In recent years, the importance of so-called “word-of-mouth” reviews has been widely recognized in marketing, and an increasing number of brands are adopting review apps and UGC tools.
With demand for these tools on the rise, many brands are likely considering implementation. However, have you ever thought about what you would do if these apps or tools were suddenly discontinued after you’d adopted them?
In fact, when the product review app “Product Reviews,” which was available on Shopify—a platform with a large user base—was discontinued in May 2024, many brands likely faced the need to migrate their apps and struggled to find a solution.
In this article, we’ll discuss strategies for dealing with unforeseen circumstances, such as the discontinuation of a review app.
1. What to Prepare Before a Review App Disappears
— Backing Up and Exporting Existing Reviews
Some review apps offer a feature to export accumulated review data. Losing these reviews—which are valuable information assets you’ve built up over time—the moment the app shuts down could result in lost opportunities for your marketing strategy.
Be sure to complete the backup and export of your review data before the app shuts down. It is important to recognize reviews as brand assets and manage them accordingly.
―Consider Implementing Other Review Tools
After backing up and exporting your accumulated review data, you’ll need to consider implementing a new tool to continue utilizing that data.
Since some tools offer robust support for the migration process, it is advisable to evaluate them based on various factors aligned with your marketing objectives, such as:
✔︎ Difficulty
of review data migration ✔︎
Quality of support ✔︎ Usability
after migration ✔︎ Pricing
Additionally, since some tools offer free trials, actually trying them out can serve as a useful benchmark for comparing these factors.
2. Migrating Reviews When Changing E-commerce Platforms
In cases like this one—where a review app provided by Shopify is being discontinued—some brands may consider switching to a different e-commerce platform altogether.
Furthermore, when considering a cart migration for marketing purposes, it is not uncommon to face challenges regarding how to migrate review data. In such cases, you will need to import the backed-up or exported review data in a format compatible with the specifications of the new cart.
It is important to confirm in advance whether migration is even possible and to understand the steps required to migrate review data to your desired shopping cart. Furthermore, you must thoroughly research the features of each tool—including whether they offer import functionality—and carefully evaluate your options.
3. Benefits of Continuing to Use Review Tools
Since reviews are valuable information assets that offer objectivity from a third-party perspective, managing them is a critical factor that not only influences customer purchasing behavior but also plays a significant role in building trust with customers and retaining them.
Making it clear that you use third-party tools, such as review management platforms, to collect and manage reviews tends to help build customer trust.
Furthermore, having this primary source of information—reviews—published on your own website serves as proof of its reliability to customers and is also effective for SEO. Additionally, continuous use of review tools allows review data to accumulate, leading to the strengthening of your e-commerce site.
Strengthening SEO increases the number of visitors from organic search, which in turn can lead to an improvement in conversion rates. As a result, you can expect to see an increase in profit margins without relying on advertising campaigns.
Summary
In this article, we’ve discussed measures to take in the event of unforeseen circumstances, such as the discontinuation of a review app. After implementing a review app, it’s important to discuss not only daily operational procedures but also specific response strategies for unforeseen events in advance.
U-KOMI is a UGC (User-Generated Content) tool designed to collect and utilize customer feedback. By using this tool, you can efficiently manage everything from review collection to operations, and it also offers comprehensive support, including review migration. Additionally, it features a system that allows you to leverage reviews—a valuable information asset—in real time.
Furthermore, U-KOMI incorporates an AI feature called U-KOMI AI. U-KOMI AI is a suite of smart AI functions that performs sentiment analysis, keyword extraction, AI score calculation, and automated replies on reviews. From customer
support to service and product improvement, it takes your marketing to the next level.
Click here for more details on U-KOMI AI
Not only is it easy to implement and configure even for those who have never used a UGC tool before, but it also offers flexible support for tasks such as migrating reviews during a shopping cart migration. Why not take this opportunity to consider giving it a try?
View case studies here: https://u-komi.com/jirei
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