eCommerce Social Proof as a Conversion Optimization Strategy

Nothing can guarantee you more sales than the power of persuasion. People are more likely to buy to “fit in” in society or purchase products that are being used by many others. This psychological phenomenon is known as social proof and it is one of the most effective ways to increase sales and conversion rates. For example, nearly 95% of shoppers read online reviews before making a purchase, confirming how influenced our decisions are based on others’ experiences.

There are a lot of factors that need to be optimized such as customizing the landing page, simplifying the checkout process and adding CTAs to ensure that your customers visit and explore your site. Similarly, you need to optimize your buying journey so that a customer’s visit always leads to a sale.

In this article, we’ll discuss the importance of social proof and how you can employ it on your site to increase conversions easily.

What is social proof? And how does it work?

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon that dictates the actions of a customer based on third-party reviews. For example, more than 90% of customers look for customer reviews before making a purchase. Why? Because they get an insight into the previous buyers’ experience and businesses use it as a form of customer advocacy.

The driving force behind social proof is trust. The more trust your customers have regarding your brand, the better your chances of converting them into a sale. Social proof creates trust by targeting urgency, scarcity and expertise. All of this together creates a powerful compulsion, enticing your customers to purchase.

Through social proof, you can convey credibility and expertise in your niche, so your customers feel comfortable doing business with you.

7 types of social proof

There are multiple types of social proof that you can easily implement on your site with the help of tools such as WooCommerce social proof plugins.

1.    Customer reviews

According to Testimonial Engine, 72% of customers don’t take any buying action before reading customer reviews. That’s how much business you could lose if you don’t display reviews on your site. This is the most effective form of social proof because it’s the most persuasive. A visitor might find a customer review that talks about addressing a problem that’s similar to theirs and thus instantly buys your product.

Reviews help in building trust and increasing revenue. As little as nine reviews can increase your purchase likelihood up to 270%.

If you want to add customer reviews to your site, do it the right way and create a form with your required fields so you can create each review into a story. For example, gather information about the customer, such as their gender, age and profession. This will help your customers to connect with people of similar ages or professions. Next, enter fields asking what the problem was, how the product helped and how it changed their life. The more detailed the reviews, the more authentic they appear.

2.    Experts and celebrities endorsements

Expert opinion is the best way to gather customer trust and approval. When you display reviews or recommendations from experts in your niche or industry, it portrays that your product is safe to use and authentic. And since experts are recommending it, it must be true.

Similarly, businesses have also started employing celebrities or influencers to promote their products and increase brand awareness. Since these influencers already have a substantial number of followers, partnering with them will help widen your reach and expose your brand to new audiences. 89% of marketers claim influencer marketing to be more effective than other marketing tactics.

3.    Use numbers from your data

Another way to entice your customers into buying from you is by showing the value in data and statistics. Using words like “X people follow us” or “X people used our product and loved it” or displaying any type of data on your website will encourage them to make a purchase. You can also share the real-time active customers on your website’s landing page,

The larger the number, the more people will trust your product and give you credibility. But make sure you use it at a time where your follower count is steadily growing so it doesn’t backfire, as stating unrealistic data will cost you more harm than good.

Moreover, this type of social proof is not limited to the landing page - you can use it on individual product pages as well. For example, you can show the remaining stock left to create urgency, or show the order number of a particular item to show its popularity.

4.    Trust badges

According to Yieldify, displaying trust badges and certifications on your website leads to the reassurance of 48% of customers. People are skeptical of online shopping because they never know if they’ll be getting the same product as shown, which mostly leads to cart abandonment.

To reduce cart abandonment, trust badges have shown considerable results. You can display badges of industry experts, collaborations, certifications, money-back guarantees or third-party endorsements. This showcases that your work is commendable to be used by such companies and thus customers believe that you can help them too, leading to conversions. 

5.    Social media

Social media plays a major role in today’s marketing strategies. Businesses use social media platforms to boost brand awareness and engage with their customers. It’s also a great way to produce user-generated content. By displaying this content on your website, you can let your visitors know how many people swear by your product and build a loyal community. Here you can also display your collaborations with known brands and businesses or anyone that has had something positive to say about your product. Each review counts. 

6.    Case studies

Case studies are glorified customer reviews. But how do they differ and are they even better? Reviews usually consist of 2-3 lines where your customers praise your products, but a case study encompasses a journey, from the problem to the solution, and the road to success. You can also showcase studies in the form of videos to show authenticity.

7.    Product badges

Another social proof that’s useful for individual products is adding badges on them. Many stores apply sales on their site, but not on all products. Badges will help your customers identify which products are applicable for a sale or coupon. Moreover, you can also add badges like trending, new, hot, best-seller, etc. to highlight your products and increase engagement.

There’s a lot more you can do with social proof, such as adding a countdown timer for creating urgency, displaying user-generated content and media, adding product recommendations, etc.

How can you use social proof on your site to increase conversions?

Social proof, although beneficial, requires strategic planning to work. For example, the placement of customer reviews and trust badges or the font used could have a huge impact on the audience. Thus, let’s discuss how to use social proof to maximize conversions.

• Keep them up to date: Once you display social proof on your site, such as reviews, testimonials, follower count, etc, you need to keep updating them. This will help you optimize your site and search for better reviews or testimonials that will result in more conversions. Also, make sure that the content you display is relevant to your audience. For example, the reviews should convey the problem and the solution to entice customers to buy your product.
• Think about where they go: Where you display social proof plays a major role in its effectiveness. If your reviews and testimonials are at the bottom of the landing page, it will hardly make a difference. Make sure all your social proof is visible at the top or highlighted, where customers can take notice and make a decision easily.
• Test what works for you: Just because social proof works, doesn’t mean you flood your website with it. Test which social proof works best for your business type. For example, a clothing store can tag their best-selling products, whereas advertising or media companies can display their social counts, etc. 

Conclusion

With 87% of the buying decision being conducted with online research, social proof has the power to grow your marketing to new heights. People are more likely to be persuaded by their peers rather than the brand itself. Thus, incorporate word-of-mouth marketing in your strategy and display reviews, trust badges, and expert opinions on landing and product pages to create urgency and credibility.