The importance of online reputation management for brands has been laid bare in a new study published by Go Fish Digital.
Five-star online reviews are the holy grail for businesses but falling below those high standards can be disastrous for trust levels.
The study, which surveyed 1,000+ people, found that the vast majority of consumers implement a four-star rating threshold to even consider making a purchase from a brand.
Middling three-star reviews result in a drastic drop off in trust levels – just 28.7% said this overall rating was trustworthy.
That contrasts with the 96.3% who said they would buy a product or service from a company with an average four-star rating.
The study is further evidence of the extent that negative reviews affect SEO.
Brands with two or one-star reviews fare even worse, with fewer than 1% saying they would consider buying in at this threshold.
Setting up a Google My Business page to generate reviews is obviously vital for local SEO and visibility in near me-type queries.
However, brands still need to put the work in thereafter to manage, diagnose and repair their online reputation over time to attract new customers.
Running regular online reputation audits is key, as is encouraging positive reviews and getting people to share their memorable experiences.
However, negative reviews are not always a death knell for companies, if they respond in the right way.
Timely and thoughtful responses can take the sting out of bad reviews on Google and show customers that steps have been taken to improve service levels for the future.
