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Infographic: How online reviews can make or break your brand

Research quantifies the impact online customer reviews have on business performance. The reviews play a bigger role in the selection of restaurants than hotels, doctor's offices, hospitals or hair salons.

Image courtesy of iStock.

June 9, 2017

It's no secret that online reviews help consumers decide where and what to eat. In fact, 68 percent of millennials trust online reviews most, as opposed to 34 percent who trust television advertisement, according to Websitebuilder.com, which created the infographic below.

In addition, 90 percent of consumers read less than 10 reviews before forming an opinion about a business, meaning these decisions are being made quickly.

The impact of online reviews can be positive or negative. For every star a business receives, sales will increase from approximately 5 to 9 percent, and 22 percent of consumers will not buy a product after reading a negative review about it.

The top five industries most affected by online reviews are restaurants, hotels, doctor's offices, hospitals and hair salons.