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When it comes to ecommerce, marketers know that social proof is crucial to their success in winning new customers. But, building a library of social proof and using it to convert customers is easier said than done.
That’s why we’ve compiled a list of three foundational tips you can use to guide your journey with ecommerce social proof—from gathering reviews to optimizing your website.
Send strategic follow-up emails to collect reviews
Collecting enough reviews and other forms of user-generated content (UGC) is the first hurdle when it comes to social proof. One of the most effective ways to collect customer feedback is by implementing a triggered email program.
Shortly after a customer purchases and receives your product, send them an email asking them what they think. Provide an easy way to leave a review by linking directly to that section of your website or adding the ability to submit directly through the email. This makes it easy for the customer to provide their thoughts—just be careful to build in enough time for the customer to receive and use your product.
Monitor social media
While asking your customers for reviews is a great way to build up your library of UGC, don’t forget to watch out for earned media in the form of positive social media posts about your brand! That’s right, your customers may be posting about your products on their social media accounts without you even asking!
Consider investing in social listening software like Talkwalker or BuzzSumo to keep your finger on the pulse of what your customers are saying about your company. If those tools don’t fit your company’s budget, never underestimate the power of a simple search of your company’s name or product on sites like Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok! Whatever path you choose to find social media posts about your brand, be sure to get permission from the happy customer first before you use their quote or likeness on your site.
Optimize your social proof
Once you’ve gathered enough social proof examples, it’s time to start running website experiments to understand which types of social proof work best for your visitors. In order to do so, you’ll need to invest in CRO software that uses machine learning to create 1:1 personalization. In doing so you’ll be able to show the right social proof to the right visitor to help them down your conversion funnel.
In addition to testing which types of social proof to show on your site, you’ll also want to test the placement as well as the look and feel of the social proof. Do your visitors respond better when you use a bright-colored box around a customer review to catch their eye? Should you place it below or to the right of the image of a product on its product detail page (PDP)?
While the effectiveness of a social proof variation will vary company to company, Intellimize’s machine learning-powered website testing will give you the insight you need to understand how you can best leverage your social proof.
We hope these three strategies give you the inspiration you need to uplevel your social proof game and drive some impressive results!
