Never underestimate the power of user generated reviews.

• 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
• 72% of consumers say positive reviews make them trust businesses more.
• 61% of customers read online reviews before making a purchase decision.

These are pretty significant numbers—and it basically says that user reviews can really help increase conversions.

But how? Here are five ways that user generated reviews can give your conversions a boost.

1. User generated reviews have considerable SEO benefits—

–which then help increase the possibility of your site getting pulled up for searches.

User reviews help boost your visibility on search engines.

User generated reviews are primarily intended to give your customers a way to share their experience when dealing with your brand or product. But in doing so, it also helps improve your conversions by—

• Allowing new and relevant content to be developed that lets search engines find your site.
• Improving rankings for a particular product when it gets searched.
• Creating additional content that makes the likelihood of it showing up on even long tail searches.

2. Mix of positive and negative reviews create a sense of credibility for your brand

A good mix of positive and negative reviews can lend itself to improving customer trust.

Find the right balance between positive and negative reviews to firmly establish credibility with your potential customers.

• Customers who seek out both good and bad reviews are already in “purchase mode.”
• When potential customers find only positive reviews, they begin to suspect that the reviews are fake or heavily censored.
• Find the balance between good and bad. Negative opinions about your product may be good for business, as long as it doesn’t outweigh the good ones.

3. The quantity of reviews is strongly related to positive conversion rates.

The more, the merrier. The more user reviews you have for a particular product, the more likely it will convince customers to finish the transaction.

• Numerous reviews mean the same product or service has been purchased by many others, appeasing any apprehension that a potential buyer may have.
• A good volume of balanced reviews imply trust from consumers and social proof that you are an ecommerce site that is legitimate and can be trusted.
• Aim for 25-50 reviews for a particular product. Studies have shown that a healthy volume of user generated reviews bumps up conversion by 18%.

4. User generated reviews are better at converting vs. brand or manufacturer provided description and copy

It’s still important to make sure that the copy you develop for your product is well-written and relevant. That said, to help turn customer interest into an actual sale you have to bring their attention to what fellow customers think about it.

Make sure your official product copy is written well; but take note that user-generated reviews tend to be more believable for a lot of customers.

• Make it easy for customers to add visual content using a quick photo uploading mechanism to add more in-depth and helpful information.
• In another study conducted in the UK, companies see a 4.6% increase in conversion rate when customer photos are displayed on a product page.
• It offers a level of authenticity similar to how customers would react positively to a recommendation from peers.

5. User generated reviews empower potential customers—

–by making them feel like they are making informed purchase decisions.

Invite your customers to write a review; make it easy for them to share their experience with your product and brand.

• User reviews offer transparency; it gives the impression that you’re not just out there to make a sale—you actually want to show how and why customers should buy your product.
• You want customers to gain a genuine sense of how a product can be used and why it is needed. Stylized copy and images are great to capture their attention, but the sincerity behind it can be solidified through user generated reviews and give them the push needed to feel like they’re making a good purchase.

An ecommerce site’s willingness to put their product or service out there for review doesn’t have to be risky. If you’re confident in what you’re selling and what your product has to offer, there’s little chance that it will be. And as you can see from this list, there are numerous benefits to gain, especially when it comes to helping you with your conversions.

If you have other ideas about how user reviews can be helpful for increasing conversions, we’d love to hear about it. Start a conversation in the comment section below.