When Is The Best Time To Ask For A Review Or Testimonial?

Knowing the best time to ask for a review or testimonial is almost as important as remembering to ask. Because 81% of prospective buyers will first search online to find information about a company and its products and services, you want to make sure your online presence contains recent online reviews and testimonials as well as accurate descriptions and images of what you offer.

Miyeon Jung, assistant professor of business analytics in Lee Business School, University of Nevada Las Vegas; Sunghan Ryu, associate professor at USC-SJTU Institute of Cultural and Creative Industry in Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Sang-Pil Han, associate professor of information systems in the W. P. Carey School of Business at the Arizona State University; and Daegon Cho, Ewon associate professor of information systems at KAIST College of Business, conducted a study to answer the question of “when.” They tested requesting a review one day after the interaction with the merchant/service provider, five days later, nine days later, and thirteen days later. They knew another study showed only 8% of online customers responded to review requests the same day and the majority took at least two days to take action after receiving their product. In their experiment, they discovered that the quick next-day reminders lowered responses and the 13-day lapse increased participation. Five and nine days showed “no significant difference in the likelihood of a review being posted.” The researchers also noted that the next-day requests were particularly objectionable to the younger customers, those who have always determined when and where they post. Type of product/service also plays a role because it is hard to immediately evaluate something that promises a long life or is not easily consumed.

Their verdict: people are busy and want to feel they are not being rushed. Wait and give customers time before asking for a review.

You do want to determine the best time to ask for a review or testimonial for your business and then do so. Online reviews that are three or fewer months old increase your website ranking with Google and other search engines, making it easier for your target market to find you. They also give your brand a boost especially if you have a Google Business Profile where customers can leave reviews. Other people’s honest feedback also helps you gain much-needed trust in the digital marketing sphere and with your target audience.

Let Tate Design help you with this. If you already ask for reviews, we can use analytics to see the average response time and best time of day and schedule future requests accordingly. We can also tweak your current messaging to indicate thankfulness for the customer, which is more likely to get a response than seeking a good review. If you do not yet ask for reviews or testimonials, we can set up emails or other digital marketing messaging for you.

Take advantage of this word-of-mouth advertising. Find out the best time to ask for a review and then make it a regular practice. Call us at 610.725.0702 or e-mail [email protected] to start increasing your search engine ranking and online presence with reviews.

 

 

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When Is the Best Time to Ask Customers for a Review?