Yotpo has partnered with Bazaarvoice to syndicate reviews through the latter’s network, which includes nearly 2,000 global retail sites and reaches more than a billion shoppers monthly, according to the company. Yotpo is evolving from a reputation management platform to an “end-to-end platform” for direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands.
The move is intended to expand the reach of Yotpo-managed reviews content for retailers. Below is an example of a Yotpo review residing on the Nordstrom website via the Bazaarvoice Network. (There’s a disclosure it came from the merchant on the reviews page.)
98% are influenced by ‘authentic’ reviews. Nobody questions the importance of reviews in building consumer trust and social proof. Indeed, a 2019 Yotpo survey of 2,000 online shoppers found that “98% consider authentic customer reviews to be the most influential factor in influencing purchase decisions.” Other surveys agree with this finding, although at different percentage levels. However, a 2019 study from CPC Strategy (part of Elite SEM) found that, on Amazon, price was the biggest factor in purchase decisions, followed by reviews.
Review syndication via Bazaarvoice
4+ stars = 12X more sales. Additional Yotpo research found that products rated 4-stars or above generated “nearly 12 times more orders than those with an average rating of 3 stars.” As part of that same study, interestingly, the company discovered that people are more inclined to write reviews for more expensive products. Yotpo also says that websites featuring reviews generate more organic search traffic, from long-tail keywords, than those without reviews.
Yotpo qualified its 98% review reliance finding with the word “authentic.” That’s partly because review fraud is a growing problem according to several third party analyses (Washington Post, ReviewMeta, Fakespot). One early 2019 survey found limited consumer awareness of the fake reviews problem (on Amazon). However, a more recent study, released in December, found a majority of people (70%) were looking at multiple review sites as an anti-fraud strategy.
Why we care. Notwithstanding some erosion of consumer trust regarding online reviews, it’s critical for local and e-commerce merchants to have a reviews strategy and to maintain review velocity. It’s also important to have a diversified strategy as people look increasingly to multiple sites to confirm that reviews on site A are echoed by site B for the same product or property.
About The Author
Greg Sterling is a Contributing Editor to Search Engine Land, a member of the programming team for SMX events and the VP, Market Insights at Uberall.