


Online Reputation Monitoring Highlights Modern ‘Word Of Mouth’
Consider - Organic Search Drives the Value of Online Reviews & Vice Versa
- 97% of consumers go online to find a local business or local services.**
- 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine (SEJ, 2016)
- 81% of shoppers conduct research online before buying.**
- Studies show between 70-80% of people research a company online BEFORE visiting a small business or making a purchase with them.**
- 80% of small businesses do not invest in content marketing, and experts warn that they are missing a key marketing opportunity (Clutch.co, 2018) (Reviews are content)
- More than 7 out of 10 consumers say they have spent more money to do business with a company delivering great service. Reviews matter. **
- Google drives 96% of mobile search traffic, followed by Yahoo at 2% and Bing at 1%. Google Search is also one of the most popular mobile apps in the U.S. (NetMarketShare, 2018)
- 46% of all searches on Google have local intent (Google, 2018)
- 59% of marketers say inbound produces the highest quality leads for their sales team. (HubSpot State of Inbound, 2019) “Inbound” often means blogs, reviews, etc.
Online Reviews are Harmful When Ignored
A Harvard Business School study found a one-star rating decrease can reduce revenues by nearly 10%. It literally pays you to stay on top of all the posted reviews about your business.
52% of consumers disqualify a business without “enough stars.” *Local Search Association (LSA)
39% of businesses don’t recognize their online reputations “strongly influence” consumer decision-making* – a competitive opportunity for you!
Focusing On Online Reviews – An Important Piece Of The Puzzle

- 66% of consumers said they perform research every time or almost every time before buying a product or service*
- Over 70% of households use the internet as their go-to source when purchasing local products & services.
- Positive online reviews are the most important purchase consideration vs. other types of information or sources in a consumer decision*
Top items influencing consumer purchasers*
- Positive online ratings/reviews
- Discounts/attractive pricing
- Convenient business location
- Recommendations or opinions of a friend
- A strong website
- An advertisement I’ve seen/heard
- How quickly a business responds to my inquiry
- Social media content
- They let me make a reservation/appointment
- Where they appear in search results
Consumer Approach to Examining Reviews *
- Most recent reviews
- Most critical reviews
- Favorable reviews
21%
21%
- Number of stars
- Total review count
- Other information
8%
2%
Consumer Willingness to Change a Negative Review: *
Consumers are more often motivated to leave a review based on a positive rather than negative experience, by a factor of more than 2 to 1*
- Yes, but it would depend on the response from the business
- Yes, I would change it
- No, I would not change the review
- Other
31%
10%
1%
Minimum Number of Stars Required by Consumers to contact a Business:*
- I don’t have a minimum
- 2 Stars
- 5 Stars
- 3 Stars
1%
3%
11%
- 5 Stars 16%
- 4 Stars 35%
- Above 4 Stars 17%
35%
17%
Small Business Review Acquisition Tactics* – Note 50% do not develop Reviews
- I verbally ask my customers to review me
- I ask my customers in email to review me
- I offer contests or prizes as incentives for reviews
19%
12%
- I don’t ask customers for reviews
- We don’t have any online reviews
22%
- Over half of consumers surveyed say good online reviews make them more likely to choose a local business.
- 70% of customers trust a business with 6 to 10 reviews.
- 72% of consumers say they trust good online reviews.
Anonymous posters are trusted as much as personal recommendations.
- Looking forward, the need for good online reviews isn’t going away. (6 – 10 reviews is just the minimum)
- Good online reviews are added by your satisfied customers – you produce them every day.
- Reviews of your business are posted on search sites like Google, Facebook, Local Business Directories, Yelp and other review websites…you can leverage them!
- When they consumers see companies with positive reviews, instant trust & credibility will make your phone ring.
- Search Engines and Directory Sites want to deliver the best search outcomes for user.
- Companies with dozens of glowing reviews are favored over companies with few or no reviews.
* Research/Survey done by The Local Search Association (LSA) – a not-for-profit industry association of media companies, agencies and technology providers who help businesses market to local consumers.
** Blue Corna Blog Post – an inbound web marketing, analytics and optimization company.
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