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Jane S

How do product reviews influence your online purchases?

If you read them at all, do you have a method for determining which reviews have merit?

Posted - January 30, 2022
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Responses


  • 34452
    If it is something expensive,  I read the reviews. I pay more attention to the negative reviews than the positive. 

      January 30, 2022 8:04 AM MST
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  • 53526

     

      I don’t even have any interest in the so-called 5-star, 4-star, and 3-star reviews. I go immediately to the negative ones. Not only are they probably more likely to be real as opposed to company shill reports, they’re also more entertaining to me. 

      Here’s an example. Recently, I posted a question here about the SiriusFM service, then I delved into reading online reviews, only the negative ones. There were dozens of them that I read, and they spanned a decade. Even without taking into account their percentage in comparison to the positive reviews, which I didn’t look at, there was enough evidence of a possibly bad product, possibly bad customer service, possibly bad business practices that I was convinced to stay away. 


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      January 30, 2022 8:06 AM MST
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  • 7795
    "I go immediately to the negative ones." I do the exact same thing.
      January 30, 2022 8:13 AM MST
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  • 11105
    At least on Amazon, there are as many fake bad reviews as there are fake good reviews. Sellers post bad reviews on a competitor's product.
    '
      January 30, 2022 4:25 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

      I believe that goes on in a lot of review situations across many platforms.

    ~

      January 30, 2022 4:37 PM MST
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  • 5451
    My husband and I will keep renewing the Sirius XM subscriptions in his car and in our van, but bad customer service is right.  He paid for the same package in both the car and the van, but he didn’t have the NFL play-by-play channels in his car.  He spent a lot of time with their customer service trying to get them to fix it.  They were finally working this morning, now that there are only three games left and we‘re watching the AFC championship on TV right now anyway.
      January 30, 2022 1:07 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

      How long ago did the first attempt to get it fixed take place?
    ~

      January 30, 2022 2:18 PM MST
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  • 5451
    I just asked him.  He first started trying to get them to fix it during Week Seven of the NFL season, so it only took Sirius XM three months, lol.  I got him started on all of Sirius XM’s other customer service sins now.
      January 30, 2022 7:37 PM MST
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  • 19937
    Like many of the other commenters, I gravitate towards the one- and two-star reviews.  The upside of the item is usually obvious; it's the downside that may make the difference between whether I buy the product or not.
      January 30, 2022 9:59 AM MST
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  • 10664

    Yes, I look at them.  

    My method for determining which reviews have merit is using common sense. 

    A high percentage of 5-star reviews are fake (professionally written).  Seriously, who in their right mind is going to write paragraphs on how great a product is?  Would you?  Perhaps an “it was great”, but not several paragraphs praising a product (who has the time?).  Many are written like short stories.  How many “average people do you know can write like that?  And if they can, do they buy every product there is and write a review for it?  For free?  Some even rave about a product, yet admit they haven't even taken out of the box yet.  Common sense.

    Many 1 star reviews are written by stupid people (notice they don’t use paragraphs to get their “point” across).  Just because they used their new hair dryer in the bathtub doesn’t necessarily make it a bad hairdryer.  Many reviews are complaints about bad service or a mistake in ordering.  Just because they ordered a green model but were shipped a white one, doesn’t make the product bad.  There’re ALWAYS going to be a small percentage of products that are duds (a bad component, human/manufacturing errors).  It sucks to be the one who gets the bad one, but it happens.  While the company will usually be happy to rectify the problem, a bad review is still written.  However, if a high percentage of the 1-star reviews are about the same “flaw”….  Common sense.

      January 30, 2022 12:40 PM MST
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  • 53526

      This guy writes beautifully. (Sob, sniff.)

      
      ~

      January 30, 2022 2:24 PM MST
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  • 11105
    I agree, but I still find it stressful to comb through reviews to determine their veracity. Sometimes people are sent free products in exchange for writing a review. They know the reviews have to be well written if they want to keep getting free stuff.
      January 30, 2022 4:33 PM MST
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  • 10052
    I typically set filters to only see items/places/services, etc. that have at least a 3.5-ish average (if it's a 5-star scale). I then gravitate to items with a high number of total reviews over a decent amount of time. I also do my best to do some independent research. I also ask actual people I know whenever possible. 

    It's a fairly complicated process, but it usually works out pretty well. 
      January 30, 2022 12:52 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

      Gee, all I asked her was whether or not she’ll be free next weekend. Grrrrrrrr. 


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      January 30, 2022 2:27 PM MST
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  • 10052
    You may want to consider paying for positive reviews. The ex and next wives aren't giving out ringing endorsements! 
      January 30, 2022 5:49 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

      I like to keep as much of that information off the internet as possible. It doesn’t look good for me in civil court proceedings when I try to crush “judicial grants of administrative decrees”. (Cough, cough.)


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      January 30, 2022 6:19 PM MST
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  • 10052
    You need to try harder. A little extra alimony probably wouldn't hurt.
      January 30, 2022 6:28 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

      I wonder how many of them just wanted me for the alimony?




    ~

      January 30, 2022 10:29 PM MST
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  • 10052
    Awww. Cheer up. I'm sure some wanted you for your grammar! 
      January 31, 2022 5:08 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

      You know, I’m a little sick of being sought after just for my brains. I have a body, you know! Grrrrrrrr. 


    ~

      January 31, 2022 6:15 PM MST
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  • 10052
    Sure you do. 

      February 1, 2022 5:54 PM MST
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  • 11105
    Wasn't life easier when we just went to a store and bought what we could afford? 
      January 30, 2022 4:19 PM MST
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  • 53526

     

    ~

      January 30, 2022 4:39 PM MST
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  • 10052
    Yep. Although stores are full of people and their germs, and most don't allow dogs. ;)
      January 30, 2022 5:54 PM MST
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