In a recent report the BBC found that many businesses had collected fake reviews and blogs to make services and products look good while customers are apparently blackmailing businesses with threats demanding discounts or they will give them a critical review.
Research has been done by the Consumer & Markets Authority (CMA) which found that businesses are paying third parties for favourable blogs and reviews without telling customers that these reviews and blogs are paid for by the business.
While all of this is going on, the other side is that customers are alleged to be getting discounts in the businesses by blackmailing them saying that if they don’t get a discount, they will write a critical review about the business.
With 54% of consumers saying that they check online reviews before making a purchase it’s clear that trust and integrity on the part of all parties are vital!
Here at ‘thebestof…’ reviews are a vital part of Business Members obtaining increased exposure locally and building trust in their brand.
All the reviews that are sent through to ‘thebestof…’ are validated. This means that if a review hasn’t been validated by the person that has submitted the review, then that review will not be published. We do publish less then favourable reviews (as things do go wrong sometimes) and the business can reply with a measured, professional and honest response.
It has been estimated that £23bn a year of spending by consumers was potentially influenced by online reviews. This shows that the stakes are high for businesses and it is important for consumers that they can trust the reviews systems that they are using.
So if you’ve not embraced the power of reviews come and talk to us at ‘thebestof Hastings’ and find out more about our validated reviews and blogs service plus how our multi-channel exposure can gain you maximum local impact.
Hi I'm James Mockridge, I work as an admin assistant at thebest of Hastings. I'm an avid Tottenham Hotspur fan.
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