Social proof and getting your first Recomazing reco

We’ve all seen the power of social proof, the psychological phenomenon where people assume the actions of others in an attempt to reflect correct behaviour for a given situation.

It’s the force behind why bouncers create artificial queues outside nightclubs, TV producers play canned laughter on TV shows or Macca’s “2bn customers served” sign.

Social proof is also the reason why recommendations from social contacts are so powerful, in fact, 83% of people trust recommendations from friends & family, more than any other source*. We have an innate need to validate behaviour and the draw on the wisdom of crowds before making decisions.

Recomazing’s recent research showed also shows that the more relevant the social proof, the more powerful it can be in driving behaviour. Customers want to see that other “people like me” have validated their decisions - not just “all people”. This is particularly important when it comes to combatting negative or false online reviews:
60% of 25-44 yr olds say a friend recommendation is enough for them to ignore negative online reviews about a business**.

So when looking to get your 1st Recomazing recommendations, it’s important to turn to your closest advocates or customers first, so they can drive further social proof for your customer who see their recommendations before leaving their own.

So after setting up your Recomazing profile, we suggest sending a personal message to 2-3 of your favourite customers, or employees, that you’re confident would recommend you to their friends.

Once you’ve got your first recos, you can move onto asking the rest of your customers to recommend you in just a couple of clicks.

Here’s some suggested copy to ask your first customers for a reco:

As one of our best customers, we hope you love our service and would recommend us to your friends. If so, we’d love you to give us a ‘reco’ on Recomazing.

Recomazing is a new social recommendation website that puts all your favourite businesses in one place.

Giving a business a reco means you reward great service and your Facebook friends can easily find that business when they ‘re in need.
You can give us a reco in just a few clicks.
-insert link to your business profile-

* Nielsen Trust in Advertising
** B&T