The Review Site User’s Bill of Rights

1. The right to freely compare products
2. The right to read reviews from users like you
3. The right to read reviews from real people
4. The right to do research without being treated as a “lead” the first time you visit a review site
5. The right to know where reviews come from
6. The right to know that what you see isn’t affected by what vendors pay
7. The right to know that “experts” you engage with are actually software experts, not conversion experts
8. The right to know who gets paid and how
9. The right to know about conflicts of interest
10. The right to share your story

Why do Review Site Users Need These Rights?

The rise of review sites for business software offers much promise – and a lot of potential pitfalls. In our latest research on the disconnect between buyers and vendors, we’ve found that vendor-provided sources are no longer in the top 5 resources buyers are using during their self-serve journey. So, what are they looking for instead?

Buyers are relying more on the opinion of software users like themselves and less on analysts who lack a user’s hands-on perspective. They’re researching user reviews, communities and forums, pricing information, and for product demos or free trials. 

This has helped marketers discover that truth sells, and make a shift towards embracing the voice of the customer. And, vendors who understand that letting buyers get the full picture in advance are increasing transparency on product information.

There have been downsides, though – just as the documentary Billion Dollar Bully showcases the potential downside of consumer review sites, business technology review sites can have issues as well. Despite never having submitted any information, buyers can still be slammed by a vendor’s ads minutes after reading reviews of that vendor’s competitor. Buyers can be pressured by tactics that force them onto a hamster wheel of high-velocity, low-quality review generation just to maintain the “momentum” needed to stay in the upper right quadrant of a grid. (That creates a perverse incentive to avoid suppressing fraudulent reviews, too).

In a market that should be based on truth and transparency, the users of review sites often have little insight into how the review site makes money, how “real” the reviews are, and what factors might affect which reviews they see.

So, to help you better understand review sites, our decisioning platform, and how you should be treated as a user, we’ve crafted a Review Site User’s Bill of Rights.

The Review Site User’s Bill of Rights

1. You have the right to freely compare products without giving up your firstborn (or your valuable information). Sure, it’s common for review sites (or any site) to ask for some information in exchange for a downloadable asset of value, and we’re all aware of what trade we’re making there. But you shouldn’t have to log in just to read reviews, and you certainly shouldn’t have to pay for an analyst firm subscription just to get the full story from other users. 

2. You have the right to read reviews from users like you. Some review sites are 100% anonymous – you can’t really call it peer insights if you can’t see whether people are actually your peers. Some users will want to keep their information private, but you still have the right to know that they’ve been vetted as a real person and as an actual user of the product (more on that in #3). Beyond that, you should be able to at least know a bit about their role, company, and industry to ensure that their feedback is relevant to you.

3. You have the right to read reviews from real people. The screenshot below is from a review site. Look close – that’s actor Jake Gyllenhaal! Not sure why he lists his name as Jean Carlos… but you’ll be relieved to know he’s a validated reviewer and a verified current user of this B2B product, according to the review site. Because they’re using an actor’s image, this one is easy to tell that this is not a vetted review.

You have the right, plain and simple, to trust that you’re reading reviews from real people, not scammers. Yes, review sites offer incentives, which doesn’t skew results, but will attract scammers. So you have to have a process to remove them. (That’s why, at TrustRadius, we reject 47% of reviews).

4. You have the right to do research without being treated as a “lead” the first time you hit the review site. Look, we all understand cookies, retargeting, and the fact that review sites need to make money just like any business. But there’s a right way and a wrong way to deal with the fact that buyers are in the market and vendors are intent on reaching those buyers.

When browsing a page or two on a review site and immediately getting outreach from multiple vendors saying “we saw that you were in the market…” there seems to be a misunderstanding of the concept of “buyer intent.” When you submit information on a review site to get a price quote from one vendor and immediately find yourself being targeted by all the others, you feel like your trust has been abused. The right way to do this involves ensuring that the interests of potential buyers and vendors are aligned.

As a review site user, you deserve an experience that weighs your interests in a balance with those of vendors. Not one that plays you two against each other.

5. You have the right to know where reviews come from. Are there incentives in play? Was the review sourced organically, or was the user sent by the vendor? Has the reviewer written tons of other reviews, or only one? None of this should be hidden from you –  at most, it should all be a click away.

6. You have the right to know that what you see isn’t affected by what vendors pay. One monetization path is to treat a review site like an ad platform, presenting results in a rank order based on what vendors pay per click. That may optimize revenue for the site, but it means that, as a visitor, you’re being merchandised to rather than informed. Any promise of neutrality is gone, and you’ll be steered to the most profitable product for the site operator, rather than the one that best fits your needs. 

7. You have the right to know that any “experts” you engage with are experts in giving advice about software, rather than experts in turning you into a lead. Buying technology is complex, and you may indeed want to engage with the site for a helpful consultation. But what if you submit a request for pricing or a consultation, and the result is a phone call from someone who’s clearly a lead qualification representative? It happens, but it’s not helpful to the site visitor. It’s deceptive, and turns warm leads, cold.

8. You have the right to know who gets paid and how. If the reviewer was paid an incentive, you should know that. Additionally, how does the review site make money?

• Do they sell ads – and if so, are they clearly identified as ads?
• Do they practice ‘traffic arbitrage’, capturing traffic and selling it back to the vendors as leads?
• Are vendors paying for preferred placement?
• Are vendors pressured into sourcing reviews with the implication that they will generate better placement in analyst reports and Quadrants?

You have a right to know, and the information may not be reliable if the site isn’t willing to disclose it. On a reliable review site, there should be information or a page somewhere like this: About TrustRadius Reviews — Frequently Asked Questions.

9. You have the right to know about conflicts of interest. This is closely related to #8. Can a person who works for a company write an objective review of that company’s product? Great hypothetical question. Many would find it difficult to trust that review. So review sites need to at least disclose conflicts of interest, and probably ought to reject those reviews, even if they’re well-intentioned.

10. You have the right to share your story. You won’t agree with every review – this is about honestly sharing perspectives and experiences, not about any one reviewer having a lock on the truth. But you have the right to share your perspective, too. If you’re a user, you have the right to leave your own review, and not have it hidden because the vendor didn’t like it and paid the review site to hide it. As a vendor, you have the right to comment on reviews if you think reviewers miss an important point.

Know your review site rights!

Know your rights! Even if you’re using a review site as a free user, your presence as a member of that community provides a great deal of value to the review site, to other buyers, and to the vendors who engage with the site. So, look at review sites carefully and skeptically, and ensure that they’re serving your needs by treating you with the respect and the lack of pay-to-play bias that you deserve.