Customer feedback has taken on a new level of relevance and companies are already exploiting it as part of their brand image. How can we use customer opinions to our advantage? Discover 8 ways you can make use of customer reviews.
The way customers think is changing. New generations are breaking through, positioning new values and new behavioral and consumption habits.
According to a B2B report, 73% of those born between the 80s and 90s, popularly known as "millennials", are now decision-makers. In other words, they are the ones making decisions. The same study also reveals that this generation will represent 44% of the workforce by 2025.
What is most significant about this generational shift is that millennials behave differently than previous generations and are making new demands regarding the way companies act.
One of the most distinctive characteristics of this generation is that they do not trust advertising, especially traditional advertising. According to the report, younger generations do not trust advertising, recommendations from public figures and they have more and more doubts about content promoted by influencers.
But there is hope. What the new generations do trust is content generated by other customers or, in the digital world, by users. Recently, Forbes stated that 97% of millennials read online reviews before buying a product and 89% say they trust reviews. Another study reveals that 80% of millennials never buy anything without reading a review.
This is an opportunity for companies to design new customer engagement strategies, as well as to build customer loyalty. Leveraging content generated by other customers is now one of the best ways to build trust, especially in a context where content marketing is positioning itself as one of the most used marketing strategies.
How can brands leverage user-generated content?
8 smart ways you can use customer reviews
Obviously, the first step is to pay attention to what customers have to say. Active listening to the voice of the customer is essential. Active listening means responding to customer feedback and leveraging their opinion to drive real change.
1. Promote them on your website
More and more companies, especially e-commerce brands, are setting up a space on their website where potential customers can read comments and reviews from other consumers.
Even if your company's activity is not e-commerce, you should include customer testimonials on your website, either in a special section or alongside other information regarding the brand and/or its products and services.
Reviews from other customers build trust and demonstrate that the company pays attention to customer reviews.
2. Share them on social media
Is no secret that social media has a major influence. Beyond your website, it is important to share customer reviews in other spaces such as social media.
In addition to their own social media profiles, many companies are also encouraging customers to post reviews on influential external digital platforms such as Google Reviews.
3. Don't forget email marketing
Email remains one of the most powerful channels for communicating with customers in a direct and personalized way. In the words of Forbes, "email marketing is now more important than ever before."
In this regard, customer reviews can become a differentiating factor of your email marketing campaigns.
4. Use your customers' experience to create use cases
As we explained in a previous post, a new study reveals that use cases are the among the most influential types of content, as well as being many customers' favourite, with 47% of respondents confirming their preference for this type of content.
Creating use cases and success stories is one of the smartest ways to produce content that attracts new customers.
5. Add customer testimonials to your sales presentations
Nowadays it is very common for the sales department to make use of presentations in their meetings with potential customers or other interested parties.
Adding customer testimonials and reviews to business presentations is a good way to increase the brand's credibility and boost sales.
6. Guess what? Paper is not dead
Despite the fact that digital marketing is becoming more and more relevant, many companies still rely on printed content that, for some business models, has great influence among consumers, distributors or stakeholders.
Enriching this type of content with your customer's opinions will give you the opportunity to build trust and reach a type of customer that may not be as present in the digital world.
7. Include them in press releases
Brands often send press releases to the media when they want to highlight a relevant aspect related to their company. When this happens, it is important to include customer testimonials in press releases to generate additional credibility and get more coverage.
8. Use them in job offers
According to a 2021 Deloitte research, 44% of millennials and 49% of Gen Zs —those born between the mid-1990s and mid-2000s— say they consider a company's values before accepting a job.
Again, customer testimonials can help you create more attractive job offers and, most importantly, highlight your company's positive values when dealing with customers and employees.
Bottom line
We have listed 8 different ways in which brands can leverage user or customer-generated content. Customer reviews have immense power. However, it is essential to use them properly.
Obviously, we must always ask for permission to publish a customer's opinion or review.
It is also crucial to choose testimonials well and prioritize those that contain stories or information that provide real value. Laveraging customer reviews does not mean filling our website with irrelevant content and reviews. Posting too many reviews can rest them credibility.
