Reputation Amazon Seller

How to Build a Sterling Reputation as an Amazon Seller

If you’re an Amazon seller, your reputation can make or break your sales. Just like a business that gets rated on Yelp or Google Reviews, you will find that stars and customer feedback mean an awful lot to prospective customers. A star rating at or near 5 will cause customers to take notice, while anything less could compel them to go elsewhere without taking a second look back. It is also worth noting that 74% of customers use online reviews to determine how much they should trust a business.

If you’re Amazon reputation isn’t where you’d like it to be, don’t lose heart. If you’re just starting out and have a small number of ratings and reviews, a few doses of positive feedback will do a lot to get your reputation on the mend. But whether you’re a rookie or a veteran, these tips will help you wow your customers and get that good karma flowing.

Respond Quickly

Even if your customers are irate, addressing their complaints swiftly can soothe or even completely reverse any negative feelings they may have. Experienced online retailers will tell you that a disgruntled shopper will often edit a one-star review into a five-star review if their concerns are addressed quickly.

If possible, try to offer disappointed customers little perks, like a “bonus item” or credit toward future purchases. You want to leave them feeling like you went above and beyond to treat them well, and they’ll often do the same for you. Moreover, it helps to maintain a consistent brand voice that is readily identifiable and welcoming to customers. That way, they will feel as though their input matters.

Encourage Customers to Leave Reviews

It’s simple math: An easy way to bring up a low average rating is to add more high numbers into the mix. Assuming that the vast majority of your orders go smoothly, encouraging those happy customers to leave reviews will do a lot to drown out the voices that left negative reviews and dragged down your seller rating. If you don’t have a consistent flow of satisfied shoppers you can ask for reviews, keep reading for more ways to establish that strong customer base. Just be sure to ask your customers shortly after they make a purchase, as that is when they are most likely to write reviews.

Describe Your Products Accurately

Anyone who’s worked in retail will tell you that if a product description is inaccurate, you will get an earful about it from customers. If that skirt you’re selling is 13 inches in length, make sure a careless typo doesn’t accidentally turn that 13 into a 14 or a 12.

It’s totally fine to use fun, even bombastic language to talk about how great your products are, but certain phrases can stretch the truth too far. When copying and pasting descriptions for similar products, make sure not to get lazy, and do a regular spot check of your descriptions every week or two to guard against misinformation.

Also be sure to avoid generalizations. Anyone can say that a product is wonderful and efficient. Your job is to show customers why your product is wonderful and efficient. What does it offer that competitors’ products do not?

Address Negative Feedback

Remember that you have the option of responding publicly to customer reviews, and you may want to do so when someone has something negative to say. It’s understandable that most people prefer to communicate with a problem buyer privately, but If a customer is being unreasonable or unfair, it’s okay to (politely) say so in a public response to their feedback.

Again, don’t be rude, but there is absolutely no shame in telling the truth about a transaction when the truth is clearly on your side. If you make your argument well, prospective buyers should be able to tell when that piece of negative feedback is best ignored.

Whatever you do, do not take negative feedback as a personal attack. Rarely is it ever personal. Instead, look at that criticism as objectively as possible and glean from it useful tips that you can use to improve going forward.

Always Keep Tabs on Your Reputation

Perhaps the biggest mistake sellers make is just not being diligent enough in noticing negative feedback and taking the appropriate action. Don’t just look at your overall star rating. After all, if you have a large number of ratings and reviews, one negative score might not impact it very much. But just because your numbers stay high doesn’t mean that a negative review won’t do real damage. Many customers make their decisions after reading individual reviews closely instead of just glancing at a single number.

Get into a consistent routine of checking your Amazon reputation at least once a day, if not more. Don’t let negative reviews slip through the cracks, because not only will your reputation suffer, but you could miss important customer complaints that need to be addressed.

Be Confident in Yourself and Your Products

There is no magic formula for garnering strong customer reviews. If you conduct business in a transparent, timely, and fair manner, you should have no problem getting users to sing your praises online. Of course, we all know that some people just aren’t happy unless they’re not happy. If one of these grumpy customers shows up with a one-star review, don’t panic. Amazon provides you the tools you need to defend your reputation and get any disputes sorted out.

If you made it through these tips, you certainly seem like a five-star individual! Happy selling, and be sure to check out tools like Listing Mirror that can help you expand beyond Amazon and get your products on other sites, too.