How To Get Reviews for Your Pet Store: 6 Tips

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Ratings and reviews were voted the most important factor impacting purchase decisions, with nine out of 10 consumers claiming they consider reviews before buying.

As a pet retailer, collecting a high volume of positive reviews can help your small business become more visible to potential customers — and stand out among the competition. But it can be hard to know how to get reviews for your pet store! In this blog, we’ll cover six tips to help you collect customer reviews.

How To Get Reviews for Your Pet Store

These strategies can help you collect more customer reviews for your pet business. By using both online and in-store tactics, you can reach a greater number of customers.

1. Post a QR Code at Checkout

You only have a customer’s attention for a brief time — so if you encounter someone who is happy with their experience at your pet store, you should ask for a review at the point of sale.

Try printing out a QR code to keep at the checkout counter or show it on your point of sale (POS) system. Some POS solutions even allow customers to write a review right from the customer display

2. Set Up an In-Store Review Station

You can also allow customers to leave a review in store by creating a designated “review station,” which can be as simple as setting up a tablet or computer. Make the process for leaving a review as simple as possible so a customer can quickly leave one right after a purchase.

Many customers forget or don’t think to leave a review once they’ve left your pet store, so capturing feedback while customers are still in your store is a great strategy for increasing reviews.

3. Send Automated Review Requests

You can use customer relationship management (CRM) software to send out automated review requests. CRM software tracks customer information and allows you to send personalized communications. These requests can be sent via text message or email, and can be formatted to include a customer’s name.

If a customer receives this request shortly after making a purchase, and when the experience is fresh in their mind, they’ll be more likely to leave a review. By automating this process, you can increase the number of online reviews you receive — and save yourself time.

4. Offer Review Incentives

Another strategy for bringing in reviews is to offer incentives to customers who leave them. Try offering loyalty points, discounts, or free items like chew toys or doggy treats. Do not directly pay customers to leave reviews as it’s considered unethical.

You can also use contests to generate reviews. Try entering everyone who leaves a review into a raffle. You’ll want to entice reviews by announcing that the winner (or winners) will receive a substantial prize, like a dog kennel or a month’s supply of pet food.

If you choose to offer incentives, make sure to advertise them in your store and online.

5. Post on Social Media

Social media channels are a great place to ask customers to leave reviews and let them know about the incentives associated with them.

Use platforms like Facebook and Instagram to promote your pet store and ask for reviews. Post images and videos of pets to catch the attention of your followers, and use branding — colors, designs, and fonts — that match your brick-and-mortar business’ identity.

6. Train Your Staff

If you want to see a significant increase in the amount of reviews your business receives, you need to mobilize your staff.

Communicate the importance of receiving reviews and train your team on how to ask for them. Encourage them to bring it up to each customer they check out, informing them about incentives. As you teach employees how to get reviews for your pet store, it may be beneficial to write a script for them to use.

Finally, you can even create a friendly competition amongst your staff by incentivizing them, too. Reward the employee who collects the most customer reviews within a set timeframe — it can be as simple as a free lunch!

Get More Customer Reviews With eTailPet

Customer reviews are crucial to your business’ success. Quality reviews make your store stand out among other pet stores, especially in local search results. Because people tend to trust what third parties say about a business more than what it says about itself, positive reviews are some of the best marketing you can do.

To get more online customer reviews, remember to use these strategies:

Post a QR code at checkout
Send automated review requests
Set up an in-store review station
Offer incentives
Post on social media
Train your staff

To implement these strategies effectively, you need a POS system. And for the best results, you need a solution designed specifically for pet stores.

eTailPet is a cloud-based POS system designed with the needs of pet store owners in mind. Built-in CRM software makes it easy to accept customer reviews at checkout, send automated review requests, and create loyalty programs and rewards.

eTailPet also has features to help you track your reviews, and monitor your competitors’ reviews, to track how your business is doing in comparison. With must-have retail features and pet-specific functionality, this solution provides everything you need to run your pet store.

To see what eTailPet can do for you, schedule a live demo today!