{"id":4450,"date":"2020-11-25T14:38:01","date_gmt":"2020-11-25T14:38:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spotonwifi.com\/?p=4450"},"modified":"2025-01-24T14:50:16","modified_gmt":"2025-01-24T14:50:16","slug":"the-importance-of-customer-reviews-in-a-post-covid-19-world-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spotonwifi.com\/en\/the-importance-of-customer-reviews-in-a-post-covid-19-world-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Importance of Customer Reviews in a Post Covid-19 World"},"content":{"rendered":"

A customer review or feedback is a piece of content (e.g. text, video, etc.) created by a customer expressing a positive or negative experience such a customer had with a business\/brand<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s talk about reviews, shall we?<\/p>\n

If you are a restaurant manager, I can bet that the thought of reviews would either excite or terrify you. Regardless of what feelings you have about reviews, one thing is clear: you know how important they are.<\/p>\n

The importance of customer reviews and feedback cannot be overemphasized. Many restaurants owe as much as 67% of their sales to online customer reviews.<\/p>\n

But why is this so?<\/p>\n

Well, the answer goes by many names: peer influence, social selection, herd mentality, bandwagon mind-set, etc. take your pick.<\/p>\n

Let me explain\u2026<\/p>\n

In nature, there are certain features male animals must have for females to find them attractive. Examples include the crown of a cock, the bright red head of an agama lizard, the long, colourful tail-feather of a peacock, and so on.<\/p>\n

Males endowed with these feature find mates without too much effort.<\/p>\n

However, it has been observed that female animals are less attracted to male animals that other female animals (of the same species, of course) don\u2019t find attractive \u2013 even when such a male has all the right features.<\/p>\n

This has also been observed in humans: the guys who always get girls always get girls. And the dork that never gets girls, never gets girls.<\/p>\n

And here\u2019s why\u2026<\/p>\n

Somewhere in the reptilian brain, animals make choices based on the choices of members of the group. Therefore, if the females are attracted to and mate with a certain male, there must be something good about that male. \u201cHe must have good genes\u201d, they think.<\/p>\n

Make sense?<\/p>\n

It is the same story with customer reviews.<\/p>\n

Customers buy based on the experience of other customers. This is why customer reviews are so powerful \u2013 both positively and negatively. And the reason businesses ought to pay more attention to it.<\/p>\n

This is truer for the hospitality industry than most.<\/p>\n

Covid-19 Has Changed the Direction of Customer Reviews in the Hospitality Industry<\/strong><\/h3>\n

If you haven\u2019t heard of covid-19, I have one question for you: How was your trip to earth<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Not too uncomfortable for you, I hope.<\/p>\n

However, if you have, then you know it rocked every industry from the highest to the lowest \u2013 the hospitality industry taking the biggest blow.<\/p>\n

Many in the restaurant business never recovered. The few that survived have had to move their business online \u2013 some fully, others partially.<\/p>\n

As a result of the damage brought on by the pandemic, customers have changed the way they review restaurants. Customers know that many restaurants are struggling to stay afloat while trying to serve them. And even though they complain about the rise in prices of meals, they are a lot kinder with their reviews.<\/p>\n

The moral bug has also bitten food critics around the world. Many of them are coming out to say they will not be writing negative reviews for the time being.<\/p>\n

This doesn\u2019t excuse restaurants or hotels to offer bad service. It just means that people \u2013 food critics included \u2013 want to be more positive about their comments on struggling businesses.<\/p>\n

2 Things You Should Pay Attention To About Your Customer Reviews In A Post Covid-19 Era<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The pandemic may have changed the tone of customer reviews, but it hasn\u2019t eradicated it. Customers will continue to seek the opinions of other customers about your brand to make a buying decision.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, there are 2 crucial things you want to pay attention to in regards to reviews in a post covid-19 world.<\/p>\n

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  1. \n

    People Value Prompt Response<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Here\u2019s what customer reviews are not\u2026<\/p>\n

    A bunch of texts written by customers with too much time on their hands.<\/em><\/p>\n

    When business owners stop seeing reviews in that light, they\u2019d handle them differently. Customer feedbacks are windows to the souls of customers. Sorry, I didn\u2019t mean to sound creepy but it\u2019s the truth.<\/p>\n

    Feedback helps you know a few things; some of which include:<\/p>\n