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One-fifth of people who review products online have never used the product

January 28, 2014

According to the latest YouGov research, nearly one-fifth (21 percent) of Americans who have reviewed a product or service claim that they have reviewed a product or service they had never bought, used, or even tried. Men who leave reviews (23 percent) are more likely to leave reviews of untried products than women (17 percent). Parents are particularly guilty of creating false reviews. 32 percent of parents of children under 18 who have left reviews claim to have done so for something they had not bought or used.

Among Americans who left a review for a product or service they have never bought, used or tried:

• 32 percent stated that they did so because they "just felt like it"
• 22 percent stated they did not like the idea of the product
• 19 percent stated they left a review because they did not like the manufacturer or service

The majority of Americans surveyed have left some kind of online review with only 39 percent claiming that they have never left a review on a website. Meanwhile, more than 4 out of 10 Americans (42 percent) have left a review on Amazon.

Out of those Americans who have ever left a review on a website or mobile app, 57 percent have left a mixed review, while 54 percent have left a good review and only 21 percent have left a bad review. For Americans who have left a bad review the motivations are mixed:

• 88 percent want to warn other people of the product or service;
• 21 percent are hoping for a refund or help of some kind from the company implicated; and
• 23 percent think venting their frustration will leave them feeling less angry.

Out of Americans who have never left a bad review for a product or a service, more than one-third (36 percent) claim that they have never done so because they have never had a bad enough experience. Meanwhile 15 percent said they have never left a negative review because they do not like talking badly of things.

Nearly 8 out of 10 Americans (79 percent) at least sometimes check reviews before purchasing a product or service. Furthermore, 26 percent of Americans claim to always check reviews before purchasing a product or service.

Recently a Virginia judge ruled that the popular review site Yelp had to come forward with the identities of seven anonymous reviewers who had left negative reviews on the Yelp page of Hadeed Carpet Cleaning Services in Alexandria, Virginia. The owners of the store claimed these unhappy reviewers had never been customers of the stores, and had therefore written false reviews.

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