Contributors:
Amol Ghemud Published: February 15, 2021
Summary
What: A comprehensive 2026 guide on using Amazon customer reviews to drive e-commerce conversions, improve sales, and build trust among potential buyers.
Who: E-commerce sellers, Amazon vendors, and online business owners looking to enhance product credibility, increase conversions, and leverage customer feedback effectively.
Why: Customer reviews serve as social proof, influencing purchase decisions, boosting conversion rates, and contributing to Amazon’s search ranking. Positive reviews establish credibility, while thoughtful engagement with negative feedback strengthens trust and customer loyalty.
How: The guide explains the mechanics of Amazon reviews, their impact on buyer decisions, and how to optimize product listings to encourage authentic feedback, including strategies for enhancing review quality, leveraging verified purchases, and presenting detailed, trustworthy product information.
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In 2026, the goal for any e‑commerce seller remains the same: get more conversions. But the path to that goal has evolved. Since customers cannot physically touch or test products online, they rely on visuals, images, videos, descriptions, and crucially, product reviews and ratings.
Just like word‑of‑mouth in a brick‑and‑mortar setting, online reviews provide social proof. They help put products into shopping carts, not via interruption, but by building trust.
Amazon is one of the biggest marketplaces in the world, and with millions of people using the platform each day, it’s a great place to sell your stuff (even if you have your own ecommerce site) and leverage reviews.
Amazon reviews offer busy prospects the opportunity to skim through star ratings if they’re pressed for time, or read detailed, longer reviews (sometimes, even with images) from fellow customers.
Being one of the largest e-commerce sites, Amazon reviews carry their weight – they are seen as a trustworthy source of information for new buyers.
Here’s a look at how Amazon reviews work and how you can use them to sell more.
Why Customer Reviews Are Important
Customer review rating. Different People give review rating and feedback. Flat vector illustration. Customer choice. Know your client concept. Rank rating stars feedback. Business satisfaction support
Customer reviews are a window to the quality and usefulness of your products and services for first-time buyers.
They are essential to building trust in your e-commerce operation. Allowing your audience to see product reviews typically increases the overall conversion rate, and also gives insight into different aspects about your product, some which may go beyond what you are able to put into the product description.
Reviews are a must for any product – and when selling on Amazon – especially when you sell on Amazon – it can get you more mileage.
One of the first things any user does on Amazon when searching for a product is to scroll down and see the number of reviews, and the average rating, from 5 stars to 1. This gives a better picture of whether people who purchased the product are satisfied with it or not.
According to a research reportfrom Spiegel Research Centre at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, a whopping 95% of shoppers read reviews before purchasing a product- making reviews a sacred space and product prime real estate that can be used to drive more conversions.
The report goes on how to highlight that the likelihood of a product ending up in the shopping cart increases by over 200% when it has 5 reviews or more. That’s a staggering statistic!
The report also touches upon the fact that the more expensive a product is, the more importance people place on reviews.
The conversion rate for lower-priced products with reviews was 190%, while the conversion rate for higher-priced products with reviews was 380%.
This is a clear indicator that if you expect people to part with a large sum of money, they want to see what the ROI/worth of the product is from fellow customers!
The Amazon Review
Amazon has a great system for reviews.It has room for stars, along with space to write a proper review – as short or as detailed as necessary – and even add pictures to go along with it.
There’s also a sense of authenticity, since the prospect can see the name and image of the reviewer along with date and geographical location of the review, and ascertain whether it is an Amazon “verified purchase.” (This is indicated under the name of the reviewer, in the signature orange colour and font that Amazon uses.)
Amazon reviews allow shoppers to glean a lot from just a single glance at the bottom of the page. There is a graph that shows the average number of 5-star to 1-star reviews, giving prospects an overall feel of whether the product is worth the money.
And for people who are looking to do a little more research, they have the option to deep-dive into the more detailed reviews that follow below the average star rating graph.
Amazon is a world within itself – and just like Google, the platform is pretty smart when it comes to search. Each time a user runs a search on Amazon, the algorithm looks for products that are relevant to the keyword used.
And, how Amazon rates each product for authority is based on product reviews. The more reviews your product has, the better are the chances it will appear on page one of Amazon’s search result.
There’s a lot of power in a good Amazon review – and you can leverage that space to gain positive reviews and boost sales of your product.
Here is the some reviews of one the Amazon account handled by us
Setting Up Your Amazon Page For Success
Before you start getting rave reviews on Amazon, you need to set up your page for the win.
Make sure to claim and customise Amazon pages. When a user searches for something, Amazon throws up a lot of different results for that search – so you need to ensure that your Amazon page tells your brand and product story in the same manner your website does. (A search for “peanut butter,” for example, can show results for everything from peanut butter to peanuts to peanut candy and chocolate peanut butter cups and cookies.)
If a shopper happens to find your brand over the course of their Amazon search, your page should include all pertinent information related to your product and brand: product details, testimonials and reviews.
This adds credibility, builds trust, and will nudge the shopper towards making a purchase.
Impact Of Listing Page And Amazon Reviews On Your PPC Ads
Reviews also have an impact on your sales from an indirect point of view – through your PPC ads. PPC ads pull the customer in from the web based on what they are looking for, so you should ensure your Amazon listing is in tip-top shape.
Each and every click from a PPC ad to your listing is going to cost you – so make it count and give the user what they are looking for! This includes:
High quality photos that show the product, its features, and its benefits.
Keywords in the listing that match what you are using in your ad campaign.
Descriptive and keyword-rich title
Descriptive and readable bullet points that highlight the product USP
Competitive pricing, discounts and offers prominently displayed
Ample reviews
Reviews propel your ad to the next level because they boost confidence and build trust. Ideally, you should have 6-10 verified reviews on your product page before launching your PPC campaign. Prospects will land on your page for all the right reasons if you’ve incorporated all of the above-mentioned like keywords, titles etc – but if they see an empty reviews page, they will be skeptical. Has anyone even bought and tested out the product?
So, quality reviews – and your honest responses to them – will certainly make your PPC campaign more successful.
How To Get More Customer Reviews On Amazon
Be polite and ask: Well – you have to ask! That’s the only way you will get more reviews. You can send an email to customers after they’ve made a purchase and ask them to share their experience and takeaways from the product.
But it’s not about sending out any old email saying “please write a review,” – it’s a pretty intricate process that’s a marketing exercise in itself. Your messaging needs to have a human element to it and not sound like an automated message.
Streamline the process: You need to streamline when and how you contact your customers, how you provide after-sales support, and how you present yourself. You need to show yourself as a brand that’s invested in the customer and wants to cultivate and maintain the relationship, instead of being a one-and-done solutions provider.
Send a thank you email– this is a message of gratitude thanking the customer for choosing your product over others in the market. Let the customer know you are there for them, and that they can reach out to you for further assistance.
Send a thank you email– this is a message of gratitude thanking the customer for choosing your product over others in the market. Let the customer know you are there for them, and that they can reach out to you for further assistance.
Send a thank you email– this is a message of gratitude thanking the customer for choosing your product over others in the market. Let the customer know you are there for them, and that they can reach out to you for further assistance.
If you have an account on Amazon, checking your page everyday to see if a sale has been made can be exhausting and time-consuming. Instead, use an email sequencer. An email sequencer automates the above process. It will automatically send out a mail after the purchase is made, and follow it up with more emails on dates specified by you.
Make it easy: You should make it easy for the customer to write a review for your product. Remember, you need it more than them. Ask insightful questions instead of vague ones.
What was the difficulty the customer faced before using your product? How did your product help? What happened when they used it? What would the customer say to someone planning to purchase the same product?
You should also make sure the forms are optimised for mobile, and easy to find.
Early reviewers programme: For young companies and new products, getting Amazon reviews can be an uphill battle. That’s where the Early Reviewer Programme can help. It is available for products that have less than five reviews and cost $15 or more.
After you opt in for this programme, Amazon will request for reviews of the product on your behalf – from participating shoppers. Once these shoppers buy the product and write a review, they receive a gift card from Amazon.
The positive is that you get more reviews – but the downside is that you have little control over who reviews your product, and what they say.
Discounts and promotions: People are price conscious, and sometimes, your product may be out of their price bracket. When you offer discounts and run regular promotions, the likelihood that more people buy your product increases. You can discount your products regularly through the year, and ramp up your review requests during those times to naturally generate more positive reviews.
You can also offer an introductory discount for new products and generate more reviews.
Leave a note: Include a note in the package you send your products in. A handwritten note, enclosed in the package your product is shipped out in, can include a thank you message along with a request to write a review on your Amazon listing page. It’s a small gesture, doesn’t take up too much time or energy, and you’ll find that people respond quite positively to handwritten notes.
Use social media: Everyone is on social media these days – so why not reach out to your customers there? Remind people on social media. Every so often, invite your social media followers to review your products on Amazon.
You don’t necessarily have to offer a discount, gift or incentive – just explain why reviews matter and why you’re asking for help. Be honest and transparent – your customers will appreciate it and respond better.
Respond to negative reviews: You will get negative reviews – it’s part of the game. How you respond or handle those comments, is what determines whether you make more sales.
Use negative reviews as a learning experience – criticism can be a valuable teacher. Improve your product and systems. Understand what customers are unhappy with – these negative can actually benefit your business. Respond appropriately. You don’t have to offer a refund, but show interest in remedying the situation and learning from your mistakes.
You should also approve the bad reviews.
Don’t delete them, even if you’re tempted to.
The reality is that if you only have positive reviews on your site, you lose credibility with customers. Nothing is perfect, and customers won’t believe that you or your products are. If they don’t see a single negative review, they’ll become skeptical.
A study shows that close to 70% of shoppers will trust reviews for products that have a mix of good and bad reviews. But be sure to approve reviews from verified shoppers and not random accounts.
A Look At Both Good And Bad Product Reviews
With so much information available to customers at their fingertips, reviews are a useful tool to have you in your kit. Reviews give consumers the opportunity to read dozens of To be able to facilitate good reviews for your product, you need to know what a good one – and a bad one – looks like. So here are a few examples of what constitutes good reviews, and bad ones.
A good review: A good review is a powerful tool in your arsenal. The star rating will help boost your overall score and grab eyeballs on Amazon. A good review will have a balanced view, details about what the customer liked and didn’t like, and be as thorough as possible, so it doesn’t feel one-dimensional. Word length can vary – but it should be long enough to include all pertinent information, but not so long that prospective customers will drop off. Reviewers should also disclose if they were given a sample/free product in exchange for a review.
A bad review: Will likely have a low star rating with a list of what has gone wrong, along with images, especially if the product is damaged or inconsistent with the description. Or to illustrate what went wrong. An honest negative review will not be abusive in nature or an attempt to troll the brand or manufacturer, but a genuine grievance, and a warning to other customers. And, from the brand point of view, it is ideal that you respond in a timely manner, be informative and solution-oriented, respectful and a response you have taken time to write – no copy-pasting here!
Reviews Are A Two-Way Street
In conclusion, remember reviews are a two way process of give and take.
Communicate with your customers to ask them for reviews – and more importantly, acknowledge their kind words and the positive reviews they leave.
Respond with gratitude to positive reviews. If a customer takes the time and effort to leave you a positive review, you should take the time to acknowledge it and express your appreciation.
Now that you know how powerful the Amazon review can be, why not set up your page and get the ball rolling? Reviews give you an opportunity to build a better relationship with existing customers, and build trust amongst your customers and prospective customers.
Social proof acts as a digital version of word-of-mouth, building the necessary trust for a customer to make a purchase online. It bridges the gap between the screen and reality by using the experiences of previous buyers to validate a product's quality and usefulness. On Amazon, this is vital because trust directly translates into conversions. Research from the Spiegel Research Centre shows that 95% of shoppers read reviews, confirming its central role in the decision-making process. A product with just five reviews can see its purchase likelihood increase by over 200%. This data underscores that social proof is not a passive feature but an active sales driver, especially for higher-priced items where the conversion lift can reach 380%. Gaining a deeper understanding of this dynamic is the first step toward mastering online sales.
The Amazon "verified purchase" tag confirms that the reviewer bought the product through the platform, which powerfully signals authenticity to potential customers. This system helps differentiate genuine feedback from potentially fake or incentivized reviews, building a foundation of trust that is crucial for e-commerce success. This authenticity is a key driver for conversions, especially when a customer is unfamiliar with your brand. The trust instilled by this feature is a major reason why 95% of shoppers rely on reviews before buying. By prominently displaying this validation, Amazon reassures buyers that the feedback is based on real-world experience, making it easier for them to commit to a purchase. Understanding how to leverage these built-in trust signals can give your products a significant competitive edge.
The Amazon review system provides a multi-layered view that helps buyers build a comprehensive understanding of a product. While the star rating offers a quick summary, the detailed components offer the depth needed to convert a hesitant shopper. A complete review offers:
Written narratives that explain the "why" behind a rating, providing context and use cases.
Customer images and videos that show the product in a real-world setting, not just a studio.
The "verified purchase" tag, which provides a critical layer of authenticity.
Together, these elements create a rich tapestry of social proof, addressing specific concerns and answering questions that your product description cannot. This is why 95% of shoppers find them so valuable; it's the closest they can get to a physical inspection online.
For high-priced items, reviews are the definitive tiebreaker, as they provide the social proof needed to justify a significant expense. Data shows the conversion rate for higher-priced products with reviews jumps by 380%, indicating that buyers scrutinize feedback more intensely. When comparing products, a potential customer weighs several factors:
Review Volume: A product with five or more reviews is over 200% more likely to be purchased, signaling a more established and trusted item.
Average Star Rating: A high average rating provides a quick, positive signal.
Review Recency and Detail: Recent, detailed reviews with images are more persuasive than older, generic ones.
To win, you must focus on building a consistent stream of authentic, detailed feedback. The nuances within these reviews often hold the key to outperforming your direct competitors.
Securing the first five reviews is a critical milestone that triggers a significant psychological shift in prospective buyers. According to the Spiegel Research Centre, the likelihood of a product being purchased increases by over 200% once it has five reviews, transforming it from an unknown entity into a validated choice. This initial momentum creates a feedback loop of trust and sales. Shoppers see peer validation, which reduces their perceived risk and encourages them to buy. This, in turn, generates more sales and opportunities for additional reviews. Failing to achieve this initial threshold can leave a product languishing, as the data shows 95% of shoppers actively seek this social proof before committing. Effectively planning for these first few reviews is a foundational strategy for any successful product launch on Amazon.
The dramatic difference in conversion lift reflects a higher level of perceived risk associated with expensive purchases. For lower-priced items, a bad purchase is a minor inconvenience; for premium goods, it's a significant financial loss, prompting more diligent research from buyers. This is why social proof becomes exponentially more valuable as the price increases. Customers need strong reassurance from their peers that the product delivers on its promises and is worth the investment. Sellers of high-priced goods on Amazon must make generating detailed, high-quality reviews a top priority. Your strategy should focus on encouraging early buyers to share their experiences, perhaps with photos, to provide the robust evidence that cautious, high-value shoppers require to feel confident in their decision.
This powerful 200% metric provides a clear, quantifiable return on investment for any post-purchase follow-up activities. For a data-driven seller on Amazon, it transforms review generation from a hopeful "nice-to-have" into a core growth strategy with a predictable outcome. You can directly tie the cost of a follow-up campaign to a measurable increase in conversion rates. For example, if acquiring five reviews costs a certain amount in time or marketing spend, that investment can be weighed against the projected sales lift from the tripling of purchase likelihood. This evidence proves that proactively encouraging feedback is not just about customer service; it is a direct and efficient lever for boosting sales velocity and establishing a product in a competitive marketplace. Understanding this connection is vital for strategic resource allocation.
Brands can strategically syndicate the social proof generated on Amazon to enhance trust on their own websites, where that credibility might not be as established. The authority of Amazon reviews, especially those with "verified purchase" tags, can be a powerful tool for converting direct traffic. An effective implementation plan involves:
Embedding an Amazon reviews widget directly on your product pages.
Using compelling review quotes as testimonials in your marketing copy and ads.
Displaying the average star rating and review count prominently near the "add to cart" button.
By borrowing the trust that customers already place in the Amazon ecosystem, you can significantly reduce purchase anxiety on your own site. This approach validates your product through a familiar and respected third-party source, accelerating the customer's journey to conversion.
For a premium product, the initial reviews are not just helpful, they are fundamental to achieving sales velocity. The financial risk for the buyer is high, so they depend on early adopters to validate the product's quality, a fact supported by the 380% conversion lift for reviewed high-priced items. Failing to secure early reviews creates a trust vacuum that competitors will fill. An initial marketing plan must therefore prioritize:
Engaging early adopters to solicit honest feedback.
Following up post-purchase to encourage reviews.
Highlighting key features that reviewers can comment on.
Without this focus, your product remains an unproven risk. The absence of social proof will severely limit your ability to convert interested shoppers, as 95% of them will move on to a competitor's listing that has the validation they seek.
Your product description should no longer be the sole source of truth but should instead set the stage for the customer reviews to confirm your claims. This means shifting your copy's focus from making definitive statements to highlighting key features and benefits that you want reviewers to validate. Your description poses the question, and the reviews provide the trusted answer. For example, instead of just stating a product is durable, explain the materials used and let the reviews provide the real-world proof. This symbiotic relationship builds a stronger case, as claims made by the brand are then authenticated by unbiased customers. This strategy aligns with modern consumer behavior, where peer validation is often more powerful than brand messaging, and it turns your entire product page on Amazon into a more cohesive and trustworthy sales tool.
Neglecting reviews creates a major gap in the customer journey because shoppers actively seek peer validation to confirm a product's quality. Even with perfect photos and copy, the absence of reviews signals risk, causing the 95% of shoppers who read them to hesitate or choose a competitor. The straightforward solution is to integrate a review generation strategy directly into your launch plan. This involves actively encouraging feedback from early buyers to quickly reach the crucial threshold of at least five reviews, which can increase purchase likelihood by over 200%. On Amazon, this social proof is not an optional extra; it is a core component of a trustworthy and high-converting product listing. Making this a day-one priority is how successful sellers avoid this common pitfall.
The "cold start" problem is a significant hurdle, but the Amazon review system is designed with features that help build trust even with a low review count. While volume is important, shoppers also look for other signals that a seller can cultivate from the very first sale. The key solution is to focus on the quality and authenticity of your first few reviews. Amazon supports this by providing trust markers like:
The prominent "verified purchase" tag.
Reviewer profiles with names and dates.
The ability for reviewers to add their own photos.
A single, detailed review from a verified purchaser with images can be more persuasive than several vague, unverified ones. By focusing on getting high-quality initial feedback, sellers can overcome the volume issue and start the cycle of trust and sales.
Amol has helped catalyse business growth with his strategic & data-driven methodologies. With a decade of experience in the field of marketing, he has donned multiple hats, from channel optimization, data analytics and creative brand positioning to growth engineering and sales.
Growth Strategy and Planning
