How to Write an Excellent Product Review & Skyrocket Your Sales

Are you eager to learn how to write product reviews that convert without making your site look cheesy?

Awesome.

In this article, I’ll show you exactly how to write product reviews that win.

Writing a well-written review is an art. You need to take your reader on a journey, tell them a story, and make them truly believe in the product you’re reviewing.

But you also need to be careful not to come across as a sell-out. 100% positivity and no drawbacks looks fishy and will harm your credibility.

Thankfully, there’s a tried-and-true formula for writing trust-building reviews while encouraging all-important conversions.

Let’s get to it!

• What Is a Product Review?
• The Importance of a Great Product Review
• How to Start Successfully Reviewing Products: Research is King
• The Secret Formula to Make a Review Convert
• Types of Reviews to Get Familiar With
• General Tips on Writing a Great Product Review
• Template for Product Review Success

Originally published on May 26th, 2020, this article was updated and republished on May 10th, 2024.

What Is a Product Review?

If you’ve ever shopped online, you’ve probably read at least a few product reviews. Maybe for a product on Amazon or a full-length affiliate marketing article like the one you’re about to learn to write! 

Whatever medium they use, the underlying aim of a product review is to empower real-world people to make an informed decision about whether a product or solution matches their needs. And in today’s landscape, these reviews are big business. 

Gone are the days when consumers would leap into purchasing decisions based on marketing and sales messages alone. Instead, today’s buyers are savvy, informed, and skeptical. 

Of course, just as consumers are skeptical of potential products, they’re also wary of overly hyped or poorly written product reviews. To win their trust and skyrocket conversions, you need to unlock the secret formula for product review success.

The Importance of a Great Product Review

Product reviews are integral to boosting ecommerce sales. Not only do reviews foster trust and loyalty between brands and consumers, but they also do wonders for setting products apart in the crowded ecommerce space.

Just think about a time when you went out to eat recently. Did you look at TripAdvisor or Google Reviews to check what customers thought before you went? If you didn’t, you’re in the minority. 

The more reviews a product (or brand) has, the more convinced a potential buyer will be that purchasing that item is the right decision. That’s straight from a BrightLocal consumer study that looked at the power of consumer reviews.

But it’s not just having lots of reviews that’s important. It’s having great ones. 

Research from Podium shows that the quality of online reviews directly impacts consumer decision-making. In fact, most consumers won’t even engage with a business if it has less than a 3.3-star rating. 

More importantly, consumers are willing to pay more for products with great reviews, with the same research finding that over two-thirds of people would pay more if guaranteed a great product experience.

But that’s not to say consumers only look at review sites like G2 or TurstPilot to make decisions. They also rely on media sites, bloggers, and brands for detailed, trustworthy product reviews. 

These kinds of SEO-optimized reviews can drive up total revenue fantastically. As noted by the Harvard Business Review, easily searchable and shareable reviews are likely to be seen at scale, leading to a boost in sales. 

In summary, product reviews are fantastic if you’re trying to sell a product online successfully. The more you have, and the more honest they are, the better.

How to Start Successfully Reviewing Products: Research Is King

So, you’ve got a product you’d like to review. Before you open Google Docs or MS Word, spending proper time on research is vital. 

In-depth research is one of my critical success factors for an excellent review that converts. 

You really can’t have a great review without great research. And that’s because research strengthens your holistic knowledge of the product, empowering you to come across as honest, credible, and experienced–which is what every reader wants! 

You’ll need to become an expert on your chosen product to conduct excellent research. Here are my top tips: 

• Study the product like you’re preparing for an exam. Get curious and find out all the tiny details. Other people’s reviews are a great place to start–from affiliate articles, YouTube videos, and websites like TrustPilot and G2. 
• In addition to researching the product, learn about the brand. Their reputation will provide clues as to the performance and reliability of their products.
• Get to know the competitor landscape by identifying 2 or 3 competitors and learning all you can about them, including how they stack up to the product you’ll be reviewing. 
• Get a feel for the industry as a whole and learn where your product might fit into the grand scheme of things. 
• Take notes as you go, and use this page as the foundation for your soon-to-be amazing product review that converts.

The Secret Formula to Make a Review Convert

Once you’ve got your research down, it’s time to learn about the three pillars that will drive conversions: 

1. Add Credibility
2. Cultivate Curiosity 
3. Provide an Irresistible Offer

Embedding these facets into your review will engage your readers throughout the article and, more importantly, convince them to act. 

Think of it this way. As soon as your readers become disengaged with the review you wrote, they’ll leave the page. Not only is this harmful to those conversions you’re trying to get, but it will also hurt your SEO and site traffic.

1. Add Credibility

Credibility is the ultimate requirement for a review that skyrockets conversions. Without it, your readers won’t believe you. And why should they buy a product if they don’t believe what you have to say?

The good news is that earning credibility is pretty easy.

First, provide regular, high-quality content on your site. This goes beyond the actual review and seeps into your platform for the review. If all the reader finds is a bunch of spam reviews, they’ll get a clue that you’re getting paid to post nice things about these products.

But if you invest time in creating valuable, optimized content, readers will see there’s a lot to gain from reading your posts.

Another way to earn credibility within your review is by using testimonials to back up your claims. Including additional reviews within your review might seem a bit meta, but it provides value to skeptical readers through social proof. 

Plus, including third-party reviews can help your search engine ranking–maybe even get you on the first page of Google. That’s because Google proactively evaluates E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) to ensure the quality of top-ranking search results.

If you can provide multiple success stories from those who have used the product, by all means, do it. 

2. Curiosity

Aside from weaving in credibility, you’ll also need to strike the delicate balance between providing a wealth of information while still sparking curiosity in the reader.

That’s a fine line, we know. Here’s how you do it:

Focus more on the benefits of the product rather than its features. 

Describe what you’ll learn from or get out of the product, but avoid getting too technical. 

Leave some of the products’ features for them to discover after they purchase.

Leaving what we call “knowledge gaps” will drive that innate curiosity to know more and try it out for themselves.

3. Irresistible Offer

Lastly, you’ll want to conclude your article with an offer your audience can’t refuse. That’s right. We’re taking a note from The Godfather as we learn to write killer product reviews. 

Realize that there are a lot of people promoting products and writing reviews in favor of your direct competitors. So why should that reader choose to buy based on your review? A special offer, of course. 

We recommend looping in bonuses to the product, so you’re upping the value without touching the price. Once you’ve added enough bonuses, it becomes a no-brainer.

Types of Reviews to Get Familiar With

You can write several types of reviews. You’ll want to understand these different types and their uses so you can discern which type is best each time you write a review.

1. Standard Review

These reviews are the most common ones out there. They’re designed to inform the reader about a specific product by a particular brand. They offer information such as pricing, supports, features, benefits, and drawbacks. 

Ideally, a standard review will help the reader solve their problem and understand if the product is the solution.

This blog answers common questions about the product and is nicely segmented into digestible chunks of copy. Plus, it’s not overwhelmingly biased–it gives details of the product’s pros and cons while still being positive overall. 

2. Comparison Review

A comparison review is a tool that can help give one product a leg up over another similar one. These reviews directly compare two or more products that serve the same purpose. 

When writing a comparison, highlight the extra value that the ‘product of choice’ offers compared to the other options.

Here’s an example from a fitness blog, reviewing two popular meal replacement drinks: Huel and Soylent. The review is informative, offering a detailed look at the nutrition, pricing, and taste of each supplement, while subtly demonstrating Huel as the overall winner throughout the piece. 

3. Gateway Review

A gateway review is less about conversions and more about attracting visitors to your site. These reviews describe alternatives to a product while showcasing that their solution is the best overall. 

Software companies often create these types of reviews to attract potential customers searching for “alternatives to (their software product)” online. 

Here’s an example from Podia and their comparison to a direct competitor, Teachable.

This page from Podia highlights their product as an alternative to Teachable, another popular service with a similar functionality. 

Once you add a pop-up email capture to the page, that review will function as a gateway to further engage through email marketing.

General Tips on Writing a Great Product Review

You’ve chosen your product, done your research, and picked a review format. Brilliant work! Now, it’s time to get writing. 

Here are our must-know tips to write a great product review. 

Cover Every Angle in Your Research

People read product reviews because they don’t want to spend hours and hours researching a product themselves. Essentially, you need to do the hard work for them. So, be sure to conduct thorough research, looking at factors like: 

• The price of the product, including any discounts or special offers
• The product’s features, with a focus on what makes it unique
• How to setup and use the product 
• How the product’s features and price compare to competitors
• What real-world users think of the product

Identify and Empathize with your Reader

“Know thy audience” is a crucial commandment for successful product reviews. Great reviews do more than just describe a product’s good or bad points. They take the reader on a journey, beginning with an understanding of their pain points before moving on to how the product in question can help.

List All Pros and Cons of the Product

If you only praise a product, your readers will begin to doubt it. Even the best products have some cons. To that end, make sure to include a bullet point list of pros and cons towards the beginning of your article, with at least two or three cons to build credibility.

Summarize for Easy Scanning

In the attention economy, some readers don’t have the time or desire to read long articles. They want the “TL;DR” version of your review. To appease this group, include an overall summary of your review after the introduction.

Pick Four or Five Key Features

The bulk of your product review article should explore the product’s key features: what makes it stand out, how easy it is to use, and what you think about it. 

Pick four or five key features and discuss them under separate headings. Don’t forget to include images to emphasize each feature!

Think about Your Tone

If you want people to come back to your site again and again to read product reviews, you’ll need to write in an engaging tone. That means showing some personality in your writing, sharing how you honestly felt about the product, and relating to your audience. 

Weave in Keywords

If you want your review to rank highly on the Google search results page and start making money online, you’ll want to optimize it specifically for search engines. To do this, focus on keywords.

Keywords are the terms that potential customers type into Google or other search engines to find your review. By researching the keywords with high search volume and low competition, you’ll be able to pinpoint the exact verbiage to include throughout your review for better ranking.

Embrace Visuals 

People love to see products in action. Include images throughout your product review to help readers understand how to use the product in practice. 

Compare with a Similar Product

Help your readers make a smart decision by introducing them to another product alongside the one you’re reviewing towards the end of your review. Give a quick side-by-side comparison–perhaps in a table–so they can better understand how the product fares against others in the market.

Include External Validation (Other People’s Reviews)

Consumers love social proof. Sure, you’re saying a product is great. But to truly believe you, readers will want to see evidence that other people think it’s great, too. 

After reviewing the product’s features, include a section on third-party reviews. To achieve this, you can use screenshots from websites like G2, TrustRadius, and Reddit.

Template for Product Review Success

Now you understand the role that product reviews play in online marketplace success, and you should have a solid grasp on what makes a review convert. Hopefully, you also understand the difference between the three most common types of review and when to use each one.

With this foundation, you’re ready for the perfect product review template. This breaks down every aspect you’ll need to include and the ever-so-important order of things. 

Remember, the key to a helpful product review is keeping the reader engaged. Follow this template carefully for each review you write, and you’re guaranteed to see conversion results.

Here’s how it goes:

1. The Perfect Title

The perfect title clearly includes the product’s name and has an additional hook to capture readers’ attention. Here are some examples you can use:

• “[Product Name] Review: Why It’s Better Than Ever”
• “[Product Name] Review: Still Worth It in 2024?”
• “[Product Name] Review: An Honest Look”
• “[Product Name] Review: The Best [Product Category] for [Persona]”

2. A Leading Question

The leading question should be repeated below the title to draw the reader’s attention down the page. This question will “lead” the way the rest of the review is written, so let it guide you through the below sections.

3. Overview and Quick Answer

The overview and quick answer to your leading question are great ways to offer valuable information to readers who have little time to spare and need to get straight to the point. 

Often, these overviews consist of a few bullet points, top pros and cons, key features, and overall product rating. This section should also briefly answer the leading question. 

For example, if your leading question is, “Is the product name worth it?” your overview should include, “Yes, this product is worth every penny. Here’s why.”

This is the perfect way to transition from your overview into the rest of the review.

4. Company History and Information

Here, you’ll want to go over the company’s history of creating great (or not-so-great) products. This helps to build trust in the product from the get-go.

5. Who Benefits and What the Benefits Are

Not everyone is going to benefit from every product out there. Narrow it down to those who will be helped the most. Additionally, list the benefits that readers can expect to receive. This piques their interest in trying the product out for themselves.

6. Pros and Cons

This is a great way to quickly go over the benefits and drawbacks of a product without getting bogged down with too much detail. Making these short bulleted lists will also attract the eye.

7. Features and Tools

Don’t cover every feature and specification of the product. You want to leave room for curiosity. Touch on the significant features of the product that lead to the benefits reaped.

8. Personal Opinion

Here, you can give your take on the product based on your research and experiences. While you’ll want to remain objective throughout the rest of the review, you can get a little subjective here and provide your honest thoughts and opinions.

9. Conclusion

The conclusion is where you’ll answer the leading question of the review in greater detail. Answer this by briefly recapping what you covered in the review.

10. CTA

It’s not a great review unless there’s a great call to action. 

A call to action drives the conversion at the final moment, so don’t forget it. Give readers that irresistible offer, and they’ll be hooked.

Now, That’s a Useful Review

There you have it – the step-by-step instructions for creating a compelling product review that will convert readers to buyers and buyers to lifelong, loyal customers. 

Just remember, always start with thorough research, identify the type of review you’ll be creating, and follow the template above for a winning formula every time. 

And if you want to get that review ranking on the first page of Google, look to conversion rate optimization and SEO principles for support. Or if you’d like the team at Digital Commerce Partners to do it for you, check our services page.

The post How to Write an Excellent Product Review & Skyrocket Your Sales appeared first on HTE.