Editor's Pick

Research: What Consumers Find Persuasive in Online Reviews - Harvard Business Review (No paywall)


Most people report that online reviews are one of the main factors they consider before making a purchase. Unsurprisingly, many companies have attempted to harness reviews’ persuasive power by highlighting those they believe will be most compelling to customers. But what do customers find persuasive in a review? Researchers analyzed 111,728 purchase reviews and conducted experiments with over 2,000 participants to answer that question. Their findings indicate that persuasiveness is dictated by how frequently an item is purchased. For items that are purchased only rarely, recommendations seem to be the most persuasive. But when items are likely to be bought frequently — for example, cosmetics or bottles of wine — it’s most persuasive when reviewers indicate they would buy that item again. This is because recommendations are viewed as more credible than repurchase intentions for infrequently bought items, while the opposite is true for frequently purchased goods or services.

Continued here