When was the last time you bought something online without checking the reviews? Hopefully never.

When it comes to a brands credibility today, it’s primarily based on what our peers think. And authenticity, while important to have as a brand, is unfortunately not number one. We call this ‘The Amazon Effect’, and it’s not just impacting the e-commerce world.

“Trust” comes from the number of stars that appear next to a product, making the marketing message less and less important to shoppers. Brands can make all the claims they want, but at the end of the day, consumers find comfort in knowing their peers approve, rather than the brand itself. (Makes sense to us)

While this effect hasn’t completely made its way into retail, it’s not too far off. We, as consumers, typically shop online for convenience, and get peace of mind that we are getting “the best” value for our dollar based purely on opinion. A far stretch from the traditional tactics that beautiful package design and catchy headlines have delivered for years.

What’s interesting to us is that retailers have not fully adopted this tactic. Why aren’t we seeing a star rating when walking down the aisle of a Whole Foods, Target or Best Buy? Wouldn’t this make shopping easier? We think so. Just imagine a new 65″ TV with a four-star customer rating graphic on the box or shelf — ugly, but effective.

With all of this in mind, it reinforces the boxes we need to check as marketers. While we have no control over customer reviews, we should be sure to capitalize on them when they are in our favor, as it will only result in more clicks, buys and grabs off the digital and analog shelf.

Thanks for reading, and let us know how we can help you leverage these insights.

Allora (and so)… just got back from a few weeks in Italy, and needless to say, I’m inspired. Not just from the wonderful foods, historical sights and work-to-live disposition of everyone there — but from the symphony this charming country composed and allowed me to enjoy. Let’s try a fun little exercise to see if I can immerse you even further. It may just inspire you for the day…

• First open and play the following symphony from Antonio Vivaldi
• Now imagine you are walking the small, charming, water-filled streets of Venice (think gondolas, stone bridges, street markets and little old Italian women in floral dresses)…
• As you navigate through the streets, you pass everything from a fish market where seafood is brought in daily from local fishermen — to a bakery where “pane” (that’s bread) is being stretched and placed into ovens — and a cafe where espressos are being consumed by the liters. (Such a beautiful, and stressless vision isn’t it?)
• Allora we have Italy!!!! So beautifully synchronized for the world to enjoy.

Now what if we were to do the same for the brands we work on today? Would we be able to visually recreate such an experience in our minds? Would it all align and transcend us like the above exercise (hopefully) did?

As you go about your day, consider trying this with your team/brand using all of your marketing assets. See what comes of it. Is there a melody you’d envelop them in? I believe this will inspire you to think about your brand in a more sensorial way. And maybe, just maybe, you can create a symphony for your customers to enjoy as well.