Category: UGC Benchmarks

Reviews can paint a picture, but there’s a reason they say an image is worth a thousand words. Visual UGC brings your product to life. It allows customers to see how your product looks, how it can be used, and who is using it — all of which makes them feel more confident about their purchase. 

That confidence is key and it is a huge factor in why consumers overwhelmingly prefer photos from other customers over photos provided by the brand. Pictures taken by real people, in real settings, feel more trustworthy. Today, a majority (80%) of consumers find photos from other customers more valuable than photos from brands or retailers, a number that has nearly doubled in the past five years (this same number was 44% in 2016).

At the same time, visual media is simply another input for customers. So – while for some it will be a positive – for others, it will give them the information they need to move onto another product. This explains why the impression uplifts are relatively modest while the interaction (which implies a deeper interest in the product) uplifts are significant.

All three forms of UGC — ratings and reviews, Q&A, and user-generated imagery — have a positive impact on conversion. However, Q&A has always reigned supreme as having the largest impact on conversion.

In 2021, there was a 194.2% lift in conversion among visitors who interacted with Q&A content, up significantly from the 157.1% conversion lift reported in 2020. Perhaps more than any other type of UGC, Q&A content bridges the gap from the in-store to online shopping experience, enabling shoppers to find answers to the questions they would have asked a retail associate, but from the comfort of their own home.

Given the high conversion impact of Q&A content, we analyze the conversion impact across different verticals. In our analysis, we looked at both the conversion lift by visitor (those who saw review content on the product page they visited) and Q&A interactor (those who interacted with review content on the page they visited). We’ve also shared the average conversion rate for each vertical as a baseline.

The verticals with the highest Q&A visitor conversion lift were Automotive & Motor Sport (+121.9%), Consumer Appliances & Electronics (+112.5%), and Luggage & Bags (+97.9%). Interestingly, Automotive & Motor Sport (+226.6%) also enjoyed the highest conversion lift from visitors interacting with Q&A content. With a Q&A interactor conversion lift of 223.9%, the Furniture and Manufacturing verticals tied for second place.

Across verticals, the conversion lift for visitors who encountered Q&A content was 51.2%, showing that the mere presence of Q&A can positively impact conversion. When visitors interact with Q&A content, however, the impact is much higher. The average conversion lift for Q&A interactors was 138.3% across verticals.

Ratings and reviews have become the most important factor impacting purchase decisions, ranking above price, free shipping, brand and recommendations from family and friends. In fact, reviews influence a shopper’s decision to convert to such an extent that those who interact with ratings and reviews convert at a rate that’s 108.3% higher – according to our analysis throughout 2021. 

Given the high conversion impact of ratings and reviews, we sought out to analyze the conversion impact across different verticals. In our analysis, we looked at both the conversion lift by visitor (those who saw review content on the product page they visited) and review interactor (those who interacted with review content on the page they visited). We’ve also shared the average conversion rate for each vertical as a baseline.

The verticals with the highest visitor conversion lift were Musical Instruments (+47.3%), Consumer Appliances & Electronics (+38.0%), and Gifts, Gadgets, & Uncommon Products (+32.0%). Interestingly, these all differ from the product verticals that enjoyed the highest conversion lift from review interactors, which include Luggage & Bags (+185.7%), Apparel & Accessories (+183.3%), and Automotive & Motor Sport (+160.4%).

Across verticals, the conversion lift for visitors who encountered review content was 19.8%, showing that the mere presence of reviews can positively impact conversion. When visitors interact with review content, however, the impact is much higher. The average conversion lift for review interactors was 128.0% across verticals (higher than the previously mentioned number for 2021).

99% of consumers look for photos and videos submitted from other customers at least sometimes; 77% do so always or regularly. Visual UGC is especially important to younger consumers, with 91% of Gen Z’ers and 84% of Millennials always or regularly seeking it out. Given the high value consumers place on visual UGC, we analyzed media coverage (percentage of products with at least one user-submitted image or video displayed) and average volume of media per product in a given vertical.

The verticals with the most media coverage overall were Toys, Games & Videogames (68.7%), Travel (58.5%), Financial Services (58.2%), and Baby (52.8%). The verticals with the highest average media per product included Financial Services (58.1), Medical Components/Supplies (31.9), Consumer Appliances & Electronics (26.3), and Health & Beauty (23.3).

Across verticals, there is an average of 12.8 images and/or video per product. The average overall media coverage was 37.0%.

Review length is an important consideration for consumers, with 68% of consumers always or regularly seeking out longer, more detailed reviews, with nearly all – 97% – doing so on at least an occasional basis. 

88% of consumers regularly or always look beyond the basic summary to read the actual review content. This behavior is even more common among big spenders. 62% of shoppers who spend $2,001+ per month always go beyond basic review information to read the content of reviews, compared to only 41% of those who spend $1-$250 per month.

In our analysis, reviews are 218 characters long, on average. The verticals with the longest reviews included Media/Communications/Entertainment (361 characters), Bikes (307 characters), and Travel (303 characters). The verticals with the shortest reviews included Technology (110 characters), Medical Components/Supplies (111 characters), and Apparel & Accessories (131 characters).

We analyzed review length because longer reviews are not only highly valued by consumers, but they generate more conversions for brands and retailers. How long is long enough?

To benchmark review volume, we analyzed overall review coverage (how many products have at least 1 review) and review coverage per product (the average number of reviews per product). The average review coverage across verticals is 80.9%, with 402.1 reviews, on average, for each product.

The three verticals with the highest overall review coverage included Financial Services (89.1%), CPG (86.4%), and Health & Beauty (84.8%). Those with the lowest overall review coverage included Party, Holiday & Costumes (27.7%), Retail (29.6%), and Machinery & Tools (31.1%). 

On a per-product basis, Books, Music & DVDs shined with 8,198.4 reviews per product, on average, followed by Luggage & Bags (3,211.3 reviews per product) and Financial Services (2,887.2 reviews per product). The verticals with the lowest review coverage per product included Education (7.6 reviews per product), Party, Holiday & Costumes (10.6 reviews per product), and Bikes (26.8 reviews per product).

Financial services stands out as a “top performer” but this does come with a caveat: specifically, the financial services use case for a reviews platform tends to be unique (here are some examples). While every deployment is different, typically these organizations tend to collect reviews on fewer products overall – which goes some way to explaining the results here.

While the idea of having 1,000+ reviews per product may sound astronomical, the winners here are not exceeding consumer expectations; rather, they are meeting them.

Across verticals, our data shows that the average rating for any given product is 4.5 stars out of 5. This is actually the exact star rating we recommend brands aim for, as a sizable number of consumers are suspicious of perfect 5-star ratings, including 46% of shoppers overall and 53% of Gen Z shoppers. 

Even the vertical with the highest star rating — Advertising/Marketing — has a 4.9 rating as opposed to a 5. The verticals with the next highest ratings include Technology, at 4.8 stars, and Financial Services and Media / Communications / Entertainment, both at 4.7 stars. 

Previous research we conducted with Northwestern University found that shoppers are most likely to purchase products with an average star rating between 4.2 and 4.5 stars. Our latest benchmarks indicate that the sweet spot has risen slightly since but we continue to see the highest conversion rates in the 4.25 – 4.99 average rating range. Positively, only one vertical — Energy — fell beneath this baseline star rating, with 3.4 stars out of 5.

Ratings and reviews are the single most important factor impacting purchase decisions, ranking above price, free shipping, brand, and recommendations from family and friends. 97% of consumers read ratings and reviews prior to making a purchase. Among them, the star rating is the first thing shoppers notice, with 77% considering the average rating of a product when reading reviews.