December 18, 2023
We all know ratings and reviews on a product page are important. While they’ve only been around for about two decades, it’s hard to imagine shopping without them, especially if it’s your first experience with a brand. In fact, 52% of shoppers cite real customer reviews as the biggest factor in their final purchase decisions, making them more impactful than discounts or coupons.
Across all categories – from apparel to wellness and everything in between – ratings and reviews play a crucial role in the customer journey.
But just how crucial, exactly? And how can businesses extract the most value from them? In this article, we’ll define what ratings and reviews are, explore their business impact, provide evidence-backed insights on their influence, and share strategies for maximizing their effectiveness—including how to respond to feedback and how many reviews you actually need to make a difference.
What are ratings and reviews?
Ratings and reviews are two sides of the same coin, working together to provide shoppers with the information they need to make confident purchase decisions.
- A rating is a quantitative score, typically on a 1-to-5 star scale, that gives a quick snapshot of overall customer satisfaction.
- A review is qualitative feedback—the story behind the stars—where customers share their detailed experiences, offering valuable insights into a product’s quality, features, and real-world use.
How many reviews do you need to make an impact?
While there’s no single magic number, the goal is to have enough reviews to establish a credible and trustworthy pattern for shoppers. Most shoppers look for a product to have multiple reviews before they begin to trust the average star rating. However, conversion rates often see the biggest lift when a product goes from zero reviews to its first few—in fact, 79% of shoppers say a product must have at least 6 reviews before they are comfortable making an informed buying decision.
- Consistent feedback: Build a steady stream of fresh, authentic reviews to maintain relevance.
- Recency matters: 80% of consumers said that reviews being left recently (in the last few months) makes them more likely to trust a product’s reviews, so having recent feedback is essential for credibility.
Focus on an ongoing collection strategy rather than hitting an arbitrary number.
The business benefits of ratings and reviews
Ratings and reviews help businesses build trust, increase sales, and improve customer loyalty. For example, customers tend to spend 31% more on products with glowing reviews. They provide social proof that influences purchase decisions—100% of 2,500 respondents to our 2025 consumer survey said that online reviews (both positive and negative) are important in their purchasing decisions for a new product, with 59% saying they’re ‘extremely important – I almost never buy without reading them’.
Ratings and reviews impact everything from sales to SEO
Shoppers are leaving more reviews now than ever. Across our network in 2021, the number of reviews submitted increased nearly 11% year-over-year. Our 2023 Shopper Experience Index found that when shoppers engaged with reviews, there was a 144% lift in conversion rate.
Not only are shoppers converting more readily on pages with reviews, but they’re also spending more money—shoppers would spend 31% more on a business with great reviews. The lift in revenue per visitor among shoppers engaging with reviews was 162% in 2023, and the average order value was 13% higher.
Ratings and reviews create a great avenue for us to get current content on our site and bring attention to our product. That helps us to rank higher in search results and get found better
UX analyst, CPG
Reviews do more than boost sales. They also help drive a 25% increase in organic search engine traffic to online stores.
According to those we surveyed for our Shopper Experience Index, these are key reasons brands invest in ratings and reviews:
- Increase brand loyalty (52% of brands report this benefit)
- Positively impact in-store sales (53%)
- Improve search engine optimization (63%)
Global brand Petco, for example, launched a sampling campaign to collect more reviews and improve SEO metrics. The campaign led to a 405% increase in review volume, which meant a:
- 67% increase in number of pages ranked organically
- 140% increase in impressions from organic search
- 80% increase in clicks from organic search
- 48% increase in revenue per visit for sampled products
How ratings and reviews influence shopper trust and confidence
According to our 2025 survey of 2,500 consumers, 100% of respondents said that online reviews (both positive and negative) are important in their purchasing decisions for a new product. . Our 2022 Shopper Experience Index report also revealed that ratings and reviews are the number one online feature shoppers rely on when making informed product decisions faster, more so than product page descriptions, chatbots, and the website’s search tool.
- 82% of shoppers research products online before going in-store (Deloitte and Touche LLP).
- Over a third read a product’s reviews on their mobile phones while looking at the same product in-store.
Shoppers rely on ratings and reviews when making final purchase decisions. In fact, 92% of consumers are hesitant to complete a purchase when there aren’t any customer reviews.
- High-quality reviews convince 21% of shoppers to buy—88% of consumers trust a written review more than a star rating alone.
- Average star ratings influence 19%
- The number of reviews matters for 13%
User-generated content is a key driver in these decisions.
We also found that half of shoppers have been influenced by reviews to buy a more expensive product than planned.
- Negative reviews matter: A 2025 Bazaarvoice survey of 2,500 consumers found that 62% of consumers feel that reviews including a mix of positive and negative feedback makes them more likely to trust a product’s reviews., as products with only 5-star reviews can seem “too good to be true”.
- 62% say negative reviews contain more pros and cons than positive reviews.
Displaying reviews is just the start. Bazaarvoice’s 2025 survey of 2,500 shoppers found that when it comes to a brand or retailer responding to reviews, 59% of people said they don’t necessarily expect a response, but it does improve their opinion if the brand/retailer does.
Reviews improve your brand’s authenticity
Brand trust is essential in retail. According to our survey of 10,000 global shoppers, 97% say fake reviews make them lose trust in a brand, while over three-quarters trust reviews more than family and friends.
It’s not as simple as just displaying reviews; you have to ensure that they’re authentic. If shoppers suspect a product to have fake reviews—a real concern, given that some categories have high rates of fake product reviews (for example, 64% of supplement reviews are estimated to be fake)—they may avoid purchasing altogether.
Seemingly fake reviews can severely impact a shopper’s purchase decisions:
- 56% wouldn’t buy the product
- 25% wouldn’t buy from the website
- 81% avoid using the brand again
- 48% leave a negative review
- 16% post [negatively] about the brand on social media
According to Bazaarvoice’s survey of 2,500 shoppers, consumers are suspicious of fake reviews when they notice:
- When the language sounds too much like marketing copy (67%)
- When it is overly positive without any specific details (56%)
- When it is very short and lacks detail (38%)
As consumers have become more skeptical of marketing and advertising practices as a whole, they’re constantly evaluating product reviews to look for red flags—75% of consumers are concerned they’ll come across fake reviews when shopping online.
Unlocking business insights from customer reviews
Ratings and reviews are an invaluable source of customer feedback. Consumer reviews can help surface issues with products, shed light on new use cases, and inform product innovations. Shoppers want to see businesses use their reviews, both positive (25%) and negative (38%), to make product improvements.
Our brand and retail partners use UGC to drive improvements across their business:
- 72% improve customer service
- 66% improve products
- 50% improve marketing tactics and messaging
How to make customer ratings and reviews work harder for you
While impressive, these results won’t manifest out of thin air. The real magic happens when you set in motion a process to collect, distribute, and manage reviews, designed to squeeze the most value out of these pieces of UGC.
Set up a review collection strategy
- Request reviews: Request ratings and reviews from your customers through multiple channels, including in-store, email, social media, push notifications, and SMS.
- Timing matters: Reach out soon after purchase or delivery, when the experience is fresh and feedback is most detailed.
- Keep it simple: Use clear, concise messaging and avoid overwhelming customers with too many requests or instructions.
Provide incentives in exchange for ratings and reviews
Sometimes customers need a little extra push to share their feedback. Incentivized reviews—like a coupon or entry into a giveaway—can encourage honest feedback.
- Small incentives: Discount codes or product samples can drive participation. For example, McPherson’s Consumer Products found that 20% of new reviews on its brands’ products come from sampling efforts.
- Transparency: Always disclose incentives and never pay for positive reviews. Our 2025 consumer research found that 70% of consumers said they find incentivized reviews just as valuable as non-incentivized (organic) reviews.
Encourage customers to add visual UGC
Images and videos from customers give shoppers a better sense of what products look like in real life—our 2025 survey found that 71% of consumers said that reviews including user-submitted photos or videos makes them more likely to trust a product’s reviews..
- Showcase visuals: Fresh, a cosmetics company, used Bazaarvoice’s Photo-First Reviews Display to put customer images and videos front and center, resulting in a $1.48 million impact from UGC.
- Make it optional: Ask for visuals, but don’t require them—written reviews are still valuable.
Effective strategies for responding to reviews
Customers feel more positively towards brands who engage with them when they leave feedback. Responding promptly—whether the review is positive or negative—shows you value your customers and their experiences, and more than a third of consumers say a business can differentiate itself by responding publicly to reviews.
- Thank positive reviewers: Express gratitude and highlight specific points mentioned.
- Personalize responses: Reference details from the review to show you’ve read and appreciated their comments.
- Address negative reviews constructively: Acknowledge concerns, apologize if needed, and offer a solution or next step. Invite them to continue the conversation privately if the issue is complex.
- Be transparent: If you make changes based on feedback, let reviewers know.
Webroot replied to 70% of its 38,000 customer reviews on retail sites, demonstrating a commitment to customer engagement and earning trust in a competitive space. Thoughtful responses help build loyalty and can turn critics into advocates.
Reply to both positive and negative reviews—95% of unsatisfied customers will return to a company if it manages to solve the issue quickly and efficiently.
Customers expect brands to engage with them when they take the time to leave a review, especially if it’s negative. As Anna Kim, Senior Advocate Programs Manager at Webroot, explains, “It’s our responsibility (…) to be responsive to shoppers’ questions and reviews. Someone who is vetting us against another brand sees that we interact with our customers, and that’s a big competitive advantage.”
Webroot practices what it preaches — the cybersecurity software company replied to 70% of its 38,000 customer reviews on retail sites.
When responding to positive reviews, gratitude is the name of the game. Thank the customer for sharing their opinion, and express happiness that they enjoyed the product. Reference specific points mentioned in the review to make your response more personal and show that you value their input.
Negative reviews are a different beast, but they don’t have to be a scary one. Having some negative reviews contributes to authenticity and can reveal problems you weren’t aware of. Don’t ignore them; act quickly, acknowledge the customer’s experience, and offer a solution. If the problem is too complex, invite them to continue the conversation privately.
Amplifying the reach of your ratings and reviews
If your brand works with retail partners to sell its products, syndicating reviews to their websites is a must. There’s no guarantee consumers will find and buy your products on your own website—syndication gets consumer eyes on your product reviews wherever they’re shopping.
- Retailer benefits: Partners get quality, conversion-optimized content on their product pages without extra investment.
- Network effect: Bazaarvoice has a network of 1,750 global retailers and helps brands syndicate reviews to as many partners as possible. For Andi-Co, 100% of reviews on retailers’ sites come from Bazaarvoice syndication, leading to 690x more UGC on retailer sites.
Integrating ratings and reviews into your marketing strategy
Displaying reviews on your website is a no-brainer, but why stop there? Incorporating reviews into your offline and digital marketing can significantly enhance effectiveness—strategically placed reviews on digital platforms can boost conversions by up to 270%.
- Social media channels: Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Social commerce is growing—over half (58%) of shoppers discover products through social, and 42% say it impacts their purchasing decisions.
- In-store displays: Show reviews and ratings near products to bridge the gap between online and offline experiences.
- Emails: Use positive reviews in email campaigns. Include a customer testimonial to highlight benefits and encourage repeat purchases, cross-sells, and up-sells.
Don’t underestimate the power of ratings and reviews for your business
While some might think it’s difficult to quantify the importance of ratings and reviews, the above statistics prove their power.
There are a variety of ways that they are useful, both for businesses and their customers. And not only are ratings and reviews absolutely necessary to today’s consumers during the purchasing process; companies are also missing out on sales, profits, and priceless information without them, as our own research below shows.
Learn more about how important ratings and reviews.
Frequently asked questions about ratings and reviews
What is the difference between a rating and a review?
A rating is a quick numerical score, while a review is written feedback that explains the reason behind the score. Both help shoppers understand product quality and customer experience.
Do ratings and reviews really improve sales?
Yes, ratings and reviews build trust and directly increase conversion rates. Our research shows shoppers who engage with reviews are more likely to buy and spend more per visit.
How can I see all the reviews for my business?
Use a centralized UGC platform to aggregate reviews from your website and retail partners. This lets you monitor, respond to, and analyze all feedback efficiently.
What makes a review trustworthy?
Trustworthy reviews are detailed, recent, and from verified buyers. A mix of positive and negative feedback also signals authenticity to shoppers.
How can I get more customers to leave reviews?
The most effective way is to ask, use post-purchase emails, offer small incentives, and make the review process simple and mobile-friendly.
