A beginner’s guide to getting good customer service reviews

In today’s competitive world, it is getting harder and harder to differentiate yourself from other businesses when everyone is sharing the same thing online: great content.

Customers are more empowered than ever before, and choice isn’t really an issue for anyone looking to buy online. That’s why having a competitive advantage is huge, and customer experience is the perfect tool to help you stand out from your competitors.

Customer service shouldn't be just a department - customer service should be the entire company. Today, your consumers no longer compare products and prices only, but also service and user experience, which is why customer feedback has become an invaluable tool.

Indeed, today, 92% of consumers read reviews to determine the quality of a business’s customer experience.

It’s important for businesses to embrace a customer-centric strategy, and stand out from the competition by making sure today’s customers become tomorrow’s brand advocates.

In this article, we’ll give you tips to start collecting customer feedback, and to make sure your customers are satisfied and happy, and leaving good customer service reviews.

Here are 4 ways you can get good customer service reviews

1. Start by creating a great customer journey

We know what you’re thinking… easier said than done.

Creating a great experience can be challenging, but it is also extremely rewarding. Great experiences ensure customers will buy from you, and come back wanting more. Today, a superior experience is a valued and unique asset for any business.

As Mike Sims, Founder of ThinkLions, says: “People will forget what you said, they will forget what you did too. But they will never forget how you made them feel.”

The less time shoppers spend searching for what they need, the better. A great customer experience means your customers are less likely to come across a problem during their customer buying journey, which means you’re more likely to receive positive feedback and good customer service reviews.

Here are some ways you can create a great customer journey:

• Stay consistent: your customers should be presented with the same branding, information and tone of voice on all channels.

• Understand the different stages of the journey, put yourself in your customers’ shoes and make sure you answer every question customers could have.

• Be transparent, accessible and approachable: offer support along the way, and showcase trust marks to build credibility.

2. Don’t be afraid to ask for reviews

Collecting customer feedback is one of the best ways to improve your customer service and experience. Direct feedback from existing customers will help you understand what your customers like and don’t like, what works, what should change, and how to do it. But we understand asking for feedback can be challenging.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that asking for a review of your service will be perceived positively by customers. Indeed, you’re showing customers that you care about their satisfaction, and that you are constantly working towards ensuring potential customers are having a fantastic experience.

Asking for reviews is necessary in developing your business in the first place, and therefore in getting good customer service reviews too.

Here are some different ways you can ask for customer feedback:

• Through an open and transparent third-party review platform like Trustpilot

• By building review collection directly into your customer journey with an embedded Trustpilot review form right on your website

• By setting up automatic review invitations so you can score a verified Trustpilot review each time a customer makes a purchase

• Starting a dialogue with your customers on conversational social platforms like Twitter and Facebook

• With customer satisfaction surveys using platforms like SurveyMonkey or TypeForm

3. Don’t forget to put customers at the heart of your business

Customers are now being touched by hundreds of brands and adverts every day, so how can businesses build strong relationships with their consumers?

Making each one of your customers feel special and unique is key. Being customer-centric will send a positive message to shoppers: they are cared for and important to you.

Today, over 84% of consumers do not trust advertisements anymore - but 87% of people trust adverts more when they include a Trustpilot rating or logo.

Creating a community of customers can play an important role in your business’ success and growth strategy. By leveraging reviews, you’re showing visitors that you do care about your customers and their experience.

Encouraging user-generated content is also a great way to build communities of customers, and to create brand advocates. Existing, loyal customers who are put at the heart of the business and are part of a brand community are more willing to leave good customer service reviews.

4. Finally, use reviews as customer insights to learn and improve

If you think you’re delivering the best customer service and experience possible, but your customer service reviews do not reflect that - do not give up just yet!

Yes, every business would rather have exclusively positive feedback, but unfortunately, that’s a pretty unrealistic goal. Instead, using your own customers’ feedback (both good and bad) to collect insights can help you improve your customer experience and increase your customers’ satisfaction.

Identifying what works, what doesn’t, and which areas of the business require more development and efforts will help you collect more good customer service reviews in the long run.

*These 4 steps should help you get more good customer service reviews. We hope you found this article insightful, and we’d love to know what else helped your business get better service reviews.

Tell us what worked for you! Tweet us at @Trustpilot using #onTheBlog, or download our newest report 'Bad reviews: Why people write them' and find out how you could improve your overall review strategy and use negative feedback to improve your customer service, innovate, and get more good customer service reviews in the long run.*