Make the Case for Customer Reviews at Wayfair and Design the Review System

You are a product manager at Wayfair, the online retailer of furniture and home goods. Should Wayfair have customer reviews at all? If you decide it should, how would you build them? ```hint Start from the purchase Compare buying a sofa or a large rug online with buying a phone charger. List the doubts that stop a shopper from ordering, and ask which of them a past buyer can settle better than the supplier's own product page. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Should I assume Wayfair has no reviews today, or judge and improve the reviews it already shows? - Whose outcome matters most here: shoppers deciding what to buy, the suppliers whose products are listed, or Wayfair's own margin and return costs? - Are all categories in scope, from large furniture to small decor, or should I focus on one? - Does building them cover only what shoppers see, or also how reviews are collected and moderated? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A reasoned yes-or-no tied to Wayfair's business: large, considered purchases that are hard to judge from photos and costly to return, sold by many suppliers shoppers may not know - The specific doubts reviews resolve for each user group, such as size, color accuracy, comfort, quality and assembly - A prioritized design covering how reviews are collected, displayed and kept trustworthy - Success metrics that weigh conversion against returns, with guardrails for fake reviews and fairness to suppliers - Risks such as cold start for new or long-tail items, delivery complaints mixed into product ratings, and moderation cost ### Follow-up Questions - Suppose several listings are near-identical items sold by different suppliers. Would you pool their reviews, and what could go wrong? - How would you get useful reviews for a new sofa that has sold only a handful of units? - A supplier says reviews complaining about late delivery are hurting sales of a well-made product. How do you respond?