Yeah, maybe but what do THEY say?

More and more people, especially women, do online research before making a purchase.  Whether it's a big ticket item like a car or a computer or a small item like a book or toy, for some reason, we care about what THEY think.  Who is THEY?  THEY are the anonymous people who comment on customer ratings and review sections of various brand or ecommerce websites.  A new article in Practical Ecommerce, reinforces what we know, word of mouth is stronger than ever and especially when it comes to customer reviews. 

Former Forrester Research exec and SV Moms/BlogHer blogger goddess, Charlene Li's new book Groundswell reinforces this point by noting that 76% of customers use online reviews before making a purchase.  Smart companies are using customer reviews as a way to engage their customers and keep them coming back to read or review products themselves.  Become a trusted destination, like Amazon, and you become a 'go to' location for pre-purchase research and potentially for the sale itself.

Let's face it.  Customers today EXPECT to be able to rate or review products and interact in real time with companies via a brand's or its retailer's website or company blog.  Some forward thinking companies like The Home Depot, Whole Foods and Zappo's are even taking advantage of using Twitter for customer support, to answer questions and to run promotions.  Ann from HP, did some great scavenger hunt-type promotions at BlogHer'08 using Twitter.

If you're not offering customer interaction on your site, you're missing out and THEY may wonder, 'What are you afraid of?'

Comments

[Nate]

I agree that opening up to interaction is important to building strong word of mouth.

If you come out with the attitude of, "We've got nothing to hide and we are open to your views." People form a greater respect for you/the company.

Also when you provide an opportunity for people to interact, they become more invested and more interested in what you are doing.

For example, the fact that I have now commented on this posting creates an investment from me. I'm going to want to see what comments are posted after mine as well as keep tabs on future W.O.M. Mom posts to see if there is anything more that interests me.

*hi-5*
Nate

[Barbara J]

Thanks Nate. I appreciate the comment and hope I can keep it interesting for you so you keep comin' back.
Sincerely,
Barbara, The W.O.M. Mom

[Sommer]

It's the only way to go. I don't watch t.v. (okay a few shows I record) but I never watch commercials. I don't look at magazine ads. I go to mommy blogs and that is where I get my info and make my choices. How many mommy bloggers tweet with the CEO of Zappos? Me! That is smart marketing for both of us.

[Internet Strategist]

Small businesses are receiving phone calls and being hired by new customers who selected them based solely on their online reviews.

I linked in a blog post I did on how important online reviews are to any business.

I have also done posts on where and how to list businesses on sites that offer review services. They can be found using the search function on the GrowMap blog.

I hope you'll drop by and stay in touch. I like to link to related blogs and articles as I create new posts.