How Brands and Retailers Can Combat Fake Reviews

Consumer trust is the penultimate factor in customer loyalty. According to Deloitte Consulting researchers, customers who give a brand high trust scores are three times more likely to stick with it through a mistake. What's more, 86 percent say they’re more likely to buy from that brand again, and 62 percent will buy almost exclusively from that brand.

Consumer trust can also dictate the financial trajectory of brands. The most trustworthy companies have a history of outperforming the S&P 500, and high-trust companies are more than 2.5 times more likely to be high-performing revenue organizations.

But what happens when customer ratings and reviews – seen as a trusted source of consumer truth – our 2021 survey revealed that 98 percent of consumers believe reviews are an essential resource when making purchase decisions – are tainted with fake reviews? Just how pervasive is this issue, and what can brands do to safeguard the authenticity of their product reviews? We decided to find out, fielding a survey of 13,000 consumers.

Growing Consumer Concerns and Sophistication in Spotting Fake Reviews

Our research findings are detailed in a report, “How Fake Reviews Destroy Consumer Trust – and How Brands and Retailers Can Combat Them,” that reveals growing concern about fake reviews. Eight in 10 US consumers are concerned with fake reviews, and 63 percent are more concerned about them now than they were just five years ago.

Consumers are getting ever more sophisticated at spotting fake reviews. Top factors that tip shoppers off to a fake review are:

• Wording of reviews and/or how it’s written
• Poor grammar or doesn’t make sense
• Too extreme (whether positive or negative)
• Lack of specific detail
• The name/profile of the reviewer

Be Transparent, Use Tags, and Give it Time

Given the stakes, it is imperative that retailers provide reviews that customers perceive as authentic and trustworthy. It’s crucial to disclose review sources of reviews as this positively impacts shoppers’ perceptions.

Using tags can help boost perceived authenticity. “Verified buyer” tags have the largest impact on U.S. consumers’ perceptions as such a tag is proof that the reviewer has actually purchased the product. Other impactful tags include: verified reviewer (56 percent) and review submitted as part of a sampling campaign (43 percent).

Compiling authentic product reviews requires time since real customers purchase and use products at their own pace. It is important to remember that sporadic posting of reviews is more indicative of authenticity. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission advises monitoring reviews that appear in a sudden burst over a short period, as this could be a red flag for fake reviews.

The Importance of Imperfection

While negative reviews are generally undesirable, not having any can raise suspicions among shoppers. The absence of negative content can trigger alarms, because it is unrealistic for any product or retailer to satisfy every consumer.

Our research revealed that just 6 percent of shoppers indicate that 5.0 is the ideal average star rating for a product, while 44 percent believe an ideal average star rating falls between 4.5 and 4.99. Another 42 percent of shoppers look for ratings between 4.0 and 4.49 stars.

Extreme reviews, whether positive or negative, are viewed skeptically by 54 percent of US consumers.

Tackling Trust Issues Head On: The Retail Imperative

Earning and maintaining consumer trust is crucial for retailers as the majority of consumers are unwilling to purchase from companies they do not trust. Enabling genuine product reviews while taking steps to prevent and/or eliminate fake reviews not only helps build trust but also increases the likelihood of consumers making purchases, checking another crucial box for retailers.

Andrew Smith is vice president of marketing for PowerReviews, a conversion-first UGC vendor.