Online Ratings Sites Heavily Used By Consumers

A new survey commissioned by LexisNexis and Martindale-Hubbell found that online ratings web sites are being used quite heavily among small business owners and consumers, but concerns about the reliability and trustworthiness of current resources linger.

Over 90 percent of small business owners polled and 80 percent of consumers surveyed engage in some kind of activity on review and ratings Web sites.

"Review and ratings Web sites are being used to a greater extent than ever before to inform buying decisions,” said Alfredo Sciascia, a vice president with LexisNexis. “Ratings offer consumers valuable insight into a wide range of goods and services, and they can be a powerful tool used by business owners to differentiate their goods and services from those offered by competitors."

Here are some stats from the survey:

- 82 percent of small business owners surveyed use review and ratings Web sites for a variety of professional and personal reasons including: legal needs, travel/tourism, local interest/activities, food service/restaurant, trade and medical needs; whereas only 49 percent of consumers said they use review and ratings Web sites for the same reasons.

– 87 percent of small business owners surveyed have provided feedback on review and ratings Web sites; only 63 percent of consumers said they have engaged in the same action.

– 57 percent of small business owners find review and ratings Web sites useful when making purchasing decisions, compared to 41 percent of consumers.

– More than half of small business owners agreed that ratings Web sites give customers even more control over the quality of goods and services – and 40 percent of consumers agreed.

– More than half of small business owners also agreed that review and rating Web sites mean businesses are held to higher standards – whereas 43 percent of consumers agreed.

– 60 percent of small business owners and consumers surveyed agree that ratings Web sites can be easily biased by very positive or very negative reviews.

– 55 percent of small business owners and 54 percent of consumers surveyed agree that it’s too easy for a business to post “fake” positive reviews for itself.

– 58 percent of small business owners surveyed said they believe ratings from independent third-parties (e.g. J.D. Power & Associates) are most trustworthy.

– 53 percent of consumers surveyed said they believe ratings from actual customers to be most trustworthy.

"The survey indicates that in order to offer a trustworthy, complete resource that provides significant value to business owners and consumers, providers of ratings will need to incorporate a combination of qualitative and quantitative evaluations," said Sciascia.

Beyond that, small business owners should take this information into account when thinking about their reputation management strategies. In other words, don’t forget to look for your company/product at any places where it might be rated. Find out what people are rating it and saying about it, and engage in conversation. Address concerns. It will not only help you manage your reputation, but could also help you improve your product.