Internet Marketing Assignment #2:Consumer Product Reviews (a form of "community" at e-commerce sites)

I went to Zappos.com and found a shoe I was interested in buying. The shoe that captured my eye was a pink sandal made by the brand Reef Costa Rica. By reading the customer reviews, I learned that this shoe was described by one customer as "a great flip-flop...comfortable from day one and super-stylish." Another customer described the reef sandal as "the perfect summer shoe." Practically every review I read stated that this reef sandal was the very comfortable, and dressier than most other flip flops. In addition most of them commented on the reef sandal's arch support, something they claimed was hard to find. One customer loved these sandals so much that she stated, "they are truly not only my fav sandals, but favorite shoes period!" After reading these reviews, I would definitely buy this shoe. How could I not buy a sandal that is super cute, comfortable, and affordable?!

It is a major advantage for consumers to read the reviews on Zappos.com because they can learn about the shoes before they buy them. They might think a shoe looks cute, but then after reading the reviews, they might learn that the shoe is difficult to walk in. Or they might find a shoe on Zappos.com and then read reviews like the ones I read and feel like the shoes are sooo...perfect, they would have to buy them. I think it is smart for Zappos.com to have reviews on its shoes for customers to read because it gives customers insight into the product they are considering buying, making Zappos.com look more reliable than other websites that do not offer reviews/insights into the products sold on their websites. It also makes Zappos.com look more customer friendly than other websites because it goes above and beyond to give its customers all the resources they need to buy the perfect shoe for them.

Personally I would recommend any website, including ones like Kencole.com who only sell their own brand of products, supplying customer reviews because it just make the website more customer friendly. In addition, it makes it easier for customers to compare the quality of different brands of products. For instance, maybe a customer saw a shoe on Zappos.com and then saw a similar shoe on Kencole.com. If the shoe on Kencole.com had a better review than the one on Zappos.com, then the customer would be more likely to buy the shoe found on Kencole.com. Having a section for customer reviews makes the website look more credible and trustworthy because it makes the website seem like that it has nothing to hide.

I really do not shop-online, but the one time I have, I have read the customer recommendations first. I was looking for a book and was told I could only buy it online, so I went to amazon.com and read the reviews on the vender before I bought the book to make sure I was buying the book from someone reliable. I would highly recommend any website to offer consumers recommendations from other previous customers to read because the internet is not as trustworthy of a place to buy products then an in-person store because it is still newer than the "old" way of doing business, and the customer does not receive the product he or she paid for right away; the or she has to wait for it. So, having recommendations on a website for consumers to read makes the entire shopping online experience more settling, reassuring, and trustworthy.