An Important Update Regarding Online Reviews

Background

In our most recent mailing we discussed the prevalence of online reviews and how they are a form of marketing research survey, albeit one in which your company's reputation is left to the devices of the person leaving a review (which may or may not be accurate). We went on to suggest that marketing research surveys are a way to proactively take control of the feedback process.

The Current Environment

Research from SEO firm Backlink illustrates the continued paradoxical existence of online reviews: in a recent survey, 75% of consumers said they read online reviews when researching businesses -- but 75% also said they are concerned about fake reviews.

An Important Update

This month, we want to pass along an important update regarding online reviews. Online reviews can no doubt be a useful source of feedback for a business or organization, as long as everyone "plays fair." However, the increasing number of fake reviews has resulted in frustration, headaches, and worse for businesses that are simply trying every day to provide the best possible products and services for their customers. And this brings us to the information we wanted to share with you.

The New FTC Rule

There is encouraging news when it comes to countering the pervasiveness of fake online reviews. A few weeks ago, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enacted a new rule, effective October 21, 2024, that bans a number of fraudulent review practices and establishes a penalty of up to $50,000 per violation for entities that knowingly engage in these fraudulent behaviors. The new rule, which is not retroactive, prohibits the following:

• Fake or false consumer reviews, consumer testimonials, and celebrity testimonials, including those generated by AI

• Buying positive or negative reviews

• Reviews from company insiders that don't disclose the giver's connection to the business

• Threats or intimidation to prevent or remove a negative review

• Suppressing the content of reviews in any way

Here is a link to more information about the new FTC ruling:

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/08/federal-trade-commission-announces-final-rule-banning-fake-reviews-testimonials

And, if you feel your company or organization is the victim of online reviews that are in violation of the new FTC rule, here is a website where you can register a complaint: ReportFraud.ftc.gov

So, the good news is that as your company monitors the feedback you receive in online reviews, the new FTC rule should increase the likelihood that the feedback contained in those reviews is indeed factual.

Be Proactive With a Customer Satisfaction Survey

We are not at all suggesting that the information shared in online reviews be ignored. However, as important as customer feedback and customer satisfaction are, there is another, more proactive option available that puts you in control of the feedback process and removes the worry that comes from depending solely on increasingly suspect online reviews. That option is a marketing research survey of your customers.

Customer satisfaction surveys can help your business or organization learn a wide variety of information that will help you shape your brand image. Simply put, marketing research survey questions can be crafted to find out anything you want to learn from your customers. From strengths that should be highlighted to weaknesses that need to be addressed, a marketing research survey keeps you on the pulse of the latest trends in the always changing state of consumer opinion. Armed with data from a customer satisfaction survey, you can then more efficiently develop marketing and communications messages.

An additional benefit of conducting a marketing research survey is that to the extent a survey does identify weaknesses, your company or organization can address such feedback, with the goal of heading off any negative sentiment before it reaches online reviews and other social media, a point at which it may have already impacted other peoples' opinions about doing business with your company or organization. 

In Conclusion

I would welcome the opportunity to discuss with you how our marketing research surveys can help your company or organization proactively measure customer sentiment through a customer satisfaction survey.

Please contact me at halfogelman@researchdynamicsinc.com or call 800/610-3772. For more information, visit our website at www.researchdynamicsinc.com