Hi everyone, makadii. My name is Nyaradzo Winini, founder and Managing Director of Review.co.zw and Originly Heritage Foundation [pronounced Originally ], but today my presentation will focus on Review.co.zw.
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Childhood Experience
I started buying brands from a very young age. (No, not Gucci and Louis Vuitton ). I am talking about Enbee, Bata Toughees, Edgar’s, and Barbours. These were brands that stood out because of their quality and excellence. I think it is safe to say that almost every street in Zimbabwe had a childhood story connected to Bata Toughees, or at least knew about them. That is the power of market confidence. When people trust a brand so much, they do not always need to experience it for themselves first. They trust what they have heard, the experiences shared by others, and the reputation that has already been built.
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*Employment Experience*
I was also fortunate enough to work with well-known employers, and I noticed something interesting. Every time I made a sales call and mentioned my employer’s name, conversations became easier. People were more open and often more willing to buy.
Not because they knew me personally, but because they trusted what they had already heard. They trusted the brand before they trusted the product.
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Later, when I moved into the care industry and eventually became a care manager in the UK, I noticed something similar.
People across all age groups remained loyal to certain brands for years.
Now, we are not talking about shoes or bags that you buy once in a while. We are talking about everyday choices such as groceries, pharmacies, hospitals, and services that people rely on regularly.
People remained loyal to certain brands, sometimes even paying more than the alternatives because of the quality and service they had experienced. That made me realise something important. *Trust does not only influence what people buy*. It influences where people go, who they choose, and who they remain loyal to.
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Personal Buying Behaviour
From there, I began looking at my own buying behaviour. On platforms like Amazon, even when I really like a product and need it, I still click on the reviews first to see what other people are saying. I can safely say that I have made many purchasing decisions based on opinions, experiences, and even pictures shared by complete strangers.
That made me realise something else. We trust people we have never met because we trust shared experiences.
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The Zimbabwe Question
The next question I began asking myself was, in Zimbabwe, where are we finding these shared experiences?
A lot of our recommendations and referrals come from our small circles. Family, friends, church groups, colleagues, and WhatsApp groups.
If someone in my circle knows your business, there is a good chance I will trust it. *If nobody in my circle knows your business, many times the conversation ends there.*
One of the reasons scams continue to happen is because people sometimes make decisions without enough information to support trust.
The salesperson may paint a very convincing picture, but *there is no independent customer voice and no wider community experience to confirm what is being said.* We end up just risking it.
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Reflection Pause
I believe I am speaking to business owners today, so I would like to pose a question to you.
Where are you collecting your customer feedback?
Think about the last three customers you served or supplied who were genuinely happy with your product or service. After they told you they were happy, how many other people actually saw that feedback?
Or did you simply say, “Thank you,” smile, and move on with your life?
Because if positive experiences remain with individual customers, businesses may be missing opportunities they have already earned.
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The Solution
My team and I built a very simple way for businesses to collect reviews. For every company that signs up, the platform generates *a customised review link* that can be shared directly with customers.
With a single click, customers can leave a review and share their experience.
Each company also receives *a unique QR code* that customers can scan to access the review page instantly.
This creates additional opportunities for businesses to collect reviews as you can add your QR code to packaging, receipts, in-store displays, and deliveries.
Instead of customer experiences remaining in private chats, disappearing after phone calls, or staying within small circles, businesses can collect and showcase reviews on a platform with global reach.
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Safeguards
Now, I understand that as business owners, one of the first questions that may come to mind is around safeguards and reputation protection.
How do we encourage honest customer feedback while also reducing the risk of unfair or damaging content?
These are the safeguards we have in place. Our goal is to protect the integrity of customer feedback while ensuring that businesses are treated fairly.
While these safeguards are in place, we also have a review disputes process. If anything has been missed, businesses have the opportunity to raise it for review.
*Our mission is to create a trusted environment where genuine customer experiences help both businesses and consumers make informed decisions.*
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The Review.co.zw Advantage
1. *Cost-effective reputation management*
Review.co.zw provides businesses with a cost-effective way to manage their public reputation instead of finding out after the fact that they have been mentioned somewhere, tagged in a discussion, or shared in a name-and-shame group.
2. Local understanding of the Zimbabwean market
The biggest difference between us and other review platforms is that we understand the Zimbabwean business landscape because we are part of it.
3. Hands-on local support
When businesses sign up to the platform, we do not simply collect their details and leave them to figure things out on their own. We work with businesses through each stage of their review journey.
4. Customised review collection strategies
We understand that businesses, products, and services are different. We work with businesses to find a strategy that suits them, whether that involves WhatsApp review links, QR cards in deliveries, or other approaches that fit naturally into their customer journey.
5. Building trust, not simply collecting reviews
We are not simply helping businesses collect reviews. We are helping businesses build visible trust and strengthen relationships with their customers.
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Partner With Us
The standard subscription cost for Review.co.zw is $30 per year and includes up to 50 customer reviews.
We are offering a one-month free trial with no upfront commitment.
If your business reaches at least 10 customer reviews during the trial period, you will receive *one year of free access on the platform. Your customers are already talking. Let us help you make those voices visible
