How Product Ratings Can Increase Sales
Product ratings provide customers with an independent assessment of a product based on feedback from other shoppers. They give customers confidence that they’re making the right purchase and helps them understand the quality of a particular item. A product rating that is well-established, accurate and up-to-date can significantly increase sales for a business.
A survey by technology company Dixa found that products with higher ratings generate more clicks on Google Shopping ads. They also receive more views, and conversions are generally higher as a result. In fact, a four-star rating can increase sales by 18% over its competitor.
However, it’s important to remember that product ratings are only as strong as the data they’re based on. Inaccurate, misleading or manipulated ratings can have a negative impact on the perception of a brand, especially amongst customers with more expertise in the product area.
To avoid this, it’s crucial to have an accurate, unbiased system for gathering and reporting customer feedback. This includes having an efficient process for responding to negative feedback and ensuring that no reviews are deleted or hidden. This will not only help maintain a positive reputation but also ensure that the most valuable information is available to shoppers.
Product ratings are based on a combination of many factors, including the overall quality of a product and its value for money. They’re displayed on the top of search results and on the product page, alongside customer reviews. Amazon’s product ratings display both average ratings and individual reviews, which helps to build trust for the prospective buyer.
Google’s own product rating system is a highly complex mix of data that’s collected and aggregated in various ways. The ratings appear in search results and in Google Shopping, as well as on merchants’ sites. The ratings are based on a five-star scale and are specific to each product. They’re derived from a wide variety of sources, and include everything from reviews to purchase history. This information is matched using industry-standard identifiers, such as GTINs, MPNs or brands, to make sure that the correct ratings are shown in searches.
In addition, Google’s algorithm takes into account the number of reviews and how useful they are to shoppers. The most helpful reviews are moved up the list of ratings. This gives an incentive for merchants to encourage shoppers to provide feedback and share their experiences.
It’s also worth pointing out that seller ratings, which are based on reviews from a single merchant, can be very different to product ratings. The differences are subtle, but important to keep in mind when analysing a business’s performance.
In order to maximise the potential of a product rating, it’s essential that you have an effective management tool for multichannel selling. LitComemrce provides a complete set of tools to manage the entire ratings process, from collection of product data to aggregation and publishing on all channels. If you’re interested in boosting your performance in search engines and increasing the number of conversions for your products, get in touch with us today to discuss how our software can help.