Do People Really Read Reviews?

Do People Really Read Reviews?

So the question is – Do People Really Read Reviews? Absolutely!

In fact, when you begin to check out the statistics and reports relating to online reviews then it soon becomes apparent just how important they are in decision making when online. Personally I have reviewed apps, hotels, hostels, restaurants down the years and those blog posts have clear page views from people who read them, shared them commented on such as my review of the hostel in Jerusalem, the fantastic Xanadu on San Pedro (Madonna’s island) and the good wild boar I ate in Shymkent in 2016.

Three Days in Madonna’s Island: La Isla Bonita, San Pedro, Belize

Over 90% of consumers read reviews with a staggering 88% of those people trusting the online reviews as much as a personal recommendation. This makes the review an integral part of any pre-purchase research before anyone buys a product or a service. Below we are going to look at the gambling industry as an example to show how much reviews can influence decision making.

Friday’s Featured Food: Wild Boar Roast at Orbita Boutique Hotel in Shymkent, Kazakhstan

When we take a closer look at the gambling industry as a whole it was not so many years ago that there were very few online sites providing people with games to play. Everything changed when technology began to advance, and now we can find a multitude of online casino sites in what can be described as one of the most lucrative industries today.

Outside the famous Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco.

The rise in popularity in online gambling can be directly linked to the advanced technology we all now enjoy plus the more reliable and widely available Wi-Fi, and the gambling industries willingness to pioneer that new technology. This has led to the industry becoming extremely competitive, and where there is competition there will those that are out there to fleece consumers (especially when money is involved.)

There cannot be many of us that have been disappointed in some way with inferior services or goods purchased off the internet and this is where reviews are worth their weight in gold.

My lonely room in Pelplin, Poland

Reviews are there to bring together the collective thought of those who have previously experienced the good and services, they are a tool that offers guidance in a straightforward way and they should not be attached to any interested parties.

If we go back to the gambling industry we are given the perfect example of how a review works and the information will include:

• Software Provider (how successful they are)
• Welcome offers, bonuses and promotional offers
• Customer Support Details (how often they are open and in what languages)
• Banking Options (Which cards, e’wallets and other methods are available
• Choices of Games and what variations are on offer
• Mobile Friendly?

These pointers can be easily adapted to buying a washing machine or home insurance as you can see what is answered is fundamentally what makes that site tick, what makes if a decent place to play a game without having to worry about security and personal information safety.  Reviews provide us with considered choices and in a world, that is increasingly busy, those choices can be important and expensive ones if not researched properly.