Friday, September 7, 2018

Reviews: The Good, The Bad, and The Fake

One of the big hurdles that roofing company owners face is developing trust with their clients. This is in large part due to scammers who have infiltrated the industry and given a bad name to credible businesses in the industry. For roofing contractors who are working to overcome these preconceived notions, it is critical to have an online-reputation of good reviews. When consumers are in the research stage of choosing a roofing company, one of the first things they will check is your online reviews.

"A study from Harvard Business School shows increasing a business’s online rating by one star causes sales to jump 5 percent to 9 percent." (Search Engine Land)

That means managing your online reputation is increasingly important to your bottom line. Some businesses have tried to take advantage of that system by writing fake good reviews but the research suggests that these fake reviews may actually be hurting your business. The reason is simple, most consumers can spot a fake review. Fake reviews will not build trust with your clients, it will inspire the opposite.

Why we need to fight fake reviews

1. Trust precedes substance

I mentioned before that 85 percent of consumers report that they trust online reviews. Maintaining that trust is important, and consumers are increasingly sensitive to information that challenges their brand loyalty. Reviews are part of your business content and reflect your reputation, whether positively or negatively.

Harvard psychologist Amy Cuddy found that people evaluate others by answering two questions in order:

Can I trust this person? and can I respect this person?

Trust is evaluated first, and only if the person is deemed credible is substance evaluated. Thus, as applied to a local business, it doesn’t matter how good you are at your trade or how good your food tastes if you don’t pass the first test.

Consumers who realize reviews are fake will move on from your business. And they’re pretty good at sniffing them out. Almost 80 percent of consumers say that they’ve spotted fake reviews.

2. Short-term gains are a losing game

While you might get a temporary bump in business from artificially raising your star rating, the long-term risk is great.

Consumer behavior statistics reveal that customers are likely to stop patronizing your business if they feel misled by false reviews. When targeted with irrelevant information, 67 percent of consumers unsubscribed from email lists, 43 percent ignored future communications, 32 percent boycotted company media and 20 percent stopped buying from the company. The reaction to false information is likely to be even stronger.