Many companies gather customer reviews to build a rating that helps customers choose the right provider to go with. There are several different review sites and ratings, so it is getting harder to figure out which one is your best guide in selecting the right company.
Here are several things to check before you decide.
- Paid vs Free
Some review sites such as Trustpilot and Shopper Approved require monthly payments from the businesses to provide their rating. They Provide valuable services but are for-profit companies that only provide their rating to the companies who pay them. Google Reviews is the most popular rating provider and is a free service to all registered businesses. I'm sure Google is making money out of it, but at least they are not getting paid by the business that they are rating. There are also some pros and cons. Some paid review companies verify whether the reviewer is an actual customer versus the free providers who allow anyone, including non-customers and employees of the company to leave reviews.
- Look for multiple ratings whenever available
We like to look at multiple ratings for the company from different platforms like Google Rating and Trustpilot. Check if the rating and number of reviews from different platforms are similar. If one is poor and another is great, I will be less convinced of the good rating.