Only 44 Percent Of Local Businesses Have Actually Claimed Their Google My Business Listing

That's 56 percent of your competitors that aren't taking advantage of their listing.

While business listings on the major review platforms are complimentary, a surprisingly low number of businesses really use them.

Although we now know why client reviews are so effective, most businesses apparently don't.

Source: LsaInsider

64% Of Americans Concur That User-generated Content (consumer Reviews) Enhanced Their Shopping Experience In 2017

30 percent of customers who check out consumer reviews, agree that it increases their buying confidence.

Businesses use the reviews to improve their products or services.

"We all need people who will give us feedback. That's how we improve." -Bill Gates

Source: Statista

Online Reviews Impact 67.7% Of Consumer Buying Decisions

More than two-thirds of consumers agree online reviews are either a "Fairly decisive", "Very decisive", or "Absolutely decisive" part of their decision making experience.

Source: Moz

70 Percent Of Customers Choose To Learn About A Business Through Reviews And Articles, Instead Of Ads

Advertisements are all well and good, however it deserves trying a different approach too. Reviews are without a doubt the very best method to find the truth about a product or service.

Source: Statuslabs

82 Percent Of Consumers Check Out Review Websites Because They Wish To Buy An Item Or A Service And Want To Get The Facts About The Businesses Services And Products.

Users come due to the fact that they have already formed a purchase decision. The majority of them (89%) buy within a week of their visit.

Source: RevLocal

Negative Reviews Can Improve Conversion By Up To 85 Percent

It sounds crazy, however negative reviews can be a positive force for users to devote more time on your website. According to online review data, people devote more than 5 times as long on a site when they read negative reviews.

When there are a mix of negatives and positives, more than two-thirds of users trust reviews more. If there aren't any unfavorable ones, a frustrating 95 percent suspect censorship or fabricated reviews.

Source: Reevoo

60 Percent Of Consumers Seek Advice From Blog And Social Network Reviews On Their Mobile Devices Prior To Shopping

In-store shopping is affected considerably by blogs and reviews on social media. With males being two times as likely to be affected than women.

Reviews and score statistics show people value the viewpoint of peers more than any other content.

Source: Collective Bias

Reviews Are The 3rd Most Prominent Ranking Factor For Google's Local 3 Pack

Review signals (quantity, diversity, etc.) represent 15.44% of Google's algorithm for local ranking.

Google My Business signals, like proximity and keywords represent 25.12%, and link signals at 16.53%, are more important than reviews as far as ranking aspects go for the local 3 pack.

Source: Moz

95% Of Travelers Read Online Reviews Prior To Scheduling Travel Related Services

Leisure and business travelers alike read reviews to form a viewpoint. Business tourists read an average of 5 reviews vs. 6-7 for leisure travelers.

Source: Trust You

If They Were Asked, 77% Of Clients Would Probably Give A Review

More than a 35% would submit a review to advise others about their consumer experience and 24% would definitely direct their review to the company itself.

Over a 26% would be willing to submit a review to help other people with their choice making process.

Source: Podium

More Than Four Negative Reviews About A Business Or Service May Decrease Sales By 70 Percent

One negative review is enough for 35% of a site's visitors to decide not to purchase. Three negative reviews can cost a business 59 percent less sales.

Obviously, they can be compensated by the large number of positive reviews you receive.

"It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it." -Benjamin Franklin

Source: Martech Zone