Reading Google Reviews can be an excellent way to determine whether a hotel, restaurant, shop or other business is worth your time and money. But in recent years, I’ve also had some disappointing experiences with business that that have a good overall rating. It’s little secret that many businesses’ are padded with fake reviews, but Google Reviews are still a useful tool. Here are some things to be mindful of to increase the chances that experiences meet your expectations.
Read the Lowest Reviews
If a business has an overall 4.7 out of 5 rating on Google reviews, they have a high percentage of good reviews. But how many of them are fake? A good indicator is to start by reading the lowest reviews after reading a couple listed as most relevant. This may seem negative, but you want to check if there are consistent issues that multiple people complain about – whether that’s an uncomfortable hotel room or low quality food or service in a restaurant.
If I notice a persistent pattern of negative Google reviews that’s obviously a red flag. If there are many 1 star reviews with people complaining about bad food, and even sharing photos of food that looks unappealing, you can be pretty certain what to expect, regardless of the businesses’ overall rating on Google Reviews.
Notice the Response of Businesses to Bad Reviews
Another potential red flag is when businesses consistently respond to their bad reviews in an accusatory or condescending way, refusing to accept any blame for a mishap. But this one is less clear cut. The business may generally be solid, but if there is an issue, you can probably expect a subpar resolution to your problem. So understand that going in.
Of course, there are also some ridiculous negative reviews, where the reviewer is more problematic than the business. These are often easy to spot with too many narcissistic personal details, not enough actual details about the experience or simply unrealistic expectations.
Some negative reviews can even be rather comical, both in writing and/or their photos. I’ve definitely enjoyed some laughs reading certain negative reviews over the years. Some people are so outlandish that I’ll even read through their other negative reviews just for kicks.
We have all have bad days and it’s good to cut each other some slack. Mistakes happen. But it is better when the mistakes are rarer. Businesses should accept some accountability and actually attempt to rectify problems with their customers, rather than having an automatic canned bot response or overly negative reply.
Notice the Number of Google Reviews a Business Has
I also like to look at the overall number of reviews a business has. If I see that a business has thousands of reviews, I’ll often just skip over it in a city. Most businesses will simply not get thousands of organic reviews. So the shear volume of reviews is a red flag in most cases. The exception to this is famous and iconic places that are extremely popular – but that is not most businesses.
Businesses can attain fake positive reviews through companies who sell a service. They can also receive them by offering customers freebies, like a free appetizer or drink in exchange for a positive review. The former is worse, but the latter can also help gloss over some issues with a business.
This is an interesting excerpt from Guardian contributor Jasper Jolly, who was paid by a scam company to write fake reviews:
“The channels post a steady stream of “work” from 8am to 7pm UK time: up to 14 reviews, paid initially at $5 per review. These are interspersed with “business tasks”, where the worker sends cryptocurrency, and the employers send back the same amount with a healthy commission added on top. Since 12 March, the channel had published nearly 6,000 posts asking for fake reviews.”
Notice How Many Google Reviews the Reviewer has Written
Sometimes you read something along the lines of “wow, this is simply the best experience and these are the best people and you simply must go here!” Then you notice that this person has only left one or two reviews. In these cases, it’s likely the business wrote the review themselves. This is pretty comical when they make it too obvious.
But there are also some that are more subtle. Sometimes a positive review is less obviously fake, and the reviewer has written around 5 or 6 reviews (also numbers that can be a red flag). These reviews can be authentic, but many times the reviews are fake.
On the flip side, someone who has written too many Google reviews can also leave some doubt regarding authenticity. Maybe their review is legitimate, or maybe they were incentivized by direct payment and/or company freebies.
If someone seems like an authentic person, and they’ have’ve left around 30-50 reviews varying from good to bad across other businesses, there’s a solid chance that their review is based on their actual experience. Pay a little closer attention to these types of reviewers. Particularly if you are looking to stay at a small, independently run hotel or bed and breakfast. You may be spending a lot of time there during a trip. So the experience can make or break an experience somewhere!
Pay Special Attention to Photos in Google Reviews
Yes, photos can be deceiving. Especially in our current age of Instagram, TikTok and a volume of social media channels that can be difficult to keep up with. Overly glossy photos taken by influencers and bloggers, are not always trustworthy. I have no issue calling that out.
But if you scroll through Google reviews of a business, and see many problematic photos, that is obviously a red flag. This is another reason why it is important to skim through the lowest reviews of a business. Businesses cannot hide their problems with fake positive reviews if you take some moments to scan their negative reviews specifically.
Occasionally, photos are less obvious. Sometimes there is a range of good and bad photos that can leave some ambiguity. Sometimes the reviewer is being overly particularly about a business. If the good reviews far exceed a few bad reviews, it’s a reasonable bet that the experience can meet expectations.
Check Other Platforms
For hotels, I usually start my search on booking.com and then check Agoda to compare prices. When I come across a hotel that piques my interest, I check average reviews on those sites first. Then I triple check the business on Google Reviews. If I’m torn between a few properties, I’ll often make a choice based on the best average of the three platforms. It’s a strategy that usually leads to a satisfactory experience.
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