One of the more popular features with customers on many ecommerce Web sites is “customer reviews.” They allow insight into products and help consumers feel more comfortable making purchases. There are several ways online customer reviews are implemented on ecommerce Web sites, some better than others. In this post we look at how different retailers implement reviews.

The best example of reviews is, surprise, Amazon.com. This site is the ultimate in user reviews. It is easy to find the user ratings, and the system is easy to understand. Not only can you rate products, but you can also rate others’ ratings. You can rank reviews so that those deemed most helpful are listed first, meaning that you can avoid the time-wasting fluff. Also cool? The rollover feature. Of course, you do have to be logged in to write your own review.

Dell also offers a rollover option. Additionally, it is possible (once you log in) to rate different aspects of the product, from features to quality. Dell also allows you to indicate whether or not the review was helpful.

Another company that allows users to rate individual aspects is Lowe’s. And, unlike many other ecommerce Web sites, you do not have to be logged in if you want to submit your own review.

Another site that didn’t require a login to write a review was FYE. However, the reviews are located below the fold, and therefore somewhat hard to find.

One of the more frustrating ecommerce Web sites was the Audible site. Even though it was easy to find the reviews, I had a hard time figuring out where I could write a review. It isn’t clearly marked even after you log in.

Here are more examples of the different ways ecommerce Web sites handle customer reviews. Let us know in the comments which elements of reviews you think are most helpful to driving sales.

Abe Books:

Barnes and Noble:

Blue Nile:

Buy.com:

Chapters.Indigo.ca:

Home Depot:

JTV.com:

Levenger:

Netflix:

Net Shops:

Overstock.com:

Shop NBC:

Step 2:

Tiger Direct:

Wal-Mart:

Many good ecommerce Web sites know that the product details page can have a material say in whether customers stick around — and even whether they come back. Customers like to learn as much as possible about a product before buying, and product details pages can allow customer to explore a product.

One of my favorite examples is the product details page for the Amazon Kindle. As you can see below, this page includes zoom features for the images, as well as a video about the Kindle.

On top of that, the Amazon Kindle product details page offers additional rich media that allows you to spin the Kindle 360 degrees in a pop-out window.

Another example I like is this product details page from Blue Nile. The zoom feature comes up where the original picture was, rather than as a pop-up. I think I like this better. It’s great for a jewelry ecommerce Web site, since it includes a small ruler to the right of the zoom image so that you can see actual size.

Another good example of the different views feature is this, from Gap. You can choose different views to see how the clothing would fit. For a clothing ecommerce Web site, this is an excellent feature, since it gives the customer an idea of how the clothing might look when actually worn.

One product details page that I was disappointed in is this one from FYE. All this product detail page offers is a zoom option to look at the video game cover closer. A video game is an excellent opportunity to include rich media, such as a brief video. Even different stills from game play would be an improvement. While it is important to include sections on requirements and features, and it was good of FYE to do so, I was hoping for a little bit more to give me a better idea of what the game looks like.

Here are some more examples of product detail pages. Which are obviously interactive? Which are patently boring? Which ecommerce Web site would you be more likely to purchase products from?

6 PM:

ABT:

Cafe Press:

Carol’s Daughter:

Drs. Foster and Smith:

David’s Bridal:

Gift Tree:

Moosejaw:

My MMs:

Nine West:

Palm:

Patagonia:

Rampage:

REI:

Vera Bradley:

Working Person:

Your Electronics Warehouse: