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In the world of online shopping, buyers usually buy a product after they see others like it.
The easiest way to find out what you're guessing about consumer sentiment is: comment.
Many online purchases are based on careful consideration of star ratings and product reviews left by completely unfamiliar people. Some 82% of U. S.
According to a Pew Research Center survey of 2016, adults say they at least sometimes read online customer ratings or reviews before they buy a product for the first time.
But when you decide what to buy, should you trust the customer's comments and whether these mysterious reviewers take into account your best interests, here's what you need to know.
Zach Pardes, North American advertising and communications director at the review platform Trustpilot, said that false reviews are really skeptical today by consumers.
Shoppers use Trustpilot to read the company and write reviews, while businesses use it to collect reviews.
"We live in an era where trust is completely attacked," Pardes said . ".
"This is the age of fake news.
So people read (review) and consume them more than ever before, but I think there will be healthy doubts as they read.
"Shoppers seem to have good reasons to be skeptical.
According to Saoud Khalifah, CEO of artificial intelligence platform faakespot, which analyzed online reviews, false reviews do exist.
False comments include, but are not limited to, bot-
Generated comments and comments affected by the seller.
Fakespot reads hundreds of reviews per second and records things like how many reviews are left on a product over time, common words used in reviews and the quality of reviews.
Shoppers can use Fakespot's website to analyze reviews of products in a few emails (by entering a URL)
Business sites such as Amazon and Best Buy.
So, Khalifah says consumers are cautious about products that don't have reviews or zero stars.
Some positive reviews can make the product look better.
Of course, real reviews are valuable and not all user reviews you read online are fake.
Real reviews are a valuable tool when making various purchases.
They can help consumers make important financial decisions by understanding other people's experiences.
This may include which hotel to book, Where to eat, or what brand of vacuum cleaner to buy.
Pardes said that Trustpilot provides a tagging mechanism that users can see, as well as artificial intelligence technology and teams that detect and delete false comments.
Yelp is perhaps one of the most famous review sites.
Company spokesman Catherine Liu likened the popular website to a modern one
Day version of Word-of-mouth.
"Before platforms like Yelp exist, consumers have to rely on Yellow Pages, newspapers, magazines and local ads to get information about local businesses," Liu said in an email . ".
Yelp takes steps to ensure "high
"High quality content," Liu said.
This includes allowing Yelp's corporate owners and user communities to Mark content that may violate the terms of service of the site, as well as human moderation in comments.
How to read between legitimate user reviews does provide useful information and the entire review should not be discounted.
But how do you distinguish what is real and what is not, which is almost impossible for everyday consumers.
However, you can make an informed purchase if you do your due diligence.
Check multiple comment sources.
Pardes advises consumers to read reviews on multiple platforms.
"If you are going to book a $10,000 holiday, you will never rely solely on photos and reviews posted by the hotel marketing team," he said . ".
"You will want to use the third one-
Independent resources of the party
Read more than a few reviews.
The numbers are safe, says Pardes.
"Pay attention to the warning sign.
Khalifah said that, for example, whether the review is more focused on the company and its customer support than on the actual product may indicate that the reviewer is affected by the seller or the company.
Perfect question.
Consumers don't believe only five-star reviews, says Pardes.
"No one is perfect, so it's impossible for you to have five perfect --
"There are star reviews in every category of your business," he said . ".
The article was provided to The Associated Press by the personal finance website NerdWallet.
Courtney Jespersen NerdWallet is a writer.
Email: Courtney @ nerdwallet. com.
Weibo: @ courtneynerd.
Related links: Pew Research Center: online shopping and e-commerce
What the Associated Press buys every month in 20192019.
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