“Over the past few years, I have become a review snob. If I’m poised to purchase a product from a website but there are no comments from other customers who have used it, I immediately enter hesitation mode. Usually, I’ll leave my cart, open up a Google window, and search for reviews of the item elsewhere. Sometimes, I end up finding the product on a competing website with a lower retail price, a free shipping offer, or some other incentive that causes me to abandon the first site.”

I do the same thing! I do a lot of online shopping on Amazon, and if there’s no reviews, or the rating is pretty lousy, I’m looking at another product.

Another thing I like, that is on the same note as a customer review, is the percentage of people who actually landed on the page and ended up buying the product. If it’s high, I’m buying.

Amazon is really good at doing this, and books and kitchen items (pans, knives, etc.) are really where I focus on this feature. If only 40% of the people end up buying the product I’m looking at, and Amazon is saying that 78% ended up buying some other item, I’m probably looking at that.

Also, if you’re a company looking for a good review service, I would check out RatePoint.com. We use it on our website and the best feature about it is the review system.

They have a lot of different ways to get reviews, like site badges, feedback forms, etc.

If someone leaves a negative review, RatePoint will call them (so not just anyone can leave a bad review to hurt your reputation). They’ll also open up a channel of communication between the you and the client, acting as a mediator to allow you to sort out the issue and ultimately let RatePoint decide if this review will stick or not.

PC Magazine (specifically AppScout) actually did an article about RatePoint and our company, and how the reviews do increase sales and have helped business:

http://www.appscout.com/2007/12/ratepoint_helping_online_biz.php

Anyways, great article, keep ‘em coming!