Problem
The tax solutions market is extremely competitive and it’s not easy to capture attention with traditional ads.
Solution
Integrating Trustpilot review content in retargeting and broad match Google ads.
Result
60% increase in CTR for broad match Google ads and 50% decrease in CPA for retargeting ads.
For most of us, there’s nothing like tax season to remind us of just how little we actually know about taxes.
Before a crop of online options popped up, busy professionals either made time to buckle down and go it alone — or they visited a brick and mortar preparation office where they could look the preparer in the eye before handing over scrolls of their personal info.
It’s safe to say that all fintech companies (and especially those focused on personal financial data) must show, not tell, that other customers have had great experiences with their product.
That’s exactly why TaxSlayer not only partnered with Trustpilot, but decided to highlight their Trustpilot reviews across the entire customer journey. Interested in how they parlayed the words of their customers into trustworthy social proof, better ROI on retargeting campaigns, and even some lucrative operational decisions?
We sat down with Melissa Best, Director of Digital Marketing at TaxSlayer, to better understand why, after some positive early traction, they opted to double down with Trustpilot content for the 2018 tax season and beyond.
“As an emerging fintech player, we have to exclude trustworthiness if we expect customers to feel comfortable sharing their social security numbers and financial data. Trustpilot content on our website and in our ads gets that message across. Now, Trustpilot has become an integral part of our business operations - our whole Leadership Team reads every single review. ”
Melissa Best
Director of Digital Marketing
50%
Taxslayer found that retargeting ads with Trustpilot content had a 50% lower CPA.
500%
Referral traffic from TaxSlayer's customized Trustpilot profile page shot up a whopping 500% from 2018 - 2019.
77%
of UK consumers surveyed in 2021 agree that a good Trustpilot score makes them more likely to buy from a brand.
Sometimes social proof is the best way to get through to customers
Each year the digital marketing team at TaxSlayer zeroes in on new customer acquisition. But with so many competing products on the market — all making similar claims around tax season — it’s not always easy to capture attention with traditional ads. As it turns out, nobody can talk to consumers the way other consumers can.
Before partnering with Trustpilot to collect customer reviews as their primary form of social proof, TaxSlayer was in the habit of commissioning agencies to do consumer research and generate customer feedback for testimonial content.
These days, there’s no need for outsourcing consumer insights because Trustpilot has quickly become a one stop shop for consumer insights, social proof, and testimonial content to back up their advertising and marketing claims.
But it doesn’t stop there: The marketing team sees each new review in real time. Having access to real customer sentiments allows them to refine marketing messaging and deliver ad copy that’s sure to resonate — especially when it comes to campaigns designed to win over new high-intent customers.
According to the team at TaxSlayer, “our customers are already talking about us exactly the way we want them to,” — and that helps them to cut through the noise in an era where consumers see right through slick ad or marketing copy. In fact, that’s why they feature Trustpilot across their website and email campaigns, too.
Retargeting campaigns are more effective with user-generated content like reviews
With so many options out there for every consumer need imaginable, it’s not hard to believe that only 2% of people will convert the first time they visit a site to view a product or service. To help bring back the other 98% of tax filers, TaxSlayer decided to make the most of their Trustpilot social proof with a ridiculously effective retargeting campaign.
Review content in retargeting ads can radically reduce CPA
Once TaxSlayer tested two versions of their ad creative for this type of retargeting campaign, the winning ad variant was clear.
Retargeting ads that featured Trustpilot reviews led to a staggering 50% lower CPA on average — though in some months, the reduction in CPA was as significant as 82%. It’s safe to say that adding reviews to retargeting ad creative can rev up the ROI of the entire campaign.
Watching display ad CTR skyrocket with Google Seller Ratings
But the stellar ad performance doesn’t stop at retargeting. The team at TaxSlayer has also seen huge Google Ad performance improvements as a result of collecting reviews through Trustpilot. As soon as they reached Google’s requirements for earning Google Seller Ratings, they saw their CTR go up right away.
Thanks to those shiny gold stars showing up at the top of SERPs, TaxSlayer has seen an impressive 60% increase in CTR on their broad match campaigns, and a solid 17% increase in CTR for their exact match campaigns.
Why is this so important? Boosting CTR to that extent can do great things for an ad’s quality score, which in turn improves the performance of the whole campaign.
Referral traffic surges from customized Trustpilot profile pages
Once TaxSlayer took steps to customize their Trustpilot profile page, they saw yet another surge in performance.
After adding their company information, social media profiles, and promotional links, they saw an incredible 500% increase in referral traffic to their site, directly from their enriched Trustpilot profile page.
Improving referral traffic is one of the most often overlooked tactics for generating qualified leads — and it’s great for organic SEO, too.
Using reviews to make better operational decisions
If it wasn’t obvious already, TaxSlayer lives and breathes customer experience — so much so that almost every department has access to Trustpilot reviews. From general counsel, to the marketing team, to customer support, to product and UX — TaxSlayer is one of the companies truly listening to their customers.
Thanks to their use of Trustpilot’s Review Tagging feature, monitoring customer sentiments about their product is now straightforward and actionable. The ability to parse reviews by topic and subject matter has made it easier than ever to pivot based on customer feedback and ensure that their customers are satisfied with any changes they roll out, bringing their customer loyalty to the next level.
In general, Trustpilot reviews have changed the way TaxSlayer looks at responding to customer feedback — and as a result of hundreds of reviews coming in, they’re coming up with a brand new team and SLAs for managing this steady stream of customer feedback.
Ready to join TaxSlayer and learn more about all the ways reviews can improve your marketing and help you become a better business? Create a free Trustpilot account below.
