Google Business Reviews - 4 Reasons Too Many 5 Star Reviews May Sabotage Your Brand

In the past, the best form of advertising was word of mouth. After all, who could you trust more than a friend or family member? While this is still a valid and important form of getting the word out about your brand, it has changed delivery methods. Thanks to technology, reviews are considered a brand’s “digital” word of mouth. In fact, they are a top referral channel.

Some top online marketers refer to online reviews as the human backlink. To understand what this means, you must first understand what a backlink is.

The objective of backlink is to satisfy Rank Brain AI, which has everything to do with content and links. It is important to have a conceptual model of what to look for to make link building effective. Content doesn't have to be limited to text-based articles. It can be extended to images, brand mentions, and reviews, as well.

The Desire for Market Perfection

The desire for you to achieve market perfection can erode the potential for trust. In many situations, having all 5-star reviews is not always trusted by consumers. This unrealistic body of reviews often creates a situation of expectations that simply cannot be met.

If you are like most business owners, you probably believe that having only 5-star reviews is great. However, you shouldn’t turn a blind eye to this issue. Consider the four ways too many 5-star reviews could hurt your ability to grow your brand and acquire new customers.

1. They’re fake.

When someone searches for your brand, service or product and see all 5-star reviews, the immediate thought they have is that they’re fake. The fact is, businesses offer money for these fake reviews, which means they are running rampant all over the internet. Approximately 30% of all reviews currently published is fake, which means consumers are more aware than ever before. (1)

If everything posted about your brand or company is nothing but glowing reviews, it throws up an automatic red flag. Unfortunately, consumers are savvier than ever before, if they see all 5-star reviews, chances are they are going to seek another provider with more realistic reviews.

2. It prevents you from trying harder.

When someone gives you constant praise, regardless of if it is at work, at school or in life in general, chances are you are going to think things are good and not strive to do more. The same goes for your business and efforts to provide your customers with the best experience possible.

If you never hear how your product or service disappointed a customer, then you may find that you are never growing and evolving to meet the changing needs of your customers.

While it may be tempting to trade cash, discounts or other incentives for 5-star reviews, if these reviews don’t reflect the experience it is yet another way that you are going to let down your customers and under deliver on all these promises made by past customers.

3. You may not question things.

What is at the heart of a great marketing plan? The answer is to ask questions, see what is changing and alter your efforts based on what you learn. As mentioned before, if your customers seem overly ecstatic about everything you do in the reviews they lead, chances are you’re going to stop asking questions. You’re going to stop looking at the other indications of success – such as traffic, visibility, etc. This can lead to several adverse effects for your brand or company – including falling in the search engines and having your customers go to your competition.

Realistic reviews of 3-, 2- and even 1-stars is imperative (if deserved) to ensure you continue asking questions and helping your brand evolve. (2)

4. You’ll avoid trying new things.

The marketing realm is ever-evolving. If your customers are saying everything is good, you may not take steps to do more. Five star reviews are great – when they have been earned. However, as the owner or manager of a business or brand, you have to be your own worst critic. You have to question everything and be willing to make changes at all times to continue growing. This is the only way you can continue to grow and expand your brand. If you become complacent due to amazing reviews from customers that have been bought or may not be telling whole truths, it could hurt your brand significantly.

The Importance of Realistic Reviews

It is crucial that you acquire reviews that set reasonable and accurate client expectations about your business or brand. This can help ensure customers are not expecting the moon and stars, but only receive a quick trip around the block.

If you fail to do this, you may be setting unrealistic expectations for your brand and become stagnant in your efforts to continue pleasing your customers. While 5-star reviews are great, no one is perfect. Keeping this in mind at all times can help you build a better brand.

(1) https://www.bloomberg.com/news...

(2) https://www.decisionanalyst.co...