Online reputation management has become an essential step of any business strategy, as customer satisfaction is an unavoidable factor in companies’ growth potential. The online feedback you get can be your most powerful tool, but it can also lead to devastating failures.
These reputation management statistics will serve as an informational and cautionary insight into the world of online reviews and the importance of providing a positive experience to each of your buyers.
Top Online Review Statistics 2020 (Editor’s Choice)
- 81% of consumers aged 18–34 trust online reviews as much as their friends and family.
- 97% of consumers read the businesses’ responses to reviews.
- About 40 positive customer experiences are needed to undo the damage of one negative review.
- 46% of consumers believe that they read multiple fake reviews in 2019.
- More than 50% of people consider that at least half of a company’s market value depends on its reputation.
- Consumers will spend up to 31% more money on a business that has excellent reviews.
Most Consequential Statistics About Online Reviews in 2020
While the world of marketing is continually shifting and changing, one thing remains clear — online reviews are a huge factor in your consumers’ purchasing decisions.
1. 91% of consumers will more likely use a local product or service with positive reviews.
(Bright Local)
And 12% of them do so daily. Most people search for business reviews on Google, Facebook, or Yelp to get a better insight into how a certain business operates.
Online reputation management statistics indicate that maintaining an online presence creates a positive experience, which is essential for customers.
A favorable online reputation will undoubtedly get potential clients one step closer to the checkout.
2. 91% of SMD owners think that a vendor’s trustworthiness is vital when deciding on new technology.
(Salesforce Research)
A vendor’s trustworthiness is an important factor for SMD owners; in fact, 91% of them take it into account when considering new technology.
If you, as a small business owner, research the vendor’s reputation before purchasing their product or service, your potential buyers will do that as well.
3. Online presence statistics show that 81% of consumers aged 18–34 trust buyers’ reviews they find online.
(Bright Local)
Word of mouth used to be the best way to find the most trustworthy and reliable businesses.
Nowadays, online reviews are as important, if not more, than word of mouth. Getting positive reviews online will help you find more potential clients.
Check out these word of mouth marketing statistics for the latest data on the topic.
4. People trust in average ratings only if companies have at least 40 business reviews by consumers.
(Bright Local)
The massive use of social media platforms has made it easier for people to find out about businesses. Consumers read 10 reviews on average before they can trust a company.
The more positive reviews you have, the more impressive your business will look to your potential clients.
5. According to online reviews statistics, 97% of consumers read businesses’ responses to feedback.
(Bright Local)
The way you behave toward your clients is significant for building a good reputation online.
But handling bad reviews gracefully and appropriately is vital. Only three percent of customers who read online reviews don’t bother to check out the response.
6. 46% of consumers think that they read multiple fake reviews in 2019.
(Bright Local)
The percentage grew from 33% in 2018. Conversely, 18% of buyers think that the reviews they read in 2019 were legitimate consumers’ impressions — a drop from 26% of people who considered that in 2018.
7. 77% of mobile consumers were more likely to buy a product if the site or app had online reviews, statistics from 2019 show.
(Power Reviews)
In 2019, 77% of people making purchases via mobile devices considered the website or an app more trustworthy if it had product reviews.
8. 64% of customers believe that a good reputation can motivate them to try some product, but trusting the company is essential for becoming its loyal customer.
(Edelman)
We gathered reputation management statistics showing that everything people read online about your business can ultimately shape their purchasing decision. Although a good reputation can make them try a product, trust makes them stay loyal to that company.
Therefore, it’s vital to track your reviews and make sure your customers are happy with your services.
9. The average star rating between 4.2 and 4.5 has proven to be ideal for customers.
(Power Reviews)
Your buyers, somewhat counter-intuitively, consider the perfect rating score less trustworthy. Reputation management trends show that consumers are aware that not everyone has the same expectations of a single product. A negative review sometimes says more about the product than all the positive ones combined.
10. Consumers will spend up to 31% more money on a business that has excellent reviews.
(Invesp)
When putting their trust in a business, not to mention spending money on it, customers expect nothing short of excellence.
On the flip side, they are also ready to pay more for a satisfying service; therefore, they tend to trust excellent reviews.
11. Online business statistics indicate that 45% of people consider positive reviews essential when shopping for household staples on Amazon.
(Salsify)
A significant number of customers read more than five reviews to make an informed purchasing decision — 22% of them, to be exact.
Some customers prefer buying items for their home in physical stores, and 21% of those questioned said they wouldn’t buy household staples online.
12. The online reputation management market size is expected to reach $410.71 million by the end of 2025.
(Report Linker)
Comparatively, the global reputation management services market was worth $183.83 million last year.
The same research indicates that the industry will experience its most significant growth in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
The Impact of Negative Online Reviews Statistics
13. In 2018, 1 in 20 UK companies lost $663,531 because of failing to manage negative content.
(Igniyte)
Moreover, 5% of companies said that a damaged reputation cost them from $132,700 to $663,531, while one in seven companies lost up to $66,350.
All businesses should be proactive about controlling their reputation. This can be achieved by making reputation management central to their business plans.
14. Reputation management is crucial for your business—40 positive customer experiences are needed to undo the damage of one negative review.
(Inc.)
Customer experience statistics show that positive reviews are vital for undoing the single unfavorable review that a dissatisfied client might have posted.
A minimum of 40 people need to have a good experience with your business and share positive feedback online to improve your online reputation.
15. 85% of customers actively search for negative reviews before deciding to buy a product.
(Neil Patel)
The importance of online reputation management has never been more pronounced. We learn that the age group of 18–29-year olds search for negative reviews the most—91% of the youngest consumers consider negative feedback more telling than the positive one.
In total, 97% of buyers read online reviews before a purchase, and 89% consider them an essential part of the process.
16. Between 10 and 30% of all reviews are fake.
(100 Reviews)
We have already said how much faith people put in reviews when forming an impression about a company, so the fact that a little less than one-third of all reviews might be fake is not something any business or a customer wants to read.
17. According to business reputation facts, more than 50% of people consider that at least half of a company’s market value depends on its reputation.
(PR Week)
The research showed that 52% of people think that reputation is one of the main aspects of a company’s value.
An incredible 91.9% of respondents believe that at least a quarter of a company’s market value is linked to its reputation.
18. 97% of customers said that negative customer experience significantly influenced their future buying decisions.
(Zendesk)
Moreover, 58% of customers stopped purchasing from the company they had a negative experience with, and 52% started buying from its competitor.
Statistics on business reputation management disclose that the same percentage (52%) told about their negative experience to others. Simultaneously, 48% were highly unlikely to consider using the company’s services or products again in the future.
19. More than 50% of consumers expect businesses to respond to their negative reviews.
(Review Trackers)
Precisely 53.3% of buyers have understandable expectations from companies—if they provide feedback, they want to get a response within seven days.
However, 63.3% of businesses never reply to their feedback.
Top Consumer Review Sites
20. 97% of the travel industry businesses on TripAdvisor claim that reputation management is essential to them.
(PR Newswire)
Additionally, 92% consider that social media presence is crucial to their business development and popularization and are ready to invest in social media online reputation management.
Around 98% of companies also believe that online reviews are essential to their reputation.
21. 63.6% of consumers examine Google reviews before visiting a business.
(Review Trackers)
Nearly two–thirds of people will read Google online reviews to decide whether to check out your company’s website.
Yelp drives conversion rates as well — it can help build your online reputation and get you more clients, repeated purchases, and ultimately more money.
22. The most reviewed product on Amazon has over a quarter million ratings.
(Reviewed)
With 172,013 global reviews at the moment of writing this text, Amazon’s Fire TV Stick is the most reviewed product you can find on the website.
This product lets you launch and control content with the included 1st Gen Alexa Voice Remote, and it currently has an average rating of 4.4 stars.
23. Annual revenue of Yelp was $1.01 billion in 2019.
(Market Watch)
In 2015, Yelp had revenue of $549.71 million. From that point on, the numbers kept rising exponentially, reaching $713 and $850 in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
24. Yelp conversion rate is reported to be 97%.
(Yelp)
The same survey also disclosed that 93% of people compare businesses on Yelp before making a purchasing decision.
Around 80% of people are likely to share their local business experience with someone they know.
25. 158.03 million US consumers use Google My Business every month, making it one of the top consumer review sites.
(Vendasta)
Google My Business is the undisputed leader in the field of online reviews.
Facebook is a distant second with 85.57 million monthly US consumers, closely followed by Amazon with 85.44 million.
Yelp (40.47 million) and Trip Advisor (28.27 million) round out the top five review sites.
What These Reputation Management Statistics Mean
The way your existing and potential customers experience your products and services can be your greatest asset or the biggest obstacle.
If you want to ensure that reviews work in your favor, it’s essential to invest both time and money in reputation management practices.
One of the most important things that can be seen in the statistics listed in this article is that 9 out of 10 people with purchasing intent trust positive reviews they read online. That alone should be reason enough to pay attention to the public’s perception of your business.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Reputation management cost varies a lot, depending on the company. One of the most affordable services is Defamation Defenders, charging between $500–$3000 per month.
On the more pricey end of the spectrum, Guaranteed Removals charge anywhere between $4000–$20,000+ a month. The price depends on the number of negative items that show up in the search results and the websites they appear on.
A survey indicates that 84% of people trust online reviews as much as they’d trust personal recommendations from friends and family.
If you keep in mind that 91% said they regularly read online reviews, it shows you how critical reviews attract new customers and retain the existing buyers’ base.
The most common reputation scale is 0–1000, where 1000 is the best possible reputation score.
However, an average industry score is 525, so anything over 600 indicates that the company is on the right path to an impeccable reputation.
Once the business surpasses 850, it’s already considered one of the best for online rankings.
Most Americans aren’t too eager to leave their review, although more than 90% read online feedback on products they intend to purchase.
Only 10% of Americans consistently review products online, while 38% said they had never left a review.
When it comes to services, even fewer people in the US have a habit of leaving feedback — 9%, to be exact. Restaurants are also rarely reviewed (8%), with almost half of Americans saying they have never offered their feedback.
A single bad review can chase away four out of five potential buyers.
When it comes to the most trustworthy review sites, people tend to turn to Yelp and Google the most.
What does this mean in terms of negative reviews? One bad review on Yelp can cost your company a total of 30 potential customers. On the other hand, negative feedback on Google alienates 70% of potential buyers, according to reputation management statistics.
