In October 1995, roughly three months after Amazon launched as an online bookstore, the concept of displaying customer reviews alongside a product was so novel that the company felt compelled to explain the feature in a press release: “Amazon.com allows readers to share their thoughts on particular books and exchange ideas with other readers around the world on its users’ reviews page.”
Today, these reviews have moved beyond mere ubiquity for retail brands; they have become an obsession. Companies are constantly strategizing on how to generate more feedback, particularly those coveted four- or five-star ratings. When a product receives one-star reviews, brands must decide whether to bury them or post cheerful responses. Furthermore, when products accumulate a large volume of reviews—including negative ones—can that actually decrease the likelihood of those items being returned?
While modern consumers may not rely on the kindness of strangers as much as Blanche DuBois, they certainly depend on their opinions. According to a 2025 survey by PowerReviews, a ratings and reviews technology firm, 96% of consumers consider ratings and reviews when making purchase decisions, a figure significantly higher than those who prioritize recommendations from friends and family (72%) or television advertisements (11%).
The survey also revealed that 95% of shoppers regularly read reviews, and when a product lacks any online feedback, 57% of consumers say, “Fuhgeddaboudit,” and choose not to buy it.
Consumers are drawn to positive reviews, but they are wary of perfection. A five-star average rating strikes 46% of shoppers as suspicious, particularly among Gen Z, 53% of whom do not trust perfect ratings
A 2022 analysis by PowerReviews discovered that items with a perfect 5.0 rating had a conversion rate of 3.1%, which is roughly equivalent to products rated between 3.0 and 3.49. The sweet spot for conversion was a rating of 4.75–4.99, which saw a 4.9% conversion rate, while products rated 4.25–4.49 achieved a 4.5% rate.
Given the immense influence of high ratings, it is unsurprising that fake reviews have become a major issue. Yelp has been fighting this trend on several fronts. In its annual Trust & Safety report, Yelp stated that it filtered out nearly 500,000 suspected AI-generated reviews in 2025. The platform also flagged business pages that it caught compensating reviewers with cash or free merchandise in exchange for positive feedback.
Amazon reported that its legal efforts in 2025 successfully shut down more than 100 websites that facilitated fake review scams targeting its store. In total, the company claims it blocked “hundreds of millions” of reviews it deemed fraudulent.
Under FTC regulations, companies are permitted to offer incentives for reviews, provided they do not condition those incentives on a positive rating, and such arrangements must be clearly disclosed.
When products receive negative feedback, some brands have discovered that responding directly is more effective than simply hoping the bad reviews are overshadowed by positive ones.
Supercheap Auto, an Australian car-parts retailer, found that online shoppers who read one- or two-star reviews were 32% more likely to purchase the product if the retailer had posted a response, according to a case study from Bazaarvoice, a platform for customer reviews and user-generated content.
Beyond driving sales, a high volume of detailed reviews may help retailers mitigate the cost of returns.
More than 8 in 10 shoppers (84%) indicated that more detailed reviews could have helped them avoid a return, according to a 2025 survey by Yotpo, an e-commerce reviews and loyalty platform.
“Review context is especially critical in high-return categories where touch, texture, and fit are key,” the report stated. “Without the sensory cues of an in-store experience, shoppers lean on the real-world insights of others to make informed decisions.”
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, told an audience at Southern Methodist University in 2018 that a publisher once sent him a letter suggesting that Amazon should only publish positive book reviews, arguing that it would boost sales.
“I don’t actually believe that,” Bezos told the audience. “I don’t think we make money when we sell something. We make money when we help someone make a purchase decision…If you think about it that way, you want the negative reviews too.”
