailers alike. In fact, just about everyone (95% of shoppers) reads them, but less than half of shoppers (42%) leave them. Since ratings and reviews are proven to increase conversion, brands and retailers are making it a priority to collect more of this user-generated content.
In general, the people providing feedback in product reviews are the product’s end users. These consumers can provide feedback on how a product works, its quality and whether it lives up to expectations. But there’s another segment of purchasers whose opinions hold just as much value, yet is often untapped — gift givers.
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While gift givers can’t provide the same depth of insight as the product’s end user, they can provide valuable information about why they purchased a product, making them a great resource for uncovering consumer purchase motivations. Not to mention that in the 2015 holiday season alone more than $626 billion was spent on gifts, meaning there’s huge potential to generate feedback from this group of purchasers.
Here are a few tips and tricks for brands and retailers to incorporate gift givers into their overall review strategy.
Solicit Feedback
Studies show that up to 70% of consumer reviews originate from post-purchase emails, so it’s extremely important to implement them as part of your ratings and reviews strategy. Most post-purchase emails, though, are tailored to a product’s end users, which can ultimately deter gift givers from providing their feedback.
To ensure you aren’t alienating gift givers, ask shoppers why they made their purchase. For example, language like, “Tell us how you liked [product name]” doesn’t speak to gift givers, since they never intended to use the product themselves. Instead, ask questions such as, “Why did you purchase this product?” to allow all types of buyers, end users and otherwise, to provide their input.
Keep It Short And Sweet
Regardless of length, ratings and reviews matter. Since gift givers don’t have in-depth experience with the products they’ve purchased, it’s okay to target these consumers for quick snippets of feedback. Asking them “Why did you buy?” or “Who was this for?” will provide feedback that can help your team better understand consumers’ motivation for purchase. Even though you aren’t getting detailed information about the product itself, you’ll still gain invaluable insight that can help you improve the customer experience.
While the gift-giver audience may seem like uncharted territory, the feedback these consumers can offer is incredibly valuable. The more feedback you can obtain from shoppers, the greater the insight you’ll have to improve your products and services, as well as your marketing strategy.
Matt Parsons is the chief customer officer at PowerReviews, a software company that helps more than 1,000 brands and retailers collect, display and syndicate customer reviews and answer customer questions.
