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BrightLocal Survey: More Consumers Using Online Reviews for Local Businesses

BrightLocal Survey: More Consumers Using Online Reviews for Local Businesses

Marketing agency BrightLocal recently released results from its Local Consumer Review Survey, looking at how consumers used online review sites throughout 2020. The firm found that 93 percent of consumers used the internet to find a local business in the past year. Thirty-four percent of them reported searching every day.

The main takeaway from the survey is that more people are using online reviews than ever. Eighty-seven percent read online reviews for local businesses in 2020, compared to 81 percent in the prior year. Many respondents claim to "always’ read reviews for local businesses, and that number (34 percent) is far more than those who "never" do (13 percent). Another 27 percent claim to do so "regularly," while 26 percent do "occasionally."

The main takeaway from the survey

Image via BrightLocal

The pandemic appears to have only contributed to the growth in consumption of online reviews for local businesses. Concerns about safety precautions and COVID responses by businesses no doubt fueled consumer use of online reviews.

"With Covid-19 shuttering many local businesses across the world, consumers were forced to choose businesses in different ways," BrightLocal said in the report. "Feeling able to trust a local business became more important than ever – with online reviews playing a key role in whether some consumers felt safe enough to use a business."

While 34 percent of survey respondents indicated they read fewer reviews than in a normal year, 66 percent said they either read as many or more reviews. Perhaps one of the most striking findings is that 67 percent said they would not use a business if reviews said it didn’t have COVID-19 health and safety measures in place.

<The Covid impact from the survey

Image via BrightLocal

While health and safety measures are obviously critical for businesses to protect their customers and personnel, the findings illustrate how they can also have a direct impact on a business’s reputation and ability to draw in customers who are increasingly interested in what others have to say.

Survey respondents cited star ratings as the most important review factor, followed by legitimacy, recency, sentiment, and quantity. Only 48 percent said they would consider using a business with fewer than four stars, while 73 percent only pay attention to reviews written in the past month. This suggests that businesses should frequently pay attention to new reviews being posted and not rest on their laurels just because they’ve had positive reviews in the past.

Not only are more people reading reviews, but more people are also writing reviews. In 2020, 72 percent of consumers in the US said they had written a review for a local business, compared to 66 percent in 2019.

While Facebook and Yelp reviews are popular among consumers, Google My Business reviews are most looked at by consumers for local business reviews. However, Better Business Bureau reviews are the most trusted, the survey found.

Industries in which consumers are most likely to have read reviews are restaurants, hotels, medical, automotive, and clothing stores. Even still, businesses of all types should pay close attention to how they are being perceived online and quickly make adjustments to address any concerns that are surfacing.

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