Customer Reviews for Business Growth

I think customer reviews are the single most important factor for product purchases today. Think about the way you buy… When purchasing a new product, what do you trust more: a sales pitch, a product video about features, or a real user review? 85% say they check reviews. Whether you’re buying through an online or offline channel - you will google to compare prices but also to see what others say.  1 customer experience has the potential to influence 100 others. The harsh reality for brands (and I see founders complaining about this all the time) is that humans have a strong negativity bias. Hence, consumers tend to review more on a negative experience than a positive one. The data says: → Only 47% of consumers share +ve experience, but as much as 95% shout from rooftops about a -ve one. → And, 1 -ve review reduces the likelihood of purchase by 42% Clearly, managing this is crucial. So, what should brands do? Getting rid of the review section all together is not an option. Here’s what I’ve seen works: ✅ Engage with the detractors:    Customers feel  +ve after seeing a business owner responding to a review. If we got a very negative review I’d pick up the phone and talk to the customer. Trust me, honesty and an apology go a long way! ✅ Get as many reviews as you can: Yes, customers look at the number of reviews. 92% of customers hesitate to make a purchase when there are no reviews. And no, buying reviews or faking reviews is not the answer. It’s a dangerous activity that can get a brand banned/cancelled or in a place where customers completely lose trust. So, do it the ethical (and long-term) way: ➡ Incentivize reviews: think coupons, discounts, or even freebies. ➡ Spice things up with contests ➡ Trying is believing: send out samples to these folks – Follow up with discounts on condition of reviews ✅ Display reviews everywhere: On your website, product packaging, social media, marketplace listings and anywhere else you can think. What very few understand, More Reviews = Strong UGC = Stronger SEO Reviews naturally contain relevant keywords that enhance the visibility of search results and align with the algorithm preferences of search engines like Google. I’d say reviews are an underrated marketing tool. In the most basic sense, it’s what customers are saying about you. An advantage here can enable D2C brands to compete with incumbents. This is something we experienced firsthand at Dr. Vaidya's ! Reviews and UGC will become even more important over the next 5 years as the marketplace gets more competitive and democratic. Winning in this sphere is a must for any brand to win. Do you agree? How much do you index reviews on your purchase decision? #consumerinsights #d2c #customer #reviews #brands

Michael Margolis has been a UX research partner at GV (Google Ventures) for nearly 15 years, and through his hands-on work with over 300 startups has developed a unique approach to helping founders identify their “bullseye customer”—the specific subset of their target market who initially is most likely to adopt their product. In our conversation, Michael shares: 🔸 The step-by-step process of running a bullseye customer sprint 🔸 Practical tips for conducting effective customer interviews 🔸 The most common mistakes founders make when picking their first customers 🔸 The power of “watch parties” in aligning teams around customer insights 🔸 How to apply these methods beyond typical tech startups 🔸 Much more Listen now 👇 - YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gwJ6vMfm - Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gpZgzVfc - Apple: https://lnkd.in/g493bRqG Thank you to our wonderful sponsors for supporting the podcast: 🏆 Eppo — Run reliable, impactful experiments: https://www.geteppo.com/ 🏆 Paragon — Ship every SaaS integration your customers want: https://lnkd.in/geirC2qS 🏆 Enterpret — Transform customer feedback into product growth: https://lnkd.in/gjz_mCJt Some key takeaways: 1. Instead of a long, drawn-out research process, you can identify your ideal customer by doing a one-day sprint with your whole team. The process involves five qualitative interviews with your bullseye customers and watching them as a team in real time. This speeds up learning and ensures that the whole team gets aligned around the same insights. 2. The bullseye customer is more specific than a typical ideal customer profile (ICP). It’s an even more narrow subset of your target market most likely to initially adopt your product. Focusing on this narrow group helps you prioritize product development, align teams, and accelerate learning. 3. When validating your ideas, don’t get stuck on perfecting a single prototype. Instead, create at least three different versions to test. This helps you see what resonates most with your bullseye customer and allows your team to avoid getting too attached to one concept. 4. One of the biggest advantages of doing the bullseye sprint is learning how to recognize rejection early. Pay attention to signs of indifference during customer interviews. When you hear, “Oh yeah, I guess that would be nice,” or something similarly noncommittal, that’s your cue to move on. You’re looking for customers who are ready to say, “Take my money—where do I sign up?” 5. The way you approach customer research should differ from sales. Practice humble inquiry—ask questions as if you’re learning, not selling. Be vulnerable and embrace the fact that you don’t know everything. Your goal should be to learn, not to pitch. 6. Before diving into interviews, get everyone to predict what they think they’re going to learn.

Growing a business requires a significant amount of strategic focus on acquiring new customers. Rolling out new products, expanding our target audience, and partnering with category-adjacent businesses are all critical strategies for scaling. However, an over emphasis on acquisition can often lead to losing sight of nurturing the people who've already chosen us. What's been on my mind lately is the real cost of falling into the "good enough" trap. While you're busy chasing new customers, another organization is working just as hard to win over yours. When complacency sets in, they're prepared to parachute in, make your customers feel like a priority, and communicate exactly what they can deliver to make them consider switching. Especially when consumers are increasingly price-conscious, scaling and growing your business isn't just an acquisition game. It's fundamentally about continually creating new ways to deliver value to your current customers. Here are some of my go-to approaches to deepen that connection and value with your existing audience: Predict and Reward: You have incredible data on what your customers do and want. Use it to stay one step ahead and deliver something that genuinely surprises them in the best way. Think proactive delight, not just reactive service. Build a Real Community: People crave belonging. They love being part of a group where they feel seen, heard, and valued. Whether it’s online spaces or in-person meetups, create a place where your customers can truly connect, share, and feel like they belong. That builds incredible stickiness. Go Above and Beyond: I had a shipping issue with a company recently, and they didn’t just fix it, they kept me updated every step of the way, apologized sincerely, and even provided extra products. It turned a momentary problem into a powerful moment of real trust and appreciation. We need to look at current customers differently. Instead of just viewing them as consistent buyers, we should see them as amplifiers, invaluable feedback providers, and crucial testers. They are often your strongest allies in scaling and growing your business because, when nurtured, they will grow with you.

At Qwilr - we have recently (re)discovered the magic of the Closed Lost interview. Something that I’m now convinced far more startups should be doing. PLUS - they have a secret benefit for Sales Teams. In the early days of a startups life it’s crucial for founders to do sales – especially when it comes to finding product market fit. In these early days, most deals won’t close and, when you’re doing founder-led sales, you get to ask “Why?” and most people will try to help. Getting feedback directly from your prospective customers helps you understand… 1. What product changes you would need to make to get them to buy 2. If this type of person is the right buyer for your product (helping you figure out your ICP) 3. As well feedback on pricing, the way they like to be sold to, & more Essentially, through this process you get to refine both your product and your target market so you can (hopefully!) find that all important product-market fit. Alas - I've found that your sales reps often won’t get this truly valuable feedback from your prospects. They’ve just been through a lengthy process and have just rejected you, which can lead to a little bit of awkwardness. As you scale your sales team, and are doing less founder-led sales, you lose this touchpoint. That’s where Closed Lost interviews come in. They provide a mechanism of gathering incredibly useful feedback on your product, your customers and their needs, and your company – via someone who is NOT a sales rep. At Qwilr our interviews are usually conducted by someone from our Product or Marketing teams. We’ll reach out to someone who looks like they’re right in our ICP who didn’t buy, offer flexible times for calls and a small incentive for those that participate. In speaking to someone who is not a seller, and was not involved in the sales cycle, the pressure is taken off and we’re able to learn a heap more about what went wrong than we otherwise would. Our primary objective of these calls is to gain insights and make improvements where we can. HOWEVER Following these conversations, we’ve seen roughly 20% of these deals re-open (!!!) In talking to someone about our product, buyers often realise that they’re still experiencing the problem that they originally came to us for, and that Qwilr is still a great option for them. Sometimes it’s that they’re reconnecting with the problem space. Other times, it’s getting a bit more product information that they may have overlooked, or may not have been a focus of the sales cycle. Or it could be that now (a few weeks or months later) is just a better moment for them. And receiving this from a fresh face in a pressure-free environment can make all the difference. Now, this obviously isn’t the most amazing way of generating leads – but it is a lovely added bonus. Not only do you get a ton of super useful insights that allow you to shape the future of the product, but you may also get a few deals out of it! Who doesn’t love a win-win. 🤝

Everyone talks about how important "customer feedback" is when shaping your product. But it's hard to find actual frameworks to use. Here's exactly how Ashwin and I ran prospect calls in the early stages of Decagon to get crystal clear on what we should build. There are 3 steps to the structure I’ve found works best: 1. Start with the exploratory phase Spend the first part of the call listening. Let them share their problems, pain points, and frustrations. The goal here is to identify what’s broken or inefficient in their workflow. 2. Talk through hypothetical solutions Next, discuss potential ways to solve their problems. Test ideas and assess their reactions. Do they seem excited? Indifferent? Skeptical? Use that to refine your solution. 3. Find out what they'd pay for your solution This is the part 99% of founders gloss over. Anyone can tell you they'd use your product, but the real test is whether they'd buy—and how much they'd pay for it. By the end of the call, you should be able to answer these questions:   → What problems are they trying to solve? → How useful would your solution be to them? → Is it valuable enough for them to pay? After enough conversations, you’ll start seeing patterns and you'll feel more confident in what to build.

Customers don’t just share feedback; they offer valuable insights. Turning feedback into action is crucial for growth. Listening to your customers can transform your business for the better. Customer feedback is a goldmine. It shows you what’s working and what isn’t. By gathering feedback, you unlock opportunities for improvement. You discover what your customers love and what they dislike. This information is essential for making informed changes. 1️⃣ Start by collecting feedback through surveys and reviews. --> Ask your customers about their experiences. --> Use simple questions to get clear answers. 2️⃣ Once you have their insights, analyse the data. --> Look for patterns and common themes. This helps you understand the bigger picture. 3️⃣ Next, prioritise the feedback. --> Focus on the most pressing issues first. Not all feedback is of equal importance. Some insights may lead to significant changes, while others might be less critical. 4️⃣ Once prioritised, create an action plan. --> Decide which changes to make and how to implement them. --> Involve your team in this process. Their input can help shape effective solutions. 5️⃣ After implementing changes, follow up with your customers. --> Let them know you’ve listened and acted on their feedback. This builds trust and demonstrates that you care. Remember, feedback isn’t just noise. It’s an opportunity to grow and improve. Turning feedback into action can result in better products and happier customers. ✴️ Your business thrives when you listen and take action. Make customer feedback an integral part of your strategy. It will pay off in the long term. ✴️ And if you need help in setting up an effective customer feedback loop - I'm only one DM away 🙂 #LeadershipByAgata

One of the best ways to create authentic relationships with your customers, get honest feedback on your product and surface game changing ideas is to create a Customer Advisory Board (CAB). Here are the lessons I’ve learned about how to create and run a successful CAB. Your personal involvement as CEO is critical. If you lead it yourself, customers will engage at a deeper level. They’ll be more honest, more vulnerable, and more likely to become evangelists for your company. No one else can unlock this dynamic the way a CEO can. Be clear on the persona. Is your CAB for buyers, users, or budget holders? At BetterCloud, our sweet spot was Directors of IT. Not the CIO, not the IT admin. Know exactly whose voice you want in the room and tailor everything to them. Skip the compensation, give them “status”. Don’t pay CAB members—it gets messy. Instead, make them feel like insiders. Give them a title, early access to roadmaps, VIP treatment at events, and public recognition. People want to feel valued and influential, not bought. Set a cadence you can maintain. I tried monthly meetings once. That was a mistake. Quarterly is the sweet spot. One in-person gathering per year—ideally tied to an industry event—goes a long way in deepening relationships. Structure matters. CABs aren’t just roundtables. They’re curated experiences. Keep meetings tight (90-120 minutes), show real products that are still in the development process (even rough wireframes or high level ideas), and create space for interaction. Done right, they become the ultimate feedback engine. Build real relationships. Your CAB shouldn’t just exist in meetings. Build one-on-one connections. Text, email, check in at events. Keep it small enough that people feel seen and valued. When they have a direct line to the CEO, they stay engaged—and they speak the truth. Done right, your CAB becomes more than just a feedback mechanism. It becomes a strategic asset. It can shape your roadmap, sharpen your positioning, and strengthen your customer relationships in ways no survey ever could. For a deeper dive and detailed tactics behind each of these, check out the full writeup on the Not Another CEO Substack.

Are you seeing your customer delight shrinking as your business grows? 🤔 Here's a hard truth most business owners don’t like to hear: The bigger your company gets, the harder it becomes to deliver that extra-mile service. You know, the one that made customers rave about you in the first place. And yet, this is the most perfect time to double down on delight! 🚀 📢 So why is this important now? As you scale, processes naturally become streamlined, and in the race for efficiency, the human touch often gets lost. Suddenly, what was once personal feels generic, and loyal customers begin to feel like just another number. In a world where customer expectations are constantly evolving, growth doesn’t mean you can afford to drop the ball on delight. Ignore this, and you’re left with dissatisfied customers, higher churn rates, and an all-too-common fate—losing the very customers that built your success. There is a method to delivering customer delight at scale. Here are five elements from that method for you to implement: 1️⃣ Create "Micro-Moments" That Matter: Whether it’s a personalized thank-you message or remembering a customer’s previous preferences, these small, thoughtful gestures scale surprisingly well. Make each interaction count. 2️⃣ Empower Your Frontline Teams: The best customer experiences are delivered by teams who feel empowered to solve problems without red tape. Give them the autonomy to delight customers without needing approval every step of the way. 3️⃣ Use Technology to Enhance, Not Replace, Human Connection: Invest in tools that help your team get smarter about customer preferences but don’t rely on automation alone. Customers can feel when the personal touch is gone. 4️⃣ Stay Nimble with Feedback: As you scale, the feedback loop becomes more important, not less. Build processes that ensure you’re continually learning from your customers, and be ready to pivot quickly based on that feedback. 5️⃣ Measure What Really Matters—Customer Happiness: Metrics like revenue and efficiency are important, but they’re not the whole picture. Make customer delight a key performance indicator in your growth strategy, and hold teams accountable to it. Long story short - TL; DR👇 You don’t have to choose between growth and delight. The two can and should go hand-in-hand if you want to create fans, not just customers. But the magic happens when you’re intentional about scaling those personal touches that set you apart in the first place. P.S. So, here’s my challenge to you: What ONE thing can you start doing TODAY to reintroduce delight into your customer experience as you scale? Drop it in the comments or send me a message. Let’s talk about how you can keep delight alive, no matter how big you grow. #CustomerExperience #CX #CustomerCentricity #BusinessGrowth #Leadership #VinayPushpakaran

Founders, what signals are you listening to as you build? Metrics like usage, conversion, and retention tell you what is happening. But customer conversations and voice data tell you why it is happening. Traditional metrics summarize behavior. Conversations reveal intent by showing how customers describe their challenges, where they hesitate, and what actually drives decisions. These signals shape product choices, messaging, and experience far earlier than traditional metrics dashboards do. Three ways to stay close: 🔸 Speak with customers regularly, beyond onboarding and renewals. 🔸 Use communication tools that capture and organize conversations at scale. 🔸 Apply AI to turn voice data into clear, actionable insight. Maintaining proximity to how customers think and speak keeps strategy grounded. It is one of the most durable advantages a founder can build early. #GetToKnowYourCustomersDay #Entrepreneurship #Startup

Your Series A startup has product-market fit. Your customers love your product. So why aren't your marketing channels delivering? After hundreds of mindset interviews with tech customers, I've discovered something counterintuitive: Most founders are running their customer research like a product survey when they should be running it like a documentary. Product surveys ask 'Do you like our solution?' Documentary-style mindset interviews ask 'What was happening in your life when you first realised you needed this?' The problem: Surveys capture a moment in time. Documentaries reveal the entire journey, including all the places your marketing should be, but isn't. Here’s what I mean: 1. The Real Customer Timeline When founders think 'awareness → consideration → purchase,' customers think 'frustration → research → false starts → eventual discovery' 2. The Hidden Decision Points Your customers encountered 5 to 6 touchpoints before finding you. But you're only investing in channels from touchpoint 4 to touchpoint 6. 3. The Context Gap Your product solves the right problem. But your marketing speaks to where customers end up, not where they begin their journey. This is why Series A companies drain runway on channels that seem perfect on paper: they're reaching the right audience at the wrong moment. Here’s the high-level framework you can use to run documentary-style interviews: 1. Start with Struggle: "Tell me about the day this became a priority" 2. Track the Search: "Where did you look for answers? What led you there?" 3. Map the Moments: "What made you reject earlier solutions?" 4. Find the Switch: "What finally convinced you to try something new?" Want sustainable channel growth? Start by understanding the documentary of your customer's life, not just their product feedback. ♻️ Found this helpful? Repost to share with your network.   ⚡ Want more content like this? Hit follow Maya Moufarek.