When retailers with eCommerce sites were asked by an RSR survey which technologies they most valued two of the top three answers were Product Reviews (52%) and Product Recommendations (50%). These results are consistent with previous years’ surveys in spite of the large number of newer technologies that have since become available.
Retailers with eCommerce sites know from monitoring their sites that product reviews and recommendations sell more products. According to Reevoo  there’s a 178% conversion uplift when users read reviews and recommendations on site.
From a shoppers perspective the value of reviews and recommendations is growing because in difficult economic conditions it becomes increasingly important that they make the right product choices. A key way to get that confidence to buy comes from other buyers’ feedback.
How can physical stores capitalise on customers recommendations and reviews?
One of the surprising findings from the Bazaarvoice’s Conversation Index is that half of online customer feedback comes from shoppers who actually bought their products in stores. This shows that shoppers in physical stores are prepared to contribute their reviews and recommendations. Retailers need to capitalise on that willingness and there are a number of ways that they can collect and access reviews and recommendations.
The challenge then becomes getting that review and recommendation information in front of shoppers at the shelf edge while they are in the store. The first step is to manage and organise the reviews and recommendations and integrate them with all of the other information that needs to be available to customers at the shelf edge. Retailers can then produce printed promotional tickets that sell on demand in all of their stores. They can even use different recommendations for the same product in different parts of the country and change review and recommendation information within hours. In fact stores might even be able to use recommendations and reviews more effectively than eCommerce sites!