Auto brands are harnessing the power of reviews. Lubecos could learn a lot.
Kia Picanto shows top ratings Image: Kia |
Countless surveys have highlighted Chinese consumers' reliance on reviews from friends, family and third parties online.
Automakers are now finding innovative and unique ways to put reviews at the heart of their marketing campaign, rather than using them simply as a pleasant sideline, according to digital firm Econsultancy.
Many lubricants and car purchases will take place offline, but people will still research a purchase online before making one. While many expert reviews are available on industry platforms, finding consumer reviews is more difficult.
Kia set about changing this and began putting consumer reviews in the main body of its advertising messages. According to Kia's own data, 2.9% of people visiting the site clicked on the review badge to read more content; sales conversion uplift doubled for people who read the reviews; people who read reviews online spent 5.5 times longer on the site and viewed four times as many pages.
Reviews are useful as they offer "real world for real people" advice about products, claims Econsultancy's Graham Charlton, while giving people the answers to questions that product websites cannot. They are now an essential part of the purchasing process.
For lubricants marketers, placing reviews and ratings in the main body of the advert, or making them a focal point, would instil faith in the product. Specialist sites such as Sinolub will always be useful to specialists and distributors as part of a content-led strategy, but using branding and drawing attention to 'real world' reviews could be an asset to help differentiate products online.