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Over the last twenty years, we’ve seen an explosion in the number of product reviews online. Now practically every item you can imagine has a set of associated evaluations by customers – even if it is low-volume.
Reviews shape our perceptions in essential ways. A review can provide deep insight into whether or not we should buy a product or not, letting us know whether it will meet our needs.
But what people say in online reviews arguably matters more to companies developing products than it does to customers. When firms use data from reviews, they’re better able to define the best direction for product development and, hopefully, meet the needs of their customers.
As the following infographic makes clear, making good use of online review data is a challenge. When review volumes are low, it is hard to extract actionable insights. Small sample sizes and unreasonable criticisms from customers all serve to make low review counts unhelpful.
There are problems at the other end of the scale too. While higher review volumes are easier to analyze mathematically, they come with drawbacks, the main one being feedback effects. Concerted efforts by particular consumer groups can lead to an overly negative impression of a product that isn’t reflected on the ground.
Do you feel that you should be paying more attention to product reviews? If so, please take a look at the following infographic. It charts some of the issues around interpreting online reviews and provides some statistics to help you use them better in your organization.
Infographic by University of Alabama Birmingham
This is a collaborative post.
Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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