When you're looking for a way to turn online window shoppers into devoted customers, social proof from happy customers is your secret weapon.
Social proof is the phenomenon where we follow the recommendations of others—it's why that one booth at the craft fair always has a crowd, or why folks line up for a food truck when faster lunch options are readily available.
When we see people loving something, we also want to experience what makes it so special. If that many people are giving a specific product or company rave reviews, it must be pretty amazing, right?
But how do you show social proof on your online store? By adding customer reviews and testimonials to specific product pages, your home page, or other pages of your shop.
Why should you add customer reviews to your online shop?
Customer reviews are user-generated content that showcase real experiences with your products. When shoppers share photos of your pottery in their homes or mention how perfectly your handmade scarf arrived, they're creating authentic content that builds trust with future customers.
Customer reviews work hard for your business:
- Building trust with new shoppers: Reviews show that real people love what you make. When visitors see others raving about your work, they're more likely to hit that buy button.
- Sharing the details that matter: Reviews often include helpful info you might not think to mention—like how your earrings look on different face shapes or whether your prints need special framing.
- Keeping shoppers on your site: When reviews live right on your shop pages, customers stay focused on buying instead of searching for feedback elsewhere.
- Boosting your sales: Studies show that user-generated content can increase conversion rates by up to 166%. That's the difference between browsers and buyers.
Reviews create a conversation between your customers that helps everyone feel confident about their purchase. They're especially powerful for independent artists and makers, where each piece tells a story and every customer experience adds to your shop's personality.
How to add customer reviews to your Big Cartel shop
Adding customer reviews to your online shop is easier than you think. Big Cartel integrations with three services to make the process simple.
Heads up—you’ll need a paid plan to add these to your online shop.
Powr.io
Powr.io offers several social plugins, including Customer Reviews. Your happy customers can post comments and star ratings, allowing you to collect reviews without lifting a finger or needing to constantly nudge customers to the reviews section of your site.
You can choose to enable replies or manually approve posts before they go live—handy if you want to add context or spark conversation around your reviews.
Powr.io offers a free plan to test things out, but as your traffic grows, you’ll likely need to upgrade to a paid plan, starting at $5/month.
Learn how to integrate Powr.io with your Big Cartel shop.
Elfsight
Elfsight’s social plugins include Customer Testimonials, taking a more curated approach to reviews. You’ll spend a bit more time on setup, adding testimonials individually rather than offering an open comment box. This extra step lets you handpick your most enthusiastic or relevant reviews to be displayed.
You also have the option of displaying testimonials as a slider within a page on your website or creating a standalone grid that really shows them off.
Get started with Elfsight for free, and upgrade to a paid plan (starting at $5/month) to accommodate more views.
Learn how to integrate Elfsight with your Big Cartel shop.
Fera
Fera’s integration lets you take your user-generated content up a notch by collecting text, photo, and video reviews for your online shop. Featuring a seamless integration, you can automatically ask for reviews from new customers or request reviews from past customers.
Showcase specific product reviews on product or category pages, or display all reviews in one place to build customer trust. Badges are also available to display average product and/or store ratings on your website.
Fera’s free plan allows up to 10 reviews per month, with paid plans starting at $7/month.
Not for everyone (and that’s okay)
While there are many tools available to integrate into your Big Cartel shop, not every one will fit your business needs. Whether the extra expense isn’t in your budget right now, or managing reviews feels overwhelming, it’s okay to skip adding customer reviews to your online shop.
There are other ways to show that your online shop is active and making customers happy:
- A steady stream of new, beautifully photographed products works wonders
- Frequently updated social media gives your fans a place to like and comment on your work
- Behind-the-scenes content that shows your creative process in action
- Email newsletters that share your latest pieces with your most devoted customers
- Process videos or stories that let people see the person behind the art
Think about your interests and energy levels, trust your gut, and remember—you know your business best.
Looking for more ways to level up your Big Cartel shop? Check our list of apps and integrations to see how we can help.