In this post, we outlined the five major online review myths that you should know. Not knowing these myths could actually harm your brand. Keep reading to discover these myths.
5 Online Review Myths You Should Know
Have you ever doubted the quality of a purchase from the internet when friends or family have ordered Christmas gifts online? It’s possible you’ll be worried this almost every time because you don’t know who the sellers are and what they really do.
You might doubt that what they’re showing you on the internet is what they’ll send you, or you might wonder if you’ll get the same great customer service you can find at a local store.
Online reviews can help to eliminate many of these questions, including product quality, price, and service. They could even tell you about a company’s culture and development information.
You can get to know a brand well without their advertising. Unfortunately, some businesses don’t use the tools that help their business grow.
Let’s explore five lies about online reviews to help you understand why you should use online reviews.
Online Review Myths #1. People Don’t Trust Online Reviews
It’s not true.
People don’t trust online reviews because they are concerned that anyone can publicly write their opinions about any product or any brand online. This makes it possible that a few fake reviews could be created because of unkind motivations.
A survey on consumer reviews, 2016 conducted by brightlocal shows that:
“84% of people trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation.”
For example, people check various sites when booking a travel plan, picking a local restaurant, or buying a particular product. The sharing of information has allowed most people to trust previous users’ experience as a testimonial.
Studies have shown that a single positive review could increase conversions by 10%. That’s pretty incredible if you think about it. Imagine then the impact of 50 positive reviews. There could be a huge increase, just by letting people talk about how much they enjoy working with you.
Online Review Myths #2. People Don’t Write Online Reviews.
It’s just not true.
Most consumers have opinions about their user experience. When they have a good or bad experience, they share with their families and friends. They might talk about it at the dinner table or chat about it on the phone.
Studies show that 7 out of 10 consumers will leave a review for a business if they’re asked to.
Here’s the advantage for businesses: the customers tell you why they are happy or unhappy with your brand-associated products and services, so you have a direct opportunity to explain or make up whatever was missed in a purchasing process.
People write an online review to either help other people avoid a negative experience, or express the joy of their buying success.
You might also be under the misconception that the majority of reviews out there are negative. However, over 75% of online reviews are actually positive.
Leaving a review is easy. Just like it’s easy to for an angry customer to leave a bad review, it’s easy for a happy customer to leave a good review. You can even ask your customers to leave you a review if you notice that they are happy with your service.
Additionally, when a negative review is posted by a customer and then taken care of by the business owner, 95% of the previously unhappy customers will actually come back. So any kind of review is really an opportunity for your business to grow.
Online Review Myths #3. People Don’t Read Online Reviews
It’s not true.
Just because you as the business owner have not been reading your reviews does not mean that other people haven’t been.
Internet users have been rapidly growing; the Internet World Stats shows that the growth of World Internet Users from 2000 is 918.3 %.
This growing trend has encouraged more people to research more and more information online. The Google search engine has become a powerful administrative tool for individuals and companies.
Now that most cell phones can easily access the internet, users have started shopping using several apps on cell phones. Customers can even read online reviews while they’re out shopping. This is huge! Your reviews can make all the difference between your customer putting an item back on the shelf or bringing it home with them.
People are more likely pick a company that has a plethora of good reviews online. For them, people who use the same products or services are relevant and trustworthy.
74% of consumers say that positive reviews make them trust a local business more.
How does it affect a customer’s purchase decision? 90% of consumers read less than 10 reviews before forming an opinion about a business.
Additionally, 90% of people who read positive online reviews said it affected their decisions, and 86% of people said their shopping decisions were affected by negative online reviews. Those are some big numbers to ignore if you still think people aren’t reading online reviews.
Online Review Myths #4. I Don’t Need to Manage Online Reviews
It’s not true.
If you choose to not manage online reviews, it will harm your brand.
Why? Most people share their buy experience online through social media with their friends and communities. The many “mentions” of your brand could go in a less than flattering direction if you ignore your customer’s compliments and critiques.
SEE ALSO: How to Handle Negative Yelp Reviews
More than just offering a platform to collect online reviews, you need to manage your reviews on a daily basis. This is because 73% of consumers think that reviews older than three months are no longer relevant.
Developing online reviews builds up a reputation for a brand. When a negative review is received, you can take the opportunity to handle it actively and efficiently. This is your opportunity to turn a crisis into a benefit.
Taking good care of your online reviews is an extension of your customer service that integrates your customer experience with the company’s development. Your consumers can help a business to be better and stronger.
If you’re worried about the time it could take to manage your online reviews; there are different things you can do to make it easier. Setting up an online review platform can make it so that your reviews are sent to you as emails, making it quick and easy to see what people are saying.
You can also give your customers the opportunity to give a review right away from your checkout page. This will increase your number of positive reviews as well.
Online Review Myths #5. Online reviews don’t help my business
It’s not true.
54% of people will visit a website after reading positive reviews.
58% of consumers say that the star rating of a business is most important.
Even if a company has a traditional branding, online reviews still help its business in a significant way. Word of mouth is more effective than almost any other type of business promotion or advertising.
Online reviews also help businesses to plan a marketing campaign. When you know what customers want, you can specifically go out of your way to satisfy them. When a brand can get people excited to talk, the brand is eye-catching and has visibility. Then if the brand gets positive reviews, the brand is accepted.
The more positive reviews a brand gets will lead to a higher rating of the brand, and a high rating leads to an increase in sales. An increase in sales is something that every business owner is looking for, so work on getting more positive reviews.
The numbers don’t lie here. 46% of people trust newspaper ads, 47% of people trust television ads, 50% of people trust emails they receive from businesses, and 70% of consumers trust online reviews. This is why online reviews are something that your business should be aware of and care about. Even if you don’t believe in an online review’s effectiveness, your customers do. So take a few extra minutes to make sure that your business is one that has a positive online following.
Final Thoughts
The points are clear; the five common myths about online reviews are not true.
In fact, people trust online reviews for their own recommendations. People write online reviews to help others and to share their joy and compliments. People also read online reviews to help them make purchase decisions. Of course, as business owners and organizations leaders, you will read online reviews to understand your customers. You can even write online reviews to solve problems. The more effort you put into it, the more it can help your business grow.
What are your thoughts about online reviews?
