The following "article" is republished from TheOnion.com. If you're not familiar with that site, it's a kind of "Weekly World News" made-up-news humor site, though they often are stumbling onto some genuine truths with their farce. Case in point regarding online reputation:
COLUMBUS, OH—Unequipped with a smartphone or any other way to access a consensus opinion on the restaurant’s food and service, local woman Tanya Shaw reportedly drew a deep, resolved breath earlier today as she bravely entered Madam Jane’s Thai Cuisine without first looking it up online. “Well, I haven’t pored over the menu on the restaurant’s website, read the first 20 Yelp ratings, or scanned any online reviews from blogs or newspapers, but here we go,” Shaw said to herself as she valiantly opened the door of the small Thai café, knowing she could very well be subjecting herself to a meal that got a “Like It” rating of 40 percent on Urbanspoon. “Christ, I haven’t even seen a single picture of the food before on someone’s Tumblr page. I’m flying totally blind here.” At press time, Shaw had ordered an appetizer and an entrée based purely on their menu descriptions, having no idea if either item had made Zagat.com’s list of “Signature Dishes.”
Haha. And yet, this tongue-in-cheek article is hinting at an underlying reality that is simply becoming a sign of the times: People search online for businesses – yes, including your business – all the time.
If you are not getting found online, you're missing out on a lot of good business. But, if you're being found, and the reviews are terrible, then your business may be dying. People do check reviews. I'm in the review business, and I've seen some absolute train-wrecks. I mean business killing reviews.
Just yesterday I was reading the reviews for a masseuse, and all three reviews were 1 star reviews, saying things like the customers were told to pre-pay, and then when they showed up there was nobody there. A third review of the same company came from a woman who said that the masseuse got ... a little to friendly for her tastes.
Now, would you ever even consider going there (or sending your spouse or a friend there) as a gift? Heck no!
That's the power of a negative online reputation.
