Customers Read Reviews (Companies Should, Too)
It seems like a no-brainer: On retail sites that include customer ratings and reviews, a high number of positive reviews will positively impact product sales, while a high number of negative reviews will negatively impact sales. This conclusion comes out of recent research from Hila Etzion, professor at the University of Michigan, along with analyses that caution retailers against ratings and reviews functionality.
While the potential for any negative outcome at all might be enough to spook some retailers away from ratings and reviews, the real message should be: Consumers are listening to peer reviews, are you? If a large majority of customer reviews indicate that a certain product isn't worth purchasing, maybe that's an indication that the product needs another look. The fault is probably in the source more so than the messenger.
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It amazes me, at what feels like such a late stage in the game, how few business owners seem to concern themselves with what's being said about them on 3rd party sites online. If someone was standing outside a business with a sandwich board saying "don't shop here" (I actually saw that a few years ago in front of a jewelry store in Hollywood, FL), I think the business owner would be pretty peeved.
It does vary by vertical, though. The hotel owners figured it out years ago; the restaurant owners, however, remain clueless.
I agree. Businesses spend more time searching for new clients than continuing the relationship and conversation with their current clients. So, they don't know what the reviews are or what is being said and they are "blind sided" when one comment makes it onto their radar.
Too many times businesses "speak for the clients" or "crystal ball" what they think their clients are thinking. Wouldn't it be a whole lot easier and more beneficial to just talk to them? Or read their reviews? Clients and customers speak using a variety of venues now and blogs, text messages and customer review sites are just other communication venues.