With the meteoric rise in online shopping, businesses large and small have had to devise new ways to reach customers and engage with them. According to statistics, 93% of shoppers read reviews and consider them before purchasing a product. 

For businesses, it should come as no surprise that people want reassurance before they spend money on a product or service. With the immense trust placed in online reviews, businesses should seriously consider their online presence regarding customer reviews, as well as their responses to those reviews. 

Proof Drives Purchases 

The number of shoppers who read and consider reviews online is staggering, meaning that there is strong evidence to suggest that positive reviews and thoughtful responses drive an increase in purchases. Consumers like to know that there is support for their decisions and that others agree with those decisions. Simply put, people care what others think, and are far more likely to make a purchase if others think it’s a good idea or adds value — even if those people are complete strangers. 

Online reputation matters in business, and customers’ reviews play into this reputation. Customer reviews are a large part of social proof, and they play a big role in the overall reputation of a business. Social proof adds credibility to customers’ claims of value and success. A company can claim to be the best, but at the end of the day, when everyone on the internet seems to agree (or disagree), that perception can make or break the company’s ability to reach new customers and grow successfully.

Algorithms Will Love Your Brand 

Driving customer reviews to your business is also SEO- and algorithm-friendly. For instance, 60% of shoppers begin their product research journey online, and their first stop is typically Google. 

Customer reviews help fuel Google’s search engine and the content that appears in results, encouraging favorable rankings for your item, service, or brand. The more attention your brand receives via customer reviews, the better it can ride the wave of Google’s ever-changing algorithms. The higher your brand or business is ranked, the more authority it has through Google’s algorithmic ranking system. 

When and Where to Ask for Reviews 

So, how does a business get these reviews without being perceived as too pushy or desperate? Studies show that brands who ask for reviews have a higher chance of getting 5-star ratings than those who rely solely on unprompted customer feedback. Customers are more likely to take to the internet to give their opinion unprompted when they are upset about something. However, if you know you have happy customers, asking for feedback — both reactively and proactively — can help you get that collection of 5-star reviews that all brands crave. 

Businesses can also ask for reviews via email once the transaction is completed, or after the item has already been purchased. According to research, as much as 70% of reviews are prompted from post-transactional emails. An email list can be a lifeline for businesses looking to engage with customers and build their brand. 

Review requests should be short, to the point, and courteous to the customer. Reviews can also be sent via text or social media message. 

In any case, requests for reviews shouldn’t wait. You want your happy customers or clients to have their positive experience with your brand fresh in their minds when the time comes for them to leave a review. You can even have customers review their experience immediately after purchasing your product. 

Responding to Reviews 

How you respond to a review is essential and can spell the difference between a returning customer and a lost customer. More and more, customers expect responses to their feedback from companies they purchase from. Businesses have the opportunity, especially with social media, to speak directly to their customers that are leaving reviews. Responses can either go very well, or, as we have seen through viral posts repeatedly, very badly. 

When a negative review does crop up, businesses should respond thoughtfully. Some programs can immediately respond to any review, letting the customer know that their review has been received and is being addressed. However, a personal response can go a long way towards retaining customers and building trust and loyalty. Remember that arguing with customers or responding harshly to negative feedback they provide in a public forum won’t put your business in a favorable light. 

Nearly half of all shoppers say they trust customer reviews as much as they trust recommendations from friends and family. When businesses want to create a trusted brand that spurs customer loyalty, reviews can be their “ace in the hole.” Going after positive reviews can help a business thrive and drive a significant increase in sales. 

For consumers, the human desire for support of their purchasing decisions will never go away. To ensure you don’t miss out on opportunities to increase revenue or brand-building, businesses should go after those reviews and make them a larger component of their overall marketing efforts.

The post Why Customer Reviews Increase Sales appeared first on SiteProNews.

With the rise of virtual work, artificial intelligence (AI), and talk of the metaverse, people are getting far more comfortable having more interaction with technology. Advertisers can leverage this increased comfort with technology and create interactive ads, leading to greater engagement and lead generation.

What Are Interactive Ads?

Interactive ads maximize user or viewer interaction with augmented reality and gamification. Advertising experts are aware that they need to get creative to hold their target markets’ attention and interest. With advances in technology comes the ability to infuse traditional advertising with the latest in eye-catching interactive content. Think of the splash that Pokemon Go made in 2016. People signed up in droves to get outside and interact with the game in real time. It was something unique and intriguing. Interactive advertising works in much the same way, catching the eye and drawing people in to engage with a brand or product.

According to a study, interactive advertisements get 47% more viewing time than static ones, proving to be a much more beneficial option.

How to Integrate Interactive Ads

Given the positive stats on the effectiveness of interactive advertising, businesses will likely want to consider how to integrate interactive ads into their marketing plan. There are many ways this can be accomplished:

Require an Action Instead of Entry of Personal Information – One reason companies want to run ads or pop-ups is to build their email marketing list. This goal is accomplished by collecting information on users. However, consumers have become wise to that approach and may be reluctant to plug in the requested information.

Marketers can create interactive ads that request a consumer perform an action (clicks a button, for example). The action performed leads the consumer to more information about the company, product, or service. The consumer is now interacting fully with the ad and will be more apt to offer their data. Even if their data is not eventually given, interactive ads can be used to collect geographic or demographic information that can be later used for targeted ads.

Use Playable Ads – There has been a notable rise in the gamification of ads. With gamified ads, consumers receive a reward for their interaction with the ad. The gamification industry is huge and only growing with each passing year. This growth is due to the highly successful outcomes gamification exhibits.

Companies that incorporate real games into their ads or weave a contest into marketing have seen great engagement and investment returns.

Interactive Films – Marketers can lead consumers to a truly unique experience with interactive films. Consumers can choose from multiple pathways and determine the outcome of the film. One example of how this was expertly applied was with Honda’s “Other Side” campaign, which worked much like the old “Choose Your Own Adventure” books. This interactive commercial allowed consumers to choose between two story outcomes by pressing a particular key on their keyboard. Since Honda’s innovative marketing film emerged in 2015, the technology behind this concept has only grown. Marketers are only limited by their imaginations at this point and have the ability to create more evocative ads sure to draw in even the most cynical consumer.

Virtual Reality – Imagine clicking an ad and being able to test drive a car from the comfort of your own home. Imagine opening a door and taking a tour of a home from your desk. Virtual reality technology is advancing by leaps and bounds with each passing year, and marketers are taking note. They have been using VR technology in their interactive ads, and the trend shows no signs of slowing.

Interactive Displays/Billboards – Interactive advertising is not just limited to online or social media use. Many companies have developed interactive advertising meant for billboards or street advertising. One ingenious campaign was by Reebok. To compete with big names like Nike and Adidas, Reebok devised a truly interactive street ad that prompted passers-by to run past the billboard. Those who ran fast enough could score a free pair of sneakers.

The more creative marketers can get with interactive displays, the more successful the campaign will likely become.

The Cost of Innovation

Businesses and marketing professionals may wonder how much this innovation may cost. Crafting such a personalized experience may seem expensive at first, and depending on the size and scope of the campaign, it very well can be. Interactive campaigns can take some time to show their return on investment. However, if brands are willing to be patient, interactive ad campaigns can eventually build massive brand loyalty and recognition.

Passive advertising, both online and in-person, may be losing some of its luster in an increasingly digital world. Companies can set themselves apart from the competition and create genuinely personalized engagement with their target markets by considering and implementing interactive advertising.

The post How Using Interactive Ads Will Generate More Leads appeared first on SiteProNews.

Which digital marketing channel should I use and why?

The largest advertising channels available are owned and operated by Google, Facebook, and Amazon. Google offers platforms such as Google Search, YouTube, Google Shopping, and Google Display. Facebook has both Facebook and Instagram. If you are an e-commerce company selling products directly to consumers online, Amazon is the go-to place.

When deciding what channel to use, it boils down to understanding your target audience and what they’re looking for. If you offer a service or product people are already searching for online, typically, Google searches will be your best place to start. Google search allows you to reach people at the exact time they’re searching for your service or product. After that, all you need to do is show them you have the solution.

On the other hand, if you’ve created a new product people aren’t yet aware of, Google Shopping isn’t the best channel for you. Using Facebook or Instagram to proactively create product awareness will be a more successful strategy. The best choice of online marketing channel depends on what you’re selling, where your audience is, and whether they know about your product.

In online marketing, is SEO or PPC better?

SEO and PPC are both essential ingredients in the alphabet soup of online advertising. SEO stands for search engine optimization, and it involves getting content from your website to appear organically in search engines. People go to search engines like Google or Bing to enter keywords related to things they want to find. If you can get content from your website to rank high in search engine results, the people searching for those keywords will visit your website and see the product or service you provide.

The beauty of organic traffic is that it’s free. When I say “free,” I mean you’re not paying Google or Bing directly. Good SEO strategy can still be expensive, however. To rank high in searches, you need to create high-quality content and get that content posted across the internet.

PPC stands for pay per click. It’s an advertising model where you pay for each click that brings people to your website. When you search on Google, you’ll usually see paid ads at the top of the page and organic listings below.

The downside of PPC is that you pay for the traffic. Don’t let this deter you from PPC’s benefits, though.

Paid ads are the first thing most people see when they search Google. If you’re not up there, you’re going to miss a lot of traffic. Since people usually click the first one or two things they see, that exposure is a big deal.

It can be tough to rank organically on competitive or popular keywords. It can take years, and sometimes it never happens. PPC ads offer you control and predictability. You’re paying to reach the exact users you want to engage.

PPC will usually offer faster results. SEO is a longer-term play. The best strategy is to use both. Showing up in both paid ads and organic listings will maximize traffic to your website.

How can I best leverage my existing online audience in advertising?

If you have an existing audience, there are ways to leverage that asset in online marketing. First-party data, such as an email address list, can extend your online reach and engagement.

First, providing that data to Google and Facebook enables you to deliver ads to those specific people. Let’s say you have a seasonal product you want to cross-sell. Every Valentine’s Day, you can reach out to existing customers using their first-party data.

Another way you can leverage your existing audience is by identifying new customers similar to your current customers. You can accomplish this through Google’s Similar Audiences and Facebook’s Lookalike Audiences. After you provide a list of your existing customers, Google and Facebook examine their behavior patterns and demographics and target ads to people who have similar interests or behaviors.

Finally, you can leverage your existing audience through user-generated content. This strategy involves motivating your audience to create content related to your product, such as unboxing videos, reviews, and testimonials. You can leverage those assets in marketing campaigns on your website to increase the conversion rate. The content will also help you rank higher in organic searches.

What strategies are working best right now on Google?

Google is currently pushing automation in advertising campaigns. The most important thing is knowing when and how to use it.

Don’t put blind trust in Google’s automation. I’ve seen way too many cases where things go wrong. It’s crucial to have experts who know what to look for and monitor things.

You need to have parameters on the advertising campaigns you’re running, monitor things closely, and be ready to make changes if you see a problem. At the same time, if you try to keep everything manual, you’re going to be left behind by competitors who’ve figured out how to utilize automation to capture the customers you want.

Should online marketers run standard or smart shopping campaigns?

You’ll use shopping campaigns to provide data to Google about the products you sell through your e-commerce website. Shopping campaigns allow you to enter data and images related to your products into a format that generates ads. These are the ads you see at the top of Google’s search pages with pictures, prices, and links to specific products.

There are two different ways you can run campaigns to highlight your products. A standard shopping campaign involves a manual approach. You’re selecting which product you want to advertise and setting your own bid. You retain more control, but more work goes into that campaign.

A smart shopping campaign is automated. You’re still selecting which product to feature and setting some parameters, but Google does a lot of the work after that. In most cases, smart shopping campaigns work more efficiently and drive higher returns on ad spend with higher volumes in sales than standard campaigns. We use standard campaigns to prime the system and collect information such as conversion rate data and click data. Then, we let the smart shopping campaign take over.

What are common mistakes new advertisers are making?

There are definitely some common pitfalls new advertisers encounter in online marketing. We frequently see a lack of understanding of Google’s and Facebook’s advertising policies. Many people new to marketing accidentally violate these policies resulting in their suspension from Google or Facebook. That suspension can cause all kinds of delays, frustrations, and problems for new entrepreneurs.

Another common mistake I see occurs primarily in the e-commerce space. Many people new to e-commerce are drawn in by claims that online marketers can set up a website and outsource all the work. The truth is, you have to invest a lot of time and energy into any kind of successful e-commerce business. There’s no such thing as a “get rich quick” business model. We see a lot of new e-commerce entrepreneurs throwing up a quick e-commerce website and expecting the money to roll in. That very rarely works.

Another common mistake is trying to do everything yourself. A lot of expertise goes into determining where you should invest your marketing budget. There’s certainly a place for you as a business owner to explore advertising because it plays a vital role in your company’s success. At the same time, you’ll want to take advantage of the experts. People who work in agencies like StubGroup focus entirely on digital advertising and its rapidly changing strategies. Their expertise can save your business a tremendous amount of time and money.

The post Do’s and Don’ts of Online Advertising on Big Markets appeared first on SiteProNews.