How Customer Reviews On Social Media Can Improve Business For Startups

how customer reviews on social media can improve business for startups

You are already aware of social media’s immense power. In reality, 4.88 billion people, or 60.6% of the world’s population, utilize social networking sites, and users spend an average of 7 hours and 5 minutes online each day. That is a lot of individuals using the internet extensively. More significantly, there are a lot of current and potential clients there.

As many as 69.64% of small companies use social media tools, and 25% of small businesses consider social media to be their most effective marketing channel, demonstrating that the majority of businesses understand the value of social media. You must understand that social media is a two-way street, though. It is not only about you dispersing material through social media platforms to the general audience.

Customers will express their opinions about your company, they will write testimonials on social media, and if your postings speak to them, they will probably share them too. How does that two-way street impact your brand’s reputation and business? How can increases in business CRM for startups happen when there are a lot of really favorable social media customer reviews? Continue reading to see how these online customer evaluations might benefit your company and boost sales.

Here are 6 easy steps that you can use to promote your brand on social media through customer reviews:

#1- Read, But Also Get Involved

A stagnant social media website with no brand participation is not what users desire. They expect to see an extensive level of involvement that shows your business cares about its clientele. That participation must encompass interaction with every remark when it is possible, rather than just replying to any critical reviews or comments.

Say your company offers and promotes services of website building similar to Wix, Squarespace, etc. A consumer expresses satisfaction with the solution between endless web design options for a low price they selected or with the pricing plans you put before a consumer by leaving a remark or review. Engage with the individual rather than just enjoying the spotlight of their praise. Thank them for giving their input, invite them to join your list of email subscribers (if they aren’t already), and keep the dialogue going.

A successful company goes past a single order or a single favorable customer comment on social media. You want to promote brand loyalty in order to eventually turn that consumer into a brand evangelist who spreads the word about your company to other people in their social media network. In contrast to other mediums, social media provides the chance for involvement and connection development.

#2- Make Sure Users Can Submit Reviews

If customers are unable to submit social media customer evaluations, having a significant social media presence is of little use. Although they replaced the star ratings with a Yes/No recommend alternatives, Facebook is undoubtedly the strongest platform for reviews. Users may still post written evaluations and attach photos to those entries.

As a startup, many potential customers may come to encounter your brand using a search engine such as Google, but many more people may do so through a social network advertisement. One of the initial actions someone will do when visiting your website in order to discover more about you is to read any social media evaluations that current and former clients have posted. As a result, using social media for business and maintaining social media profiles well is essential, especially when you are in a venture’s infancy.

Positive social media ratings from consumers are important, but it is also important to consider how you handle bad ones because this shows how effective your customer service routines are. Consider the scenario where a customer purchased a power dialer software package from you but experienced integration problems. If you address a poor customer review on social media by having a member of your tech support team get in touch with the person to resolve the issue, the bad impression has been turned around.

While users of social media may publish evaluations of goods or services on their own feeds, you should make sure that there is a centrally located “storeroom” where prospective consumers can examine all of your reviews compiled in one location. This is often a separate area of your website that contains links to the pertinent landing pages for the items that have been evaluated.

#3- Ask For User Testimonials On Social Media

You likewise begin with no social media consumer feedback if your firm is new or recently established. Never hesitate to ask consumers for feedback, whether you are just starting out or have already established your business. Asking consumers directly for comments or reviews is acceptable as long as it is carried out nicely. A good example might be: “If you enjoyed the item we provided, please write a review.”

This is an action you can do at the time of sale, but you can also do it later, like when a consumer comments on a social media post or advertisement, “I truly enjoyed this product.” If you are aware that they have not written a review yet, a straightforward response like, “Thanks for letting us know and we are glad you enjoyed the product”. Can you please write a review?” would suffice. You may also provide a link to the page on which the majority of your customer feedback on social media is displayed.

In any emails you convey to them, you may also nicely remind them to submit a review or ask them to do so. Asking a customer if they are pleased with their purchase in a follow-up email sent a few weeks after they have completed a purchase can demonstrate good customer service. Then, you can just ask a simple question like, “If you are satisfied with what you bought, we would be very thankful if you wrote a review.”

It is essential for every business looking to establish a presence in the market to gather as many social media client evaluations as possible. Simply said, more reviews result in more consumers. For instance, if you can amass a large number of favorable reviews for your mobile application during the early stages of your business, you may experience a surge in revenue that mirrors the favorable comments made by your initial group of users.

#4- Point Out Favorable Customer Feedback On Social Media

You should highlight good reviews wherever you can, especially if they include any supplementary materials like screenshots or videos of the customer using the product. When compared to material on websites or campaigns without it, user-contributed content (UGC) can result in online conversions that are 29% greater.

Any startup is constantly conscious of the need to save expenses, but it is not just about that. Sharing positive social media customer feedback and/or user-generated content is a fantastic approach for a new company to build brand exposure. Startups frequently confront greater difficulties than an established company does. They need to draw clients, but they also need to make sure they abide by rules and laws, such as getting an EIN (employment identification number).

People are unfamiliar with you and your brand when you are first starting out as a business. Customer reviews are a great method to build trust and expand your business. If people read favorable social media customer evaluations from their peers, they are more inclined to utilize your business, and sharing such feedback can result in positive sales spikes.

While $4.14 billion is anticipated to be committed in this group of people in 2022, influencers are frequently viewed as excellent marketing tools, but nothing tops the traditional recommendations from relatives and close friends. Potential buyers are more inclined to believe reviews or other information when it comes from individuals who have no personal motivation to advocate a company or item.

#5- Visual Marketing Resources

Particularly user-initiated stuff, the UGC we mentioned, as was previously noted, people adore visual stuff. In comparison to an internal video, a post featuring a client explaining how they use what you sell is more likely to receive views, likes, and shares. That is not to suggest the latter shouldn’t be prioritized; internal movies may be a fantastic method to show clients how your product functions and fulfills their demands.

Videos alone should not make up all visual information. Infographics are a terrific method to inform and amuse potential consumers, get them to buy your product, and, ideally, encourage them to post a review that will enhance your sales. Posts that are only text-based will not pique attention in the same way as those that contain images.

Utilizing social media to create a mailing list for email marketing is another thing to think about. Building your client base and informing customers of new items and/or advancements can be done very effectively by having a list like this one that is connected to your social media sites. Use an email verification application to validate each address on your list; this might be a critical technique for a company.

The fact that visual information may be utilized on any social media site is another significant benefit. You might create your own YouTube channel and upload all of your videos there, for instance, if you decide to create a lot of video material. People may look at additional stuff you have written after clicking on a link. One caution is to be mindful of any limitations that platforms may impose on video duration and to modify or trim your films as necessary.

#6- Improve Your Posts & Content via Optimization

Engaging your audience is one thing, but doing it effectively is quite another. Make careful to optimize all material, including the posting of reviews, if you would like your social media postings to achieve momentum. Make sure that the content you post on social media, including customer evaluations, is visible to the audience you desire.

A post extolling the merits of cloud-based software for call centers on a web page or platform where none of those viewing it will be interested in is of little use. This is just an example of a bad optimization. As a startup, you could just be providing a small selection of goods or services, but you nevertheless desire your content to have the effect of generating purchases and, therefore, reviews (which can boost sales even more).

You should seek posts with good SEO content in addition to connections to landing pages or blogs that further raise awareness if you want to build interest in your company. Additionally, you want to think about timing your social media postings. Lackluster or badly written material will cause customers to choose other brands over yours, resulting in low sales numbers, few reviews, and consequently no uptick in sales.

When it involves optimization, it’s also important to keep in mind that fashions and tastes mutate with time. As a result, it is important to constantly examine your material to ensure that it adheres to whatever standards you may have established from earlier audits. As the phrases and words that consumers use to search could change over time too, this might include any adjustments you need to make to your SEO approach.

Final Thoughts

Startups typically have a small budget to get started with and face several obstacles when attempting to separate from the competition. However, one of their main areas of attention should be social media platforms, since they can be the simplest ways to expand your brand’s visibility, reach, and sales. The initial customer evaluations you get on social media may be the most crucial ones you ever get since they might result in a rapid increase in sales numbers.

Sales and company upswings are beneficial in the short term, but you want to recreate and continue this cycle. While you may not have complete control over when individuals publish social media feedback from clients, you can always get good results by consistently trying to inspire them and then sharing them on your social media channels.

Social media customer evaluations may serve as a gauge for the caliber of your after-sale assistance and customer care in addition to serving as a confirmation of the value of the goods or services you provide. Even when a consumer has an issue, if they observe how your business addresses and resolves any problem swiftly and effectively, this may influence their decision to turn into a new customer.

It is obvious that consumer evaluations on social media may improve your bottom line. So why are you still waiting? Use these suggestions to promote your business and begin requesting reviews.

About Brian: Brian Jackson is the founder of Shoestring Branding - a marketing and branding blog for entrepreneurs, with an emphasis on internet-based tools and strategies.