The Best Way to Generate Five Star Reviews
If you’re selling products on Amazon, you already know how important it is to generate 5 star product reviews, but here’s some additional context.
- 79% of consumers check reviews on Amazon before making a purchase
- Only 6% of Amazon shoppers “rarely” or “never” read reviews
- 76% of online shoppers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations
Soliciting reviews for Amazon products is not the answer, but you can generate reviews strategically. This strategy is every bit as important as choosing the right products, optimizing your listing, and managing inventory. Without five star reviews, your rankings will suffer and customers will hesitate before buying your products.
In this post, I’ll share my “six-star formula”. Implement this formula into your process, and you’ll generate the reviews you need to outrank your competition and earn your customers’ trust.
I want five star product reviews on Amazon. Why is it called the six star formula?
Glad you asked!
People are busy, and they are not inclined to take time to leave reviews for products. Many of your customers place so many orders on Amazon that they forget what’s in the package until they open it. If you want them to stop what they’re doing and leave a five star review, you need to deliver an experience that’s above and beyond their expectations.
I came up with the six-star experience to encourage a mindset of over-delivering, to the point that customers will feel compelled to leave a five star review. I wrote a thorough breakdown of the formula in my book, Ride the Amazon Wave.
Here are the six stars you should deliver to get Amazon reviews.
The First Star: The product must do what it’s supposed to do
This is a no-brainer, right? Actually, many of the negative reviews for Amazon products result from sellers who fail to deliver what they promise in the listing.
Remember that any review less than 5 stars hurts you. With this in mind, ask yourself if the product will work for EVERYONE. For example, skin rejuvenation products or weight loss products often invite negative reviews because they don’t work for some people.
Most sellers don’t intend to sell a poor product, but it’s easy to overlook the possibility that the product won’t achieve the desired result for ALL of you customers. I always advise sellers to choose products that will work for everyone so there’s no room for negative reviews.
The Second Star: Installation and use must be crystal clear
How much patience do you have for setting up products? Your customers feel the same way. Make it as easy as possible for them to install or start using your product. Use the following checklist to ensure you deliver the second star:
- Simple packaging
- Clear instructions and/or a link to a setup video (if there’s any complexity to the setup)
- Include storage materials or instructions if necessary
- Test the experience of opening and setting up your product
Some products require customers to set up an app to use the product. If you sell these products, test the app setup. If any part of the process is confusing, you risk negative reviews.
The Third Star: Is the product better directed toward one customer or a single use?
Some sellers steer clear of demand saturation. I feel that where there’s demand saturation, there’s opportunity. This is true not only on Amazon, but throughout the history of consumer behavior.
The car industry started with one model from Ford. Everyone wanted a car, and now there are more options than you can imagine. This concept is supercharged on Amazon, where we can segment by keyword and by audience interests. With that in mind, your product must fall into one of three categories:
- Target one use. Headphones became saturated, but now there are brands made specifically for gaming or for podcasts or for working out.
- Target one audience. I saw a first aid kit with stickers and characters – designed for kids! The product isn’t new or better, but it’s branded for one specific audience.
- It’s better than all of the competition. You know these products when you see them. If you’re a parent, you’ll recognize the Oogiebear (pictured). Believe me, it gets the job done.
If you identify demand saturation, consider the second or third options to provide a unique product.
The Fourth Star: Would YOU leave a 5 star review?
Simply put, your product needs to be amazing to compel someone to leave a review. Here’s an easy way to see if this is true about your product. You’ve used it. Have you told anyone about how great it is?
If not, you can improve it. Would someone tell their friends about it? Would they take photos and share it? Strive for products that deliver that experience.
The Fifth Star: The product must come with great customer service
All of the successful Amazon sellers I’ve met share something in common: they provide excellent customer service.
Of course, customer interactions should be fast and frictionless. After that, here’s the best way to differentiate your customer service: talk to them like actual people who use your product.
In the Lego example pictured, the response includes subtle references to Star Wars that this customer is likely to appreciate. Every time you talk to your customers is a chance to impress them. Ditch the boring templates and adopt this mentality in every customer interaction.
One tactical point to add here. Amazon provides you the option of providing a “courtesy refund” or a “customer review” to follow up on the issue. Choose the latter so you can identify the actual issue.
Based on your interaction, I recommend offering two of these three:
- Refund
- Replacement
- A different free product
And again, use this opportunity to have a personal interaction. Mix up your approach to see how you can use wit and personal touch to diffuse conflict before it begins.
The Sixth Star: The product must deliver a six-star customer experience
You can be really good at the first five points, and still fail to generate the number of five star Amazon reviews you want. That’s why I call it the six-star formula. Here’s where you differentiate your brand and your customer experience.
Many Amazon sellers are overly “professional” in customer interactions out of fear. This is not the way to differentiate your brand.
- Unique packaging – opening your package is part of the product experience, so make it special. Check out the example from Away Travel.
- A free product – but not just any product; it needs to be something of high quality that adds to the experience, even if it’s small.
- Inserts – give them one last way to re-engage and get something of value from your product, but do not ask for a review in the insert.
- Humor – you know your customers, so add a note to showcase your brand’s personality if it fits with the product. (A friend of mine added instructions for “worst results” on his swimsuit brand for kids.)
And that’s it! Deliver those six stars, and I promise those five-star reviews will practically write themselves. Remember, your goal is to over-deliver and surprise. Even if you optimize everything else about your business, your brand must include a strategy to impress customers to the point that they’re raving to their friends.
Tomer Rabinovich is an Amazon seller who has created and launched multiple private label brands. He still sells products on Amazon, but spends a majority of his time coaching online sellers to scale their businesses. To learn his secrets to growing on Amazon, read his book or check out more of his content at jointopdog.com.
