In an increasingly omnichannel and digital landscape, shoppers expect fast and dynamic communication from the brands they interact with. Unfortunately, a significant portion of retailers do not meet this basic expectation.
At my company, SOCi, we recently conducted our fifth annual audit of nearly 600 US dealer chains. We found it 54 percent of all consumer feedback, both good and bad, on dealer online listings through platforms like Google, Instagram and Yelp go unanswered.making customers feel ignored and undervalued.
Any form of online feedback, whether a question, comment, or review, constitutes a critical interaction that should never be reciprocal. Consider, for example, ignoring a shopper in a physical store. Sounds unfathomable, right? We agree, and this thinking should equally extend to digital, where the volume of interactions is so high.
In a competitive retail environment where consumers spend with discretion, this type of retailer “ghosts” has important implications. Lack of interaction and response from a retailer is a missed opportunity.
Ghosting damages reputation and consumer trust
When retailers ghost consumers, they send a message, unwittingly or not, that customer feedback and experiences are not a high priority for their business. This is a surefire way for consumers to decide not to spend any more money with that retailer.
Keep in mind that buyers are quick to move away from brands that don’t deliver. A recent study revealed this that younger buyers are particularly fickle. According to the findings, more than half said they would stop buying from a brand, despite an overall positive perception, if they had multiple negative experiences. In addition, nearly 10 percent said they would cut ties entirely after a single bad experience.
With this in mind, consumers will gravitate towards the opposite: retailers that demonstrate a commitment to customer satisfaction and make them feel heard, valued, appreciated and welcome. Managing online feedback is an important part of managing your reputation in the marketplace, especially as consumers are becoming increasingly demanding about factors such as a company’s values and culture.
Also, remember the impact of transfer. Potential customers who see unresponsive retailers when browsing online listings may also be discouraged from engaging with the brand. In the age of social media and third-party review sites, consumers can rely heavily on other people’s experiences to inform their purchasing decisions. In fact, 87 percent say real-life reviews and user experiences influence what they buy, with 71 percent saying good, authentic reviews positively influence their choices.
If a potential customer sees a pattern of non-response, this can go in the other direction, leading to a loss of trust or affinity and a reduced likelihood of choosing that retailer in the future. Retailers need social proof to succeed.
Ghosting hinders listing optimization and search engine visibility
When retailers ignore responsibility for addressing customer complaints, inquiries or fail to express gratitude for feedback, they risk falling into digital obscurity, which can have a big impact on your bottom line.
Our analysis found that search engines like Google value active engagement, including responses to reviews, as key ranking factors. Dynamic engagement with reviews resonates positively with search algorithms, earning them a higher spot in the search results seen by consumers.
High visibility does more than drive traffic to a retailer’s online presence; Crucially, it improves retailer discoverability for local searches. Since most purchases are based on convenience rather than brand, potential customers tend to look for local options to visit stores. Engaging with customers through online platforms increases a retailer’s ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs), which in turn improves their visibility when consumers are actively searching for local shopping options or face-to-face Ultimately, it increases foot traffic to your physical stores, where most sales still occur for many retailersimpacting sales and improving brand recognition at the local level.
By ghosting and neglecting reviews, retailers not only lose these benefits, but also reduce their chances of being found by potential customers to shop in-store (and hurt revenue). It’s not just about an online presence anymore; it’s about creating a bridge between the digital and physical shopping experience, which starts with being discovered in local search results.
Aw Can brands avoid ghosts?
Clearly, ghosting is a problem. But how do they counter it? To do this effectively, brands should consider a variety of strategies that identify and close critical process and technology gaps. These, in particular, stand out:
Review Response: Clearly define digital engagement roles and responsibilities and implement a process with dedicated staff and clear owners to respond to feedback. This is easier said than done, as it will require deeper decision-making about what kind of feedback to respond to, how, and by whom. This will require education and support for everyone involved, from corporate marketing to local store locations. Still, the benefits are clear. Our data suggests that when a business responds to reviews, potential customers are 16% more likely to convert to buyers.
Profile Optimization: Feedback can often be addressed preemptively by improving how you appear online, through profiles and online listings like Yelp and Google. For example, our data found that retail locations with an optimized local social presence generate $2,737 in additional value per location.
Custom Post: In addition to quickly addressing complaints, answering questions and responding to reviews, personalization is crucial. Use every local customer interaction as an opportunity to improve the customer experience and ultimately your digital visibility. Unfortunately, brands often take a “waterfall” approach, posting generic and impersonal responses that don’t relate to a specific store experience. Marketers should treat feedback responses as advertisements – this is, they should be targeted and individual. This requires communicating at scale at the store and local level, a challenge that is increasingly being overcome with the help of advances in artificial intelligence and automation. For example, a brand with 100 stores could leverage AI and automation to deliver individualized and localized posts, rather than a single, generic message shared across all locations. If each of these custom posts gets just 10 interactions, the total becomes 1,000 interactions -10 times more than the single generic post would probably achieve.
Retail ghosting represents a silent but formidable threat to retailers’ reputations and revenues. By ignoring feedback, retailers risk tarnishing their image, eroding consumer trust and limiting their overall visibility on the web.
To avoid a downward spiral of reputational damage, loss of customer loyalty, and reduced search visibility, retailers must emphasize customer engagement and communication. Timely and personalized responses to reviews are crucial, especially in tough economic times and as consumers are smarter than ever.
Adopting a customer-centric approach, combined with active engagement, allows retailers to strengthen relationships with their customers, improve their reputation, and ultimately drive more traffic from consumers about to make a purchase. In a highly competitive and uncertain business environment, prioritizing communication and responsiveness is not just a tactical move; it is a strategic necessity for modern retailers.
Monica Ho is the Marketing Director of Partnerthe marketing platform for multi-location brands.
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