Tag Archives: tips

Do Shoppers Really Believe Customer Reviews?

26 Sep

As marketers, we have become increasingly knowledgeable about the power of online customer reviewers. And we recognize that many shoppers place more weight on these reviews than on company-sponsored communications.

Let’s look at some research by Trustpilot, a customer review consultant to business.  According to eMarketer:

“In early 2016, Trustpilot surveyed 1,132 Internet users ages 18 and older. In all, 80.7% said reviews were somewhat or very important to their purchase decisions. Few users said reviews did not influence their decisions when deciding on a product to buy. Just 4.7% said reviews were somewhat or very unimportant.  When it comes to when users are most likely to read reviews, roughly half said it’s while they’re on a site, before adding the item to their cart. Nearly a quarter said they were more likely to read reviews earlier in the process: while on a company’s Web site, but prior to actively shopping. Another 18.5% read reviews primarily before visiting a company’s Web site at all.”

Stage of the Buying Process During Which US Internet Users Are Most Likely to Read Reviews, Feb 2016 (% of respondents)
 
Retail Touchpoints wrote this about Trustpilot’s research:

“While the majority of consumers believe online reviews help them along their shopping journey (88%), only a fraction of these customers (18%) actually trust that all the information contained within the reviews is valid, according to Trustpilot. This significant gap reveals that it is critical for businesses to not only incorporate online reviews into the shopping experience, but to deploy them in a way that will build trust and transparency with the consumer. To close the gap between those seeking out trustworthy online reviews and those who believe the reviews are fully authentic, Trustpilot recommends that retailers gain a greater understanding of how shoppers read, write. and believe in online reviews. Half of consumers feel the overall rating of a review or a high-level, easy-to-understand aggregation of a company’s feedback to it are the most important factors when it comes to reading online reviews. Additionally, 20% cited how recently the reviews were posted as the most important factor, while another 20% said the number of reviews posted for a product is more relevant.”

“The report identified several best practices to help businesses create more trustworthy customer feedback strategies, including: ensuring online reviews are easy to find and showcasing them to customers during every step of the shopping experience; giving customers a forum for reviews and inviting them to leave their opinion; responding to negative feedback in real time; asking the customer to update their reviews once the situation is resolved; and analyzing sentiment to continually improve business and products.”

 

Here is further information and advice directly from Trustpilot: an infographic and a YouTube video.

 

 

 

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Great Video Brand Examples on Instagram

21 Sep

Instagram now has 500 million active users, and it is rapid pulling away from Twitter (whose user base has been rather stagnant). Instagram’s popularity has not gone unnoticed by brand marketers who have been posting pictures and videos in great numbers.

Recently, HubSpot wrote about some of the best video examples of brands using Instagram. According to  Lindsay Kolowich:

“Remember when Instagram first started allowing users to post videos back in 2013? The first Instagram videos had to be recorded on your phone and could only be up to 15 seconds long. Those were the days that people compared Instagram video to its Twitter-owned counterpart, Vine. Instagram’s come a long way since then, and it’s blown Vine out of the water. Like most of the other popular social networks, the folks at Instagram have made changes to its platform that make it easier for people to post and share videos.”

“In late March 2016, Instagram announced it would start rolling out the ability for Instagram users to upload 60-second videos. For iOS users, it added that users would soon be able to make videos out of multiple clips from their camera rolls. Thanks to these changes, marketers can use the Instagram app to relate with their fans and customers, to communicate their business’ personalities and brand stories, and to express artistic creativity.”

 
Here are a few of the 17 brands cited by HubSpot. Click on their names to access their Instagram pages. The posts with video have a video camera in the upper right corner:

 

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2016 Most Attractive Employers According to Students Globally

19 Sep

Last week, we posted about the “2016 Most Attractive Employers According to U.S. Students.” Today’s post focuses on Universum’s 2016 survey of college students around the world about the most attractive employers for those interested in business careers. The 2016 rankings are compiled from student surveys in the world’s 12 largest economies: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Russia, UK, and USA:

“The World’s Most Attractive Employer companies, must rank in the top 90% of employers within at least six regional markets. If an employer is not listed or is ranked outside the top 90% in a market, it gets a default ranking which is equal to the position of the last company in the top 90% for that market. Results are weighted by GDP, so that a high ranking position in the U.S. has a greater influence than a high ranking position in India, for example.”

 

Here are the 2016 global top ten most attractive employers for business:

  1. Google
  2. Apple
  3. EY (Ernst & Young)
  4. Goldman Sachs
  5. PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers)
  6. 6Deloitte
  7. Microsoft
  8. KPMG
  9. L’Oréal Group
  10. J.P. Morgan

 
Interested in more global insights? If yes, click here to download the PDF report.
 
Interested in a regional or country ranking? If yes, click here and scroll down the page for “Choose region” or “Go to country page.”
 

 

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Social Media Checklists: Part 2

14 Sep

In this second of two posts on social media checklists [click here to access the first post], the focus is on social media platforms. This comprehensive checklist from Whole Brain Group starts with general tips about using social media. It then gives specific tips relating to several social media platforms.

NOTE: Click on the image for a large version of the checklist.

 

2016 Sensible Social Media Checklist for Businesses
 

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Social Media Checklists: Part 1

13 Sep

In this first of two posts on social media checklists, the focus is on the activities necessary to best use social media. This comprehensive checklist from Sprout Social is divided by time frame — from daily to quarterly.

NOTE: Click on the image to learn more about each activity shown in the checklist.

 


 

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2016 Most Attractive Employers According to U.S. Students

12 Sep

Each year, Universum publishes the results of its extensive surveys in various fields and countries/regions. This post covers Universum’s 2016 survey of more than 72,000 U.S. students (more than 20,000 business majors) at 359 universities and colleges about the most attractive employers for those interested in business careers.

For job candidates, the benefits of these surveys is obvious. But they are also essential for potential employers too. According to Universum:

“Today’s businesses operate in a highly competitive employment landscape, and you can gain valuable insight into how your organization is perceived by tomorrow’s workforce with the results of Universum’s 2016 Most Attractive Employers ranking based on student talent in the USA.”

Here are the top most attractive employees, based on Universum’s U.S. survey. [Number 10 is an especially interesting choice]:

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Digital Marketing in 2016: An Infographic

5 Sep

Smart Insights has put together a terrific infographic on the current state of digital marketing globally and how to leverage digital tools. Take a look at the information and advice in the infographic. 
 

 

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