Almost 40% of U.S. Consumers Trust Online Reviews Less Than They Did 5 Years Ago

Post by my_usernam3 » Tue, Mar 02, 2021, 7:23 PM UTC

OhSoHumble wrote: post #22

I recently bought some sheets. Actually sorting through the sheets on Amazon was a hassle because 90% of the reviews would be obviously fake "best sheets I've ever slept on - 5 stars" and the remaining 10% would be 1-3 star reviews that would be photographs of poor fabric or tears in the arriving product. It is almost impossible to buy quality goods online and I'm afraid that is just going to get worse.

Post by jfim » Tue, Mar 02, 2021, 7:25 PM UTC

bombcar wrote: post #85

jwagenet wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the reality is not just that Best Buy is (maybe) creating fake reviews or removing bad ones, but that most reviewers only rate with 1 star or 5 stars. The majority of reviews I find are in one of those two buckets, and only a handful of nuanced reviews fall in 2-4, effectively making the rating of a non controversial product that does what it’s supposed to - but has lemons - from 4 (meh) to 5 (works as expect…

This is why I would support a law that says if you're selling a product and have reviews you must also report how many you've sold over the last year, and how many returns (or maybe a percentage or something). That would be a much more useful metric.

Post by lotsofpulp » Tue, Mar 02, 2021, 7:27 PM UTC

jedberg wrote: post #61

everdrive wrote: post #7

As well they should. This is a game of cat and mouse. Consumers were ahead for a little while, but companies have really gotten a grasp on the internet, and they're winning the information war. It's no mistake that I've come to rely on brand name again. It's the best heuristic available to me. When all this first started (mid-2000s) I was actively avoiding basing ANY decision on brand name. For a brief window, I had…

This is true in the real world again (still?) too. We're currently stocking up on disinfecting wipes to donate to the school when they open next month. We've been told that the teachers only want brand name Clorox wipes, because they don't trust any other brand to actually disinfect safely.

Post by Mc91 » Tue, Mar 02, 2021, 7:28 PM UTC

mumblemumble wrote: post #78

monkeybutton wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are they still influential? They're something I associate with my parent's generation and the era of print magazines.

They won't influence you if you don't subscribe, of course. I used to subscribe, my sense is that they do a good job, but their tastes are geared toward those of more affluent boomers and genxers. If you're someone who can't afford a Lexus, or who'd even consider choosing a Kia over a Lexus even though you can easily afford one, then Consumer Reports may not cater to your tastes.

Post by fuzxi » Tue, Mar 02, 2021, 7:29 PM UTC

neltnerb wrote: post #92

egypturnash wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is also unevenly distributed cultural knowledge: anything less than five stars starts causing hassle for the driver. I hate this inflation but I also wanna make sure the person who gave me competent service that I would realistically mark as three stars - not bad, not great, job done exactly as specified and I'm perfectly happy with that - is going to get five. (hassle varies: offered fewer/worse-paying jobs is…

When I moved to California for a while I once made the mistake of describing my food at a restaurant with "fine, thanks" when the server asked how it was. Apparently this translates very differently in the culture of the Bay Area where it means something like "I am very upset" whereas in Boston I think this roughly would be read as "I am satisfied, but don't really feel like chatting."