Positive reviews are the lifeblood of Amazon sellers. Nothing sways a potential purchaser more, either positively or negatively, than what prior purchasers say about the product. As Amazon sellers ourselves, we understand that requesting Amazon customer feedback is not as easy or intuitive as one would think. This post examines the most common mistakes Amazon sellers make when requesting feedback, as well as our best practices for requesting such Amazon feedback.
Amazon Customer Feedback: Engage Customers
Engaging with customers is crucial to maximizing business results, particularly when it comes to Amazon feedback. If you see a customer has not provided feedback, it is critical that you directly contact them as soon as possible to solicit their feedback. You can set this solicitation up through an automated Amazon feedback email function in your seller profile for a certain number of days following delivery of the order. This will ensure you contact each customer and will help optimize the number of responses you receive. It is important to note that Amazon permits (and even encourages) this feedback solicitation, as long as sellers do not incentivize (i.e., pay for) the feedback.
Amazon Customer Feedback: Dealing With Negatives
Customer engagement can be taken a step further if sellers receive negative feedback from a customer. It is especially important to establish a direct follow-up channel with customers providing such negative feedback. Although Amazon customers cannot alter their feedback once it has been provided, they do have the option to remove their feedback altogether. This means that once you have worked with a customer who provided negative feedback and adequately addressed their complaints/resolved the issue, that customer can remove that feedback. From a seller perspective, this should always be priority #1 if you receive negative feedback — to convince the customer to retract their negative comments. In fact, Amazon even recommends feedback removal to customers once the issue causing their complaint has been remedied by the seller. Customers can remove their feedback within 60 days of writing it, meaning you have a limited window in which to address complaints. If you have reached out to a customer after resolution of the issue and they still do not remove their negative feedback, it is important to reach out to Amazon and report the issue via a “Customer Feedback Removal Request.” In our experience, Amazon is extremely receptive to these requests, as long as you give them sufficient evidence (for example, your email exchanges with the customer or screen shots of the feedback and your steps to resolve the issues).
Amazon Customer Feedback: Responding Quickly
According to Amazon’s customer service requirements, sellers must respond to feedback from customers within one day. This one-day rule applies on weekends and holidays, meaning that 365 days a year, sellers are required to respond to customer feedback within 24 hours of receiving it. Amazon sellers are held to this standard to uphold the values of Amazon, but quick response time should also be a personal business goal. In other words, your and Amazon’s business goals are aligned insofar as if you are not responding to negative customer feedback, your business will not excel. When it comes to responding to feedback, make sure that you always mark “no response needed” when applicable. Otherwise, you can expect direct contact from Amazon (or worse, a “watch” placed on your account or a suspension). Importantly, Amazon will not examine the content of your messages, only your lack of response. This means that you need to respond to feedback within 24 hours, even if that means writing something very short.
Familiarize Yourself With Amazon’s Feedback Guidelines
If you are not familiar with Amazon’s guidelines, it is worth your time to take a few moments to review them. The Feedback Manager is a very helpful tool which allows you to view feedback metrics, post a reply, contact customers, and, as noted above, request Amazon feedback removal. Further instructions appear in the link above.
Care About Your Ratings
Receiving negative customer feedback is an unavoidable risk of doing business. However, you should have a strict goal of zero negative ratings on your seller page given that negative feedback can be addressed and removed by customers. Adopt a mentality that negative feedback is unacceptable—because it is! As an Amazon seller, it is your duty to address customers’ concerns and deal with them in an efficient, effective way that increases their satisfaction. When a customer presents an issue, do not delay in addressing it. Address the issue promptly and interact with the customer in a professional way. Remember, dissatisfied customers are often angry customers, especially on a platform like Amazon that has built an e-commerce empire on its reliability. Be empathetic to your customers’ issues and pay attention to their feedback as you address it – each opinion is important because it directly impacts your future sales! Contact us today!