Asda intends to ramp up its use of customer ratings and reviews for its non-food ranges sold online.

The grocer has already added a top-rated section to many category pages, to highlight products customers have given high marks to. Before the end of the year it wants to build on this – for instance, by allowing customers to sort products by their customer rating.

Customers can write reviews on around 90,000 products on the Asda Direct site, including homewares, electricals, garden furniture and the George clothing offer.

Since it introduced the ratings and reviews service from Bazaarvoice in November last year, 30,000 reviews have been posted, giving an average rating of 4.2 out of 5. Asda has found that customers value this feedback highly, and wants to sign-post the customer-generated content more clearly.

Asda Direct web merchandising manager Mitch Cooper said: “From a business point of view we can now see how products appeal to our customers – and our customers will receive unbiased views from fellow shoppers to help them make successful purchase decisions.”

Asda sends an email to each customer four to six weeks after they make a purchase to gather feedback on the products bought. The grocer says this allows future customers to make more informed purchasing decisions, so they are less likely to return products. However, it has not been able to assess its impact on returns levels. The grocer is constantly monitoring the reviews it receives to improve its product offer.

➤ Asda is working with Clipper Logistics on the fulfilment for Asda Direct, including the Back to School promotion that is running on the George section of the website.

Clipper completed a 16-week project with Asda’s IT department to integrate its warehouse management system with Asda’s systems. It has also installed new racking configurations and conveyors for cartons and hanging garments at its Ollerton site in Nottinghamshire.