Why You Need Images in Review Content

Nowadays, online shopping has become so popular on a large scale because it’s more convenient for many people than shopping in-store. When shopping online, social proof is more important than ever. Since customers can’t see or touch the products themselves, they may need some additional information and encouragement before they make a purchase. In today’s web-based world, virtually everyone is reading online reviews. In fact, 91% of people read them and 84% trust them as much as they would a personal recommendation.

Customers like to see lots of reviews. A single review with a few positive words makes up an opinion, but a few dozen that say the same thing make a consensus. The more reviews, the better, and one study found that consumers want to see at least 40 reviews to justify trusting an average star rating. However, a few reviews are still better than no reviews. 

Visual Reviews For E-commerce.

You have reviews, great. But there’s one important addition to reviews that perhaps has an even larger impact on engagement, which is images with reviews. Over 85% of consumers specifically look for visual content submitted by other existing consumers before making a purchase. 72% of the shoppers are more likely to purchase a product with reviews featuring visuals alongside textual content. 

Previous research has found that consumers feel like a brand understands them when they see reviews from people like themselves, and that clear product images and reviews provide them with a great online shopping experience.

Visual Connection is Key

Images allow your customers to visually connect with the product. Our brains process images faster than text and remember them longer, so it’s not surprising that consumers prefer visual reviews. A great customer-generated product photo conveys a vast amount of information in seconds. It’s hard to find a better way to know how a product will look than by seeing a picture of someone who owns the product wearing or using it. [ As there is no test drive for online shop]

Images Influence Purchase Decisions

It wins trust easily and taps into the impulse, customers seek reliability and relatability before they make purchases.
Sure, product images from the brand or retailer do some of the leg work for you here, but customers trust other customers. They identify with other customers more so than with an anonymous model or a shoe stand propping up the shoes in the image. They want to see the product in the wild. A picture is worth a thousand words, and even more dollars.

Increase Conversions

Customer images in reviews can move the needle when it comes to conversion. Today’s consumers have become accustomed to visual, engaging content, which is driving the demand to see a product being used before they buy. For apparel brands and retailers, visual content is no longer optional, it’s expected.

Photos provided by the brand or retailer have their part to play, but they’re not enough to satisfy today’s information-hungry shoppers. People want to see photos of real people using a product. This is especially true when a consumer is purchasing clothing or shoes online without first trying on the product in a store.

Reduce Return Rates

One of the biggest challenges apparel brands and retailers face is keeping return rates at bay. Reviews provide direct insight into how your customers feel about your products. It’s key, then, for brands and retailers to provide shoppers with an accurate picture of what to expect from purchase so there are fewer surprises when the item arrives in the mail.

In a world where commerce is increasingly conducted online, reviews and user-generated content can give consumers the information they need to make confident decisions. The main reason consumers value product reviews are that they provide a more accurate indicator of the product’s quality. Additionally, more reviews with relevant images increase the customer’s confidence about their purchase and make the reviews feel more relevant and trustworthy.