Ecommerce
Tactic

Insert Persuasive Content into Reviews

Reviews are more persuasive when they show the reviewer's name, verification status, and product imagery.

Review with emphasis on "verified" status, uploaded image from user, and name of user

Overview

What should you include in customer reviews? Here are some tips:

  • Detect and Fix Typos. Reviews are less persuasive with spelling or grammar errors (Schindler & Bickart, 2012).
  • Monitor Expletives. Censor your f**king reviews. C’mon now. You’ll look more professional. Plus, angry reviews are less helpful (Lee & Koo, 2012).
  • Reward Users Who Add Media. Customers prefer reviews with images (Cheng & Ho, 2015) or video (Xu, Chen, Wu, & Santhanam, 2012).
  • Display Real Names. Real names (e.g., Joe S.) are more persuasive than usernames (e.g., jschmo; Liu & Park, 2015).
  • Show Proof of Consumption. Show reviews from “verified” purchasers (Bjering, Havro, & Moen, 2015). Or incentivize customers to upload selfies (Yang, Chen, & Tan, 2014).
  • Review Multiple Dimensions. Ask users to rate the price, quality, aesthetics, and any other relevant dimensions (Hong, Chen, & Hitt, 2012).

  • Bjering, E., Havro, L. J., & Moen, Ø. (2015). An empirical investigation of self-selection bias and factors influencing review helpfulness. International Journal of Business and Management, 10(7), 16.
  • Cheng, Y. H., & Ho, H. Y. (2015). Social influence’s impact on reader perceptions of online reviews. Journal of Business Research, 68(4), 883-887.
  • Hong, Y., Chen, P. Y., & Hitt, L. M. (2012). Measuring product type with dynamics of online product review variance. In Implications for Research and Practice, Proceedings of the 33rd International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS), Orlando, FL.
  • Lee, K. T., & Koo, D. M. (2012). Effects of attribute and valence of e-WOM on message adoption: Moderating roles of subjective knowledge and regulatory focus. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(5), 1974-1984.
  • Liu, Z., & Park, S. (2015). What makes a useful online review? Implication for travel product websites. Tourism management, 47, 140-151.
  • Schindler, R. M., & Bickart, B. (2012). Perceived helpfulness of online consumer reviews: The role of message content and style. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 11(3), 234-243.
  • Xu, P., Chen, L., Wu, L., & Santhanam, R. (2012). Visual Presentation Modes in Online Product Reviews and Their Effects on Consumer Responses.
  • Yang, L., Chen, J., & Tan, B. C. (2014). Peer in the Picture: an Explorative Study of Online Pictorial Reviews.