As a small business, you probably don’t have the time to read every user review on your store. But it is also essential for you to know what your users say about your products. Some review platforms such as Google, Facebook, and Amazon exist to help you check them. You can use this information to improve your business.
Google Product Ratings allows you to easily see how well your products are doing from customers’ perspectives. Good or bad, you will know where you stand with each product. It helps you make improvements or address negative reviews before they turn into full-blown issues.
This is not a new feature, it has been around for some time already. But it is still worth mentioning because it can be very useful for retailers selling physical products. When implemented correctly, product ratings can lead to increased conversions and sales for eCommerce businesses.
What is Product Rating?
Product ratings can be an effective way to increase your Google shopping ads’ performances. It is one of several features that Google has introduced to improve the relevancy of ads and the experience for users. It allows your potential customers to rate your product or service on a 5-star rating system and let advertisers show how highly customers rate their products or services along with their ads.
Product rating is generally accompanied by customer reviews with a title and description, which will be shown on the Google search network as part of the ad. Google uses the average ratings of your product on the platforms you advertise on to decide whether or not to show product ratings in your ad. If your product has an average rating on the platform, then you can expect to see it displayed in your ads. This helps customers understand why they should choose your company over others.
Product Rating Vs Seller Rating
Google Ads supports two types of ratings for product listings: seller rating and product rating. Though they may sound similar, in reality, they are different.
A product rating is an aggregated rating given to a product. It is calculated by Google based on all the reviews for a particular product. The higher the number of reviews, the better the product rating.
Seller rating on the other hand is more of a business review. It is provided by sellers who have been in business for over 12 months. They provide feedback about their sellers and vendors. A seller’s rating can go up and down based on the ratings given to them by other sellers.
For example, if a seller gives a bad rating to another seller then it affects their seller’s rating negatively. Likewise, if he gives a good rating to another seller then it affects his seller’s rating positively.
So, the main thing is that you should be very careful while giving ratings to other sellers. Make sure that you are not giving a bad rating to a seller just because you are not satisfied with the product. If you have received a bad product, then you should contact the seller and try to resolve the issue with him/her.
How Do You Implement Product Ratings?
Product ratings may be automated or manual, depending on the type of campaign you run and what Google features you use for Product Ratings in Google Ads. But before going into that, you need to be aware that to activate your product ratings, you need to have at least 50 reviews available across all your products.
Moreover, you have two options to participate in product ratings:
Option 1 - Supported reviews aggregator
Google is in partnership with several third-party reviews aggregators to help you manage the rating submission process. It's a good option to automate the workflow of your product ratings in your campaigns. But take note that may charge fees associated with their services.
If you want to check the list of eligible aggregators, you can visit this Google Support page: https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/7045996
Option 2 - Submit the product review feed periodically through Merchant Center.
Google Merchant Center is a product ratings and reviews feed management web service. Google Merchant Center helps merchants to manage their product ratings and reviews as well as inventory updates. It provides the standard format for product ratings and reviews that can be used by other applications.
It allows you to directly submit product ratings from within Merchant Center. However, The manual process could take some time to implement and could be time-consuming. So to make sure that you do not miss out on any product rating opportunities, here’s the step-by-step process on how to upload your product ratings feeds through Merchant Center.
1. Log in to your Merchant Center account.
2. Click on Marketing and select Product reviews.
3. Go to Product reviews feeds and click the Plus Icon (+) on the “Feeds” page.
4. Name your “Feed” and select an upload method.
5. Customize your feed options for the selected method, then click Continue.
Why Are Product Ratings Important?
Star rating is an important part of the shopping experience for consumers. They base their decisions on how others have experienced a product before making their purchase. As such, product ratings save shoppers time and make them feel confident about their choices.
Product rating can help you attract qualified leads to your business. It also increases conversions and builds up credibility by providing social proof of how well your products or services are received. When customers see that others have rated your product highly, they are more likely to buy it.
Google Product Rating lets you quickly and easily see how your products are performing. You can compare your products against your competitors, identify trends, and uncover areas you can improve upon. It serves as direct customer feedback that can help you provide high-quality products most of the time.
Takeaway
Product ratings are a great way to help customers make informed buying decisions. In addition, they can help improve your conversion rate by encouraging potential shoppers to make purchases based on the feedback of previous buyers. So, if I were you, think about adding product ratings to your store today!
We’ve provided you with some information on how to make the most of them. If you have any questions about implementing these ideas, feel free to contact us for assistance. Digital Ads is always excited to help you meet your business goals!