How to read online reviews

Online reviews are now part of almost every search for a local business. They can be genuinely useful: a pattern of comments from real customers about punctuality, tidiness or how problems were handled is hard to get any other way. But reviews can also mislead, through fake posts, filtered selections or simply small numbers. This guide explains how to read them with a clear head.

Look past the star rating

An average rating squeezes very different experiences into one number. A business with 4.6 stars from 400 reviews and one with 5.0 from six reviews are not comparable, and neither tells you whether the business is good at your particular kind of job.

Before you look at the average, check:

• How many reviews there are. A handful of reviews can be swung by one unusual job or one enthusiastic friend.
• How recent they are. A business can change hands, staff or standards. Reviews from the last year or two matter most.
• What jobs they describe. A plumber with glowing reviews for blocked drains may not have much experience with hot water systems.
• Where they are. Compare reviews on two or three platforms. A business with excellent reviews in one place and poor ones elsewhere is worth a closer look.

Read the middle and the bottom

The most informative reviews are often the three-star ones. They tend to be specific: the work was good but the job ran late, or the price went up without warning. One-star reviews can be revealing too, though they sometimes reflect a misunderstanding or a bad day rather than a pattern.

What you're looking for is repetition. One complaint about a missed appointment is noise. Five complaints about missed appointments over a year is a signal.

Watch how the business responds

A business's replies to reviews are a preview of how it will treat you if something goes wrong. Good responses are calm, specific and constructive: they acknowledge the problem, explain what happened and say what was done about it. Responses that attack the reviewer, reveal private details or dismiss every criticism are a warning sign.

Not replying at all isn't necessarily a bad sign. Many small businesses don't have time. But if a business replies warmly to every five-star review and ignores every complaint, that tells you something too.

Signs a review might not be genuine

No single sign proves a review is fake, but clusters of these are worth noticing:

• many five-star reviews posted within a few days, especially for a new listing;
• reviews that are vague and generic ("Great service, highly recommend!") with no detail about the job;
• several reviews using the same unusual phrases;
• reviewer profiles with no other activity, or reviews of businesses across the country on the same day;
• reviews that mention the business's full name and suburb repeatedly, as if written for search engines;
• a sudden burst of one-star reviews from accounts with no history, which can be an attack by a competitor.

What the law says

Australian consumer law applies to reviews. According to the ACCC, it is illegal for a business to create fake or misleading reviews, or to arrange for someone else to do it. That includes writing reviews of its own business, paying for positive reviews it hasn't disclosed, or posting fake negative reviews about competitors.

The ACCC also says that suppressing, editing or removing genuine negative reviews can create a misleading impression. A business that only shows its best reviews on its website, while presenting them as representative, may be misleading customers.

On incentives, business.gov.au says that if a business offers something in return for a review, such as a discount or a prize draw entry, it should offer it for positive and negative reviews alike, and disclose the incentive. A review written in exchange for a free product or service without that being disclosed can mislead.

Our guide to fake reviews and the law covers these rules in more detail, including what businesses can and can't do.

Reviews on a business's own website

Testimonials on a business's own website are chosen by the business. That's fine, and they can be useful for understanding the type of work it does, but they aren't a balanced sample. Give independent platforms more weight, and if a testimonial names a customer, it's reasonable to ask whether you can speak to a recent client yourself.

Putting reviews in context

Reviews are one input among several. A business with modest reviews but a current licence, an active ABN, a clear written quote and good answers to your questions may be a better choice than one with perfect stars and none of the above.

Try writing down the two or three things that reviewers consistently praise and criticise for each business on your shortlist. Then use those as questions when you call. For example, if several reviews mention jobs running late, ask how the business handles scheduling and what happens if a job overruns.

Writing a useful review yourself

When you've had work done, a good review helps other people make better decisions. The most useful reviews:

• say what the job was and roughly when;
• describe what went well and what didn't, specifically;
• mention how any problems were handled;
• stick to your own experience and avoid guesses about motives.

Keep it factual and fair. If you had a dispute, it's usually best to try to resolve it with the business first; our guide to resolving disputes explains the steps.

Reporting a review

If you believe a review is fake, report it to the platform first. Most have a reporting tool and rules about reviews. You can also report fake or misleading reviews to the ACCC, which uses reports to inform its compliance and enforcement work. The ACCC says it doesn't resolve individual complaints, but reports help it see where problems are widespread.

Photos in reviews

Reviews with photos of the finished work can be especially useful. They show the standard of finish, the kind of jobs the business takes on and sometimes how tidy the site was left. Be aware that photos can be reused or taken from elsewhere, so treat them as one piece of evidence rather than proof.

Reviews for new businesses

A new business may have only a handful of reviews, or none at all. That isn't a reason to rule it out. Everyone starts somewhere, and a new business may be especially keen to do good work. In that case, lean more heavily on the other checks: the ABN, any licence, a clear written quote and how well the business answers your questions. You might also ask whether it can show you photos of recent work or put you in touch with a previous customer.

Ask for references

For larger jobs, it's reasonable to ask a business for one or two recent customers you can speak to, ideally for work similar to yours. A short phone call with a previous customer can tell you more than dozens of online reviews: whether the job ran to time and budget, how variations were handled and whether they'd hire the business again.

Key points

• Look at the number, recency and spread of reviews, not just the average.
• Three-star reviews are often the most specific and useful.
• How a business replies to criticism is a preview of how it treats customers.
• Fake or misleading reviews are illegal, and so is misleadingly suppressing genuine negative ones.
• Incentives for reviews should apply to positive and negative reviews alike and be disclosed.