Let’s be honest: Reviews matter
From where we eat, to what we watch, to where we stay, reviews on third-party websites often have an outsized influence on our decisions as consumers. So why should races be any different?
As an event organizer, encouraging finisher reviews on a trusted platform like RaceRaves is your chance to let your runners do the work for you. It’s hard-earned kudos for a job well done. It’s free advertising from your best evangelists. And as long as you’re doing your job well, the more runners learn about your race, the more likely they are to want to run your race.
In today’s saturated marketplace of events, strong word of mouth is key—and with more and more runners turning to RaceRaves as their go-to racing resource, positive reviews will help your event stand out from the crowd.
How to encourage reviews
1. Pre-race: Ask your ambassadors and/or your most loyal customers to post their reviews on RaceRaves to tell other runners why they should join your event.
2. Post-race: Don’t be shy when it comes to capturing your finishers’ excitement and asking them to spread the word. Along with results and photos, a call for reviews should be an essential part of your post-race communications. Adding a call to action in your existing post-race emails & social can be as simple as:
Enjoy running our beautiful course / in our awesome town / {insert a feature that differentiates your event}? Help us spread the word by posting your review on RaceRaves, and tell others why they should run {your event}!
RaceRaves helps runners find the best races around the world, plus track & review the ones they’ve run. Sign up for a free account, or click HERE to begin raving now.
(Note: “Sign up” links to https://raceraves.com/
3. Add an incentive to drive a more robust response. After all, who doesn’t love a chance to win cool stuff? Incentives might include a free race entry or merch/store credits, awarded by a random drawing of all eligible reviewers. You can then feature your winner on social media along with testimonials from the great reviews you’ve captured. And just like that, advance promotion for next year’s event is off and running! (pun intended)
Showing off your reviews
Once your event has earned a solid number of positive reviews and an overall rating of 4.2 or higher, we hope you’ll feature our “Runners Rave About Us” badge on your site, linking to your listing on RaceRaves and providing third-party validation of your awesomeness.
The badge might be accompanied by messaging along the lines of “Don’t trust us, read what past finishers have to say!”
BONUS: Events that capture an overall rating of 4.7 or higher (based on at least 10 reviews) earn our coveted “Top Rated on RaceRaves badge” (please Contact Us to claim).
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. I already ask my runners to complete a post-race survey. How is this different?
Good question! In fact, the two are complementary; while surveys are a great way to get private feedback on your event, reviews are a public-facing way for finishers to evangelize for your event and help you spread the word.
Q2: Can I respond to reviews?
Sure can! To do so, you’ll first need to create an account (it’s easy and free). You can then respond to reviews either publicly by replying to an individual review or privately by direct messaging that member.
Q3: How is my event’s overall rating calculated?
Each reviewer assigns your event an overall rating in addition to four subratings (course difficulty, course scenery, production, swag). Thus, the overall rating is assigned separately and is not calculated based on the individual subratings.
Q4: Is there an easy way to track reviews for my event?
Indeed there is! Once you’ve created an account, simply add your event(s) to the Future Races table on your Staging Area profile (as “I Want to Run This”). You’ll then receive an email notification any time someone reviews your race.
Q5: Got any tips on adding an incentive to encourage reviews?
No problem! First, determine a prize—we suggest a free entry to next year’s event or a gift card for merchandise—along with a time frame for your finishers to submit their reviews. Include these details in your post-race messaging (email and/or social) along with a link to your race page on RaceRaves. Once the promotion is over, count the number of reviews submitted within the eligibility period and randomly (and promptly) select a winner.
If you’d prefer, you can create a landing page that briefly explains the program. Here’s a sample landing page and some basic terms & conditions, assuming a free entry as the incentive:
HOW IT WORKS: To qualify for and be automatically entered in our random drawing, you must submit your review (= one drawing entry) for {your event} between xxx and 11:59pm PDT on yyy {usually a two-week period}. A minimum of three {minimum # is up to you!} unique reviewers must qualify for the drawing within the specified time frame for the free entry to be awarded.
On or around xxx {date}, we’ll randomly select our prize winners and notify them by email. In the event the winner is already registered for next year’s event, their registration fee will not be refunded nor can they defer to the following year; however, their free entry can be transferred to a friend.
Every eligible race review counts as an entry — positive, negative or indifferent. The most important elements of any review are fairness and honesty. Please keep in mind, the more thoughtful & detailed your review, the more helpful it will be to other runners. Naturally, your odds of winning depend on the number of entries received.
Let’s Work Together!
Got other questions on how to encourage finisher reviews, or need help getting started? Drop us a line and we’re happy to help!
Just a few of the events spreading the word on RaceRaves:
