What do most Walmart customers have in common? Whether it’s ordering party supplies or buying groceries for pickup, they rely on reviews before committing to the purchase. According to Bazaarvoice.com, 89% of shoppers say ratings and customer reviews are the top factors in their decision to buy a product, and 73% believe that recent reviews are more trustworthy.
With several types of reviews available, Walmart Marketplace provides a transparent shopping experience for both you and customers. In fact, 81% of Walmart customers say they will visit Walmart online first (vs. visiting a Walmart store) for shopping ideas or inspiration1.
In this article, you’ll learn how our large audience and tools can help boost your business and drive engagement through customer reviews!
WHY REVIEWS MATTER
Ratings and reviews serve as a bridge between you and customers, so you can help better understand their needs, gain credibility, and drive sales.
Did you know?
On average, customers who read reviews are over 70% more likely to make a purchase compared to those who do not.
Reviews allow customers to make more informed purchase decisions, offer valuable feedback about their experience, and provide key ideas for improving a product.
For example, critical reviews can be helpful to understand where to make improvements and strengthen your offerings. On the other hand, positive reviews can help you understand what’s working well, so you can keep it up. Either way, you’re gaining invaluable information that helps you optimize your business and invest where it matters most.
How Walmart collects reviews:
How Walmart collects reviews:
WHAT REVIEWS LOOK LIKE ON WALMART.COM
Once a customer posts a review on Walmart.com, it becomes a native review. Since native reviews are from verified users and indicate actual post-purchase experiences, they help you build customer trust and credibility.
Tip:
Expand the type of reviews you feature. Already have reviews on your site? You can also feature syndicated reviews by importing them from your own direct-to-consumer website. Read more about syndicate reviews below.
Native reviews
left by customers directly on the platform
Syndicated reviews
shared from other websites to Walmart.com
Incentivized reviews
given in exchange for compensation
5 STEPS TO INCREASING YOUR RATINGS AND REVIEWS
If you’ve already collected reviews on your own website, you can import those reviews to Walmart.com with Review Syndication. You don’t have to wait to collect more reviews for new listings—in the meantime, leverage what you already have.
- We are offering program participation free of cost to you.
- Use reviews straight from your own site, so you know what will be added to your listing.
- Syndicated reviews will be attributed to your brand or website, making them stand out visually to customers.
Want to use a third-party solution provider instead? Explore our providers!
2 Sample
Product sampling is an effective strategy to encourage customers to write reviews. Send a sample product to consumers through one of the solution providers in our network to get genuine feedback.
The current list of approved solution providers you can use for product sampling includes:
Once you’ve chosen your solution provider, follow these best practices:
- Focus on new and seasonal items to ensure reviews are ready when sales start.
- Allow 8 weeks for reviews to go live, covering any technical or legal issues.
- Match samples to store products, avoiding trial sizes.
- Set a broad demographic target for better participation.
3 Accelerate
Incentivize customers to leave reviews via the Review Accelerator. Customers tend to write product reviews after having a positive or negative experience or being incentivized. This is where the Review Accelerator comes in handy.
With the Review Accelerator, Walmart.com customers are encouraged to share their honest feedback after buying an item that is enrolled in the program. In exchange, they receive a promo code that can be used toward their next purchase on Walmart Marketplace.
Here’s how it works:
- Enroll eligible items and then ask for a review. Choose items with high sales, conversion rates, seasonal relevance, and with few or no reviews. When a customer purchases that enrolled item, they are then asked to write a review one week after the item is delivered.
- The review is moderated for approval and badged as an “Incentivized Review.”
- The customer receives a $5 promo code for a future purchase.
- Once an enrolled item reaches its target number of reviews, it is automatically unenrolled from the program, so you never pay more than anticipated.
The result? More items in your catalog have reviews, and the review volume per item goes up.
4 Manage
Next, organize and apply the feedback you’ve received from customers. Understand what customers love and where there’s room for improvement with help from the Ratings and Reviews Manager. This is your go-to tool for understanding customer feedback from reviews collected.
The Ratings and Review Manager makes managing feedback easy
Get a bird’s eye view of item reviews—all in one place.
Bookmark detailed ratings, reviewed items, and order information for later.
Sort and filter reviews by ranking, date, type, and text–based versus star-based ratings.
Respond to all reviews on the spot.
Tips for getting the most from the Ratings and Review Manager:
- Stay engaged: Regularly check your dashboard to stay updated on customer feedback.
- Be proactive: Use the feedback to make necessary improvements to your products and services.
- Communicate clearly: When responding to reviews, be polite, professional, and clear.
5 Optimize
Creating an enticing and positive shopping experience on Walmart Marketplace makes customers feel confident about purchasing your items, which in turn, increases their likelihood of posting native reviews.
Help enhance the amount and quality of your reviews and ratings by leveraging all the tools you have on hand:
- Optimize your listings and help boost your Listing Quality score to drive conversion.
- Leverage Walmart Connect to develop targeted advertising campaigns that specifically reach customers who are more likely to make a purchase and increase native reviews.
- Implement Search Engine Marketing (SEM) strategies to improve your listings’ visibility. It can also help attract more visitors to your product pages and increase the chances of collecting native reviews.
- Utilize Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS) to provide customers with efficient and reliable order fulfillment. Streamlining your fulfillment services can help satisfy customers and encourage positive feedback.
- Keep competitive pricing by using the Repricer to set rules, strategies, and criteria for pricing that is automatically adjusted based on triggers—helping your odds of winning the Buy Box and boosting your reach.
Whichever approach you take to seed a critical set of reviews, one thing is clear:
More high-quality, recent reviews from verified customers help drive conversion and sales.
Rev up your business with our review programs and network of solutions today!
1 In fact, 81% of Walmart customers say they will visit Walmart online first (vs. visiting a Walmart store) for shopping ideas or inspiration.
2 This is not a guarantee of service. Application is required and subject to approval.
