As a product owner, one of the most effective ways to get traffic to your product page is through word of mouth. Consumers only have so much attention to allocate to shopping so they look to others to help them make decisions.

Many people end up trying products they would have never given the time of day. Simply because the products have rave reviews.

Take your product to Amazon, and the need is no different. In fact, one might even say the need for reviews is even more important.

Amazon is a catalog website. A quick search of a phrase pops up numerous listings. When that’s the layout, it makes social proof even more important.

Take a look at the results for “bed pillow”:

There are 2,000 search results.

After the Sponsored Ads, here are the listings on the first page:

Many of the images look similar. Where do you start?

Price and coupons aside, the average person is likely going to gravitate toward the pillows with the highest reviews.

With reviews playing such a strong role in a product’s success on Amazon, it should be a top priority to consistently increase your product reviews.

In today’s article, we’re going to cover five ways to increase your reviews in 2021 and beyond. These methods are simple to implement, some are even subtle, but they work in line with human psychology.

Method #1 – Send The Appropriate Link

One thing many brands assume when they ask a customer to leave an Amazon review is that the customer knows where to go to leave the review.

Yes, Amazon’s the leading online marketplace, but don’t assume everyone knows how to navigate the platform.

Additionally, if you link a customer to the generic review page, they’ll see options to review all their most recent purchases. You don’t want that. You want them focused on what you requested them to do—i.e. review your product.

If you’re going to ask for a review, make sure you make the progress as smooth and simple as possible.

One key way to do this is to share the link that goes straight to reviewing your specific product.

The link will look like this:
www.amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=[insert ASIN]

Note: You’ll fill in your product ASIN at the end of the link.

That link will take you directly to the ASIN’s dedicated product review page.

It looks like this:

Method #2 – Use a Shortlink

Similar to the previous method, another way to make your review request simple is to use a link shortener (or link cloaker).

Ideally, you’ll want to use a link shortener that’s tied to your domain so it’s easy to navigate to.

For instance, Bitly is a link shortening service, but the links look something like this: https://bit.ly/3CKB4nQ

The random characters look confusing and give off the impression that it will take extra work to accomplish your request.

Instead, you want to have a short, easy-to-read link like this:

www.website.com/review

Whenever and wherever, you ask for a review, direct them to that link, and have it redirect to your product’s dedicated Amazon review page.

Method #3 – Pre-Frame

This third method taps deeper into human psychology. Here, you want to introduce the idea of completing a review before you ever ask for one.

How?

By telling them what others have said.

A great place to do this is in your copy. Here are a few examples…

Talk about how you provide better value:

“Customers have said our product outperforms the generic [insert product or feature] you’ll find on store shelves.”

Talk about how you help solve problems despite your lack of a common feature:

“Some people complain about our lack of an interchangeable blade, but we figure you’ll be mostly using the main blade, so we focused on making one blade perform the best.”

Point out a specific segment:

“Moms say they love our two-tier lunch boxes because it prevents spills and helps reduce the need for extra containers.”

By mentioning other people’s feedback, you place a seed in the prospect’s mind that, one: you care about what your customers say, which leads to the assumption that you’re focused on producing a high-quality product; and two, you let them know that you listen to your customer’s opinion, so if they leave a review, their opinion will likely be heard.

A lot of people never complain about a product or a service because they believe it won’t make a difference. Mention what others are saying during the sales process and you increase a customer’s desire and consideration to leave a review later on.

Method #4 – Attractive Insert

Inserts are one of the most direct ways to communicate with customers. When someone invests money, there’s more incentive to consume a product. If you make your insert attractive, there’s an even higher likelihood that customers will look at it.

On your insert, you’ll want to include some valuable information; don’t just thank them for buying. After you’ve provided value, on that same insert, you’ll want to invite them to share what they think about the product.

Method #5 – Prompt

Asking is the first step to getting reviews, but to reduce effort on the customer’s side and to increase the likelihood of getting a review, share a few prompts.

What do I mean?

Well, think about a time you’ve been asked to leave feedback. Some requests come with multiple-choice answers, some come with blank writing space, and some come with both.

Which ones are you most apt to complete?

Well, ultimately, it’s going to depend on your temperament, but given both options, most people are likely to fill out the multiple-choice answers. Why? Because they provide prompts and take less time.

When you leave a review on Amazon, there are no multiple-choice options, so instead, to increase the likelihood of getting the customer to complete your request, you want to provide both options?

How?

You prompt them with questions.

Don’t just ask for the review, ask a few questions. Here are some examples:

Does the quality live up to your standards?
Did you find it easy to use?
Were the instructions helpful?
How long did it take you to complete the setup?

Stick to two to four questions so you don’t overwhelm them.

Then, after you’ve asked a few questions, give them a command like this:

Let us know what you think by leaving a review on Amazon here: [insert link].

OR

Help other shoppers make a decision by leaving a review on Amazon here: [insert link].

By prompting them, you’re taking a bit of the effort off their shoulders, which makes them more likely to leave a review.

Wrapping Up

Reviews are one of the main factors that a prospect relies on when making a decision to purchase. It’s important to have a strategy for reviews to make sure your Amazon product listing gets the attention it deserves and that you are gaining authority in your market before other, potentially more elaborate products, enter the marketplace.

Getting your customers to leave a review is much easier today than it was in the past. The key is to remind them and make the process easy. Use these five methods to help you facilitate that process.

Happy Selling,

The Page.One Team

The Last Word:

As you develop your messaging for gaining reviews, remember to look over Amazon’s review policies. Not only does Amazon discourage requesting reviews in exchange for products, but they also have specific rules around messaging. For example, you don’t want to divert negative feedback with messaging like, “If you’re not satisfied, please contact us before leaving a review.”