Here’s an undeniable fact: Product reviews trigger shoppers to buy.
Admit it, you probably have fallen in love with an Amazon product before…
Only to get turned off by the lack of reviews.
And I get it.
In such a buyer-centric platform like Amazon, items that don’t have any reviews are barely viewed by customers…
Making it hard to make a sale and get more feedback.
Going back to the first time I heard about Amazon, my initial impression was that selling on the platform is pretty straightforward.
You build an Amazon store, launch your products, and sales would automatically kick in.
And when customers start buying from your store, you get reviews then your ranking goes up which leads to more sales and more feedback.
** Woohoo HAPPY DANCE **
But the thing is…
That’s not how it works in real life.
Sure, there may be rare cases where a newly-launched product seamlessly becomes a bestseller overnight…
But that doesn’t apply to most Amazon sellers, especially the new ones.
Cause truth be told…
If you don’t have reviews, you don’t get sales.
And if you don’t get sales, you won’t get reviews.
Doesn’t it seem like the chicken-egg dilemma of which should come first? – the sale or the review? #confused 🤷♂️
And it is for these reasons that initial sales and reviews have become every Amazon seller’s sore points – be it for newbies or seasoned ones.
Now, given the fact that you’ll be competing with “old” products that have been on Amazon for a while now (which means they have reviews already)…
How do you think you can sell a newly-launched product and get a piece of the Amazon sales cake without any review to show for?
How can you get your first testimonials and how many do you need exactly to start competing?
What’s next after getting your first reviews?
Let’s discuss them in detail in the following sections.
Importance of Product Reviews on Amazon
Before we dig into the specifics of how you can obtain product reviews immediately, let’s first take a look on how important they are for Amazon sellers.
You see, testimonials help build trust among consumers.
As it’s impossible to physically inspect an item while shopping online, Amazon product reviews provide a channel for potential buyers to know more about the item and hear first-hand experiences from people who already bought it.
They give real-life feedback on every detail of the product and paint a picture of what sets it apart from others…
Helping buyers make more informed decisions.
In a nutshell, shoppers look for positive reviews first before they Add to Cart, proceed to Checkout, and ultimately click the “Pay Now” button.
Therefore, it is imperative for every Amazon seller to understand how customer feedback can make or break their e-commerce business.
Okay here’s an interesting fact…
Amazon expects every seller to gain 2-3 reviews per 100 sales generated (that’s 2-3%).
So if you see a product with 100 reviews, they’ve probably already made 5000 sales in its lifetime.
And for a product with 20,000 reviews, it might’ve already sold a million units!
With these data, it’s safe to say that reviews alone can tell us how long an item has been on Amazon and give us a benchmark on how hard it is for newbies to compete.
So now that we know what we know…
How do we get reviews FAST?
How To Gain Reviews on Amazon
Writing a review about a product isn’t mandatory for Amazon customers. They aren’t obliged to give a seller a rating and feedback everytime they buy an item on the platform.
They give reviews of their own will. They do it by choice and not because they’re forced.
So what do you think would make customers write a review for you?
Here are some measures that prompt buyers to return the favor and give you a written account of how satisfied they are with your products and services.
- Sell an Amazing Product
This is how our brain works:
If a product is awesome, we can’t help but share the excitement and the good news to other people. But we don’t get prompted that much to leave a review.
But if the product is awful, we’ll do everything in our power to warn others and make sure they don’t get disappointed the way we did. And the best way to do that? NEGATIVE REVIEWS.
Check here to find amazing products that customers will love and won’t resist buying.
- Provide Stellar Customer Service
An all-star customer service is unforgettable. Even if a customer wishes to return an item or report an issue, great customer service can flip the table and still earn you that positive review.
- Optimize Your Product Listing
Nothing beats an optimized listing stuffed with breathtaking images and the most searched keywords in its product title, bullet points and descriptions. The more visible a listing is, the higher probability to sell and gain more reviews.
- Amazon Early Reviewer Program
Here’s a consolation to all of us: Amazon understands how hard it is to get the first few reviews. So they developed this helping hand so sellers get the initial testimonials they need to start selling.
Amazon Early Review Program:
Amazon sends follow up emails to customers who have purchased their products and offers them a $1-$3 reward for writing a review.
Cost for Sellers: $60 per SKU
Eligibility: Open for Brand Registered sellers in the US only who have products with less than 5 reviews and cost more than $15.
- Include Packaging Inserts
These are promotional materials you can include in your packaging to ask for a review.
- Build an Email List and Utilize It
Gather email addresses off-Amazon and then send out emails about your product with a link to your Amazon product listing.
These tactics are proven to bring in reviews overtime, but if you’re looking to get both SALES and REVIEWS almost at the same time…
I’ll let you in on an obvious secret – THERE IS A BETTER WAY.
The ZonBase Way of Getting Your First Sales and Reviews Simultaneously
This may shock you…
Cause the ZonBase way is so simple yet most people fail to realize it.
Heck, it isn’t even a secret at all!
IT ALL BOILS DOWN TO YOUR PRIVATE NETWORK.
Think of your social media connections, your friends’ list on Facebook or your followers on Instagram (*Ting! Light bulb*).
Yep, that’s your leverage.
You can actually tap your own private network from your social media accounts, find 2-3 people who will buy, test your product, and write a review for you.
And when I say “social media network”, I’m not talking about family members, relatives, business associates, employers, or employees…
Cause they are prohibited as per the Amazon Community Guidelines.
And though friends are not explicitly mentioned in the seller policies, let’s safely assume that “close friends” are excluded from giving Amazon reviews too.
As to how Amazon will know? Well let’s just say some accounts have already been banned by not following the rules, so better be safe than sorry. 🙂
Now back to your private network…
Who else is eligible then?
Well you can ask your CASUAL friends…
Those you say hi to and may chat with a little from time to time…
People you know who can’t give a false opinion, or stretch the truth about the product’s quality or features.
Someone who really can be objective!
And by tapping on your private network, you can easily get your first sales and reviews which will help you move forward to your product launch’s next phase – Amazon PPC.
Launching a New Product on Amazon with ZonBase-managed PPC
2-3 reviews.
That’s the minimum number of testimonials you need to start selling your newly launched products.
And since it’s not a good idea to start advertising heavily with PPC if you don’t have reviews yet, 2-3 reviews are enough to kickstart your campaigns.
[Note to graphic editor: Create a variant of the diagram above so it won’t be a copy-paste from another site.]
The ZonBase product launch strategy involves a 3-step approach outlined in the diagram above.
It starts with generating the first few sales and encouraging your early customers to leave product reviews.
And once you have collected 2-3 reviews, you shoot up your PPC efforts to drive paid traffic to your product, further push your sales, and eventually land on Page One of the Amazon searches.
Amazon Product Launch with Pay-per-Click (PPC) Campaigns
Now that you have the initial reviews you need, we’ve reached the final stage of our launch strategy – PPC marketing.
PPC campaigns help you skyrocket your sales and overcome the problem of not ranking in the early days of a newly launched product.
And this starts with finding the right keywords, tweaking your listing to incorporate the search terms, and setting up and optimizing your PPC campaigns.
And the good news is…
You don’t have to create and manage your PPC campaigns on your own cause ZonBase can do all the legwork for you!
With ZonBase PPC Autopilot, you’ll have a team of Amazon experts who will do all the PPC work 24/7, 365 days.
You become completely HANDS-OFF from your PPC initiatives and outsource the whole headache of managing your PPC, which in return brings profits without you doing anything!
Just imagine the keyword research, listing optimization, Page One launch, and PPC all taken care of for you…
How much time and effort would that save you?
Final Thoughts
Product reviews are an essential part of an Amazon store’s branding and marketing.
They help build trust and loyalty, and sets your products apart from the competition.
True, product reviews aren’t automatic…
But there are various ways to convince your customers to write a testimonial about your products and services.
And there’s an even much simpler way to hit your first sales and reviews at the same time!
What is it?
YOUR NETWORK.
You can tap your private network in social media to give your products a shot and provide feedback.
And once you’ve secured your first few sales + reviews, it’s now time to scale by entrusting your marketing efforts to ZonBase!
Letting our team take charge of these stressful and time-consuming aspects of your Amazon business gives you more time to focus on growing it rather than being in it.
Want our team to take over?
