Let's be honest: running an online store is tough. You're competing with thousands of other shops, and when someone lands on your product page, they have no idea if they can trust you. That's where reviews come in, and if you're running a Bigcommerce store, getting your review strategy right might be the most important thing you do this year.
Think about the last time you bought something online. Did you scroll down to read the reviews? Of course you did. We all do. Reviews are the digital equivalent of asking a friend "Is this any good?" before making a purchase. For Bigcommerce merchants, reviews aren't just a nice feature to have—they're absolutely essential for turning browsers into buyers.
Why Reviews Are Your Secret Weapon
Here's what makes reviews so powerful: they can boost your conversion rates by thirty percent or more. That's transformational for most businesses. But it goes deeper than just making more sales. Reviews fill your product pages with fresh, authentic content that Google loves, which means better search rankings. They answer questions before customers even ask them. They highlight problems you didn't know existed with your products. And perhaps most importantly, they build the kind of trust that no amount of slick marketing copy ever could.
When we talk about reviews for Bigcommerce stores, we're actually talking about several different types of feedback. Product reviews are the bread and butter—customers rating and commenting on the specific items they bought. These help future shoppers understand what they're really getting. Is that jacket true to size? Does the blender actually crush ice? Product reviews answer these questions. Then you have store reviews, which reflect the overall experience of shopping with you. Was shipping fast? Did customer service respond quickly? These paint a picture of what it's like to be your customer. And increasingly, we're seeing video reviews and photo reviews take center stage because they're just more believable and engaging than text alone.
Choosing the Right Review Platform
Bigcommerce actually comes with built-in review functionality right out of the box, which is great if you're just getting started. You can enable reviews without installing anything extra or paying another monthly subscription. For a small store finding its footing, this native system works perfectly fine. But as you grow and your competition gets fiercer, you'll probably bump into its limitations. The built-in system doesn't send automated review requests, doesn't support photo or video reviews, and lacks the sophisticated display options that can really make reviews pop on your site.
That's where third-party review apps come in. The Bigcommerce app marketplace has plenty of options, and they range from enterprise-level platforms like Yotpo that cost a small fortune but do everything imaginable, to budget-friendly options like Kudobuzz that give you solid functionality without breaking the bank. Some newer platforms focus specifically on video reviews or influencer content. The key is matching the solution to your specific needs. If you're selling fashion or home décor where visuals matter enormously, prioritize photo and video capabilities. If you're in a more technical niche, detailed written reviews with verification features might be more important.
How to Actually Get Customers to Leave Reviews
Now, the thing about reviews is that they don't just happen. Most happy customers will buy from you, love what they got, and then... nothing. They move on with their lives. You need a system to actually collect reviews, and that system, to make things easier and faster, needs to be automatic. The most effective approach is sending an email a few days after the product is delivered—long enough that they've actually used it, but soon enough that the experience is still fresh in their mind. The email should be short, friendly, and make leaving a review ridiculously easy. Don't make people hunt around for where to leave feedback. Give them a direct link that takes them straight to the review form.
Should you incentivize reviews? This gets tricky. You can offer discounts or contest entries to encourage reviews, but here's the critical part: you must offer the same incentive to everyone, regardless of whether they had a good or bad experience. Selectively rewarding only happy customers—something called review gating—is against the rules on most platforms and can get you in serious trouble. The best incentive strategies focus on making customers feel valued for their contribution rather than bribing them for positive feedback. Loyalty points, early access to new products, or featuring their review in your marketing can all work well.
Displaying Reviews That Actually Convert
How you show reviews on your site matters just as much as collecting them in the first place. Your star rating should be visible near the product title and price where people naturally look when deciding whether to buy. Make the full review section easy to find, with options to filter by star rating or sort by most recent. Consider featuring standout reviews on your homepage to build trust before visitors even reach a product page. And remember that most people shop on their phones these days, so your reviews need to look great and work smoothly on mobile. One technical tip that makes a huge difference is to implement schema markup so your star ratings show up in Google search results. Those little stars next to your listing dramatically improve click-through rates.
Managing Reviews Like a Pro
Managing reviews isn't a set-it-and-forget-it situation. You need to actively engage with the feedback you're getting. When someone leaves a positive review, respond with a genuine thank you. It doesn't need to be elaborate, just acknowledge their specific comment and show appreciation. Negative reviews are actually opportunities in disguise. When you respond professionally and empathetically to criticism, potential customers reading those reviews see that you care about making things right. That builds more trust than perfect five-star ratings ever could, because let's face it, nobody believes a store with only glowing reviews anyway. Address the issue, offer a solution, and when appropriate, move the conversation to email or phone to resolve it privately.
Don't let your reviews just sit on your Bigcommerce store. Syndicate them to your Google Shopping feed where they'll appear in product ads. Share great reviews on social media—they're way more compelling than anything you could say about yourself. Feature review snippets in your email campaigns. Some of the most effective ads you'll ever run will feature real customer testimonials because they don't feel like ads at all. They feel like recommendations from real people, which is exactly what they are.
The Power of Video Reviews
Video reviews deserve special attention because they're incredibly powerful but also harder to get. Watching someone use and talk about your product creates connection in a way that text simply cannot. The challenge is convincing customers to go through the extra effort of recording a video. You might need to offer better incentives specifically for video reviews, and you absolutely need to make the submission process as painless as possible. Mobile-friendly recording tools are essential. Once you have video reviews, showcase them prominently because they'll quickly become some of your highest-converting content.
You should be tracking how your review strategy performs just like you track any other part of your business. What percentage of customers leave reviews? What's your average rating? How does conversion rate differ between products with lots of reviews versus those with few or none? Test different approaches—try sending review requests at different times, experiment with different incentives, A/B test where reviews appear on your product pages. The data will tell you what works for your specific audience, and your strategy should evolve based on what you learn.
We need to talk about the legal side for a moment because this matters. The FTC has strict rules about review authenticity and disclosure. You can't make up fake reviews, you can't pay for positive reviews, and if you're offering any incentive, it needs to be disclosed. If you're selling to European customers, GDPR adds another layer of requirements around how you collect and use customer data. These aren't just bureaucratic hoops to jump through—following the rules maintains the trust that makes reviews valuable in the first place.
Once you've mastered the basics, there are advanced moves that can take your review strategy to the next level. Syndicate reviews across all your sales channels so customers see consistent feedback wherever they find you. Partner with influencers to create review content that combines social proof with broader reach. Integrate reviews into your loyalty program so your most engaged customers become your biggest advocates. If you're expanding internationally, support multiple languages in your review platform so customers in new markets see feedback from people like them.
Building a great review strategy for your Bigcommerce store isn't something you do once and forget about. It's an ongoing commitment to listening to your customers, showcasing what they have to say, and learning from their feedback. The stores that treat reviews as a core part of their business rather than an afterthought consistently outperform their competitors in sales, search rankings, and customer loyalty. Start with the basics—pick a review platform that fits your needs and budget, set up automated review requests, and make reviews prominent on your site, like Kudobuzz. Then keep improving based on what you learn. Your customers want to help future shoppers make good decisions. All you have to do is give them an easy way to do it.