Correlation Between High Rankings in Consumer Review Websites & Businesses’ Revenues

A study conducted by Michael Luca, a professor of Harvard Business School, established a correlation between high rankings in consumer review websites and a businesses’ revenues. Dr. Luca took a close look at the restaurant industry of the city of Seattle and came to the conclusion that a single star attached to a profile of a leading online reviewing platform lead to an incredible 5% to 9% increase in revenues. He further found that there were considerably more restaurant reviews available online than could be found in traditional sources like Zagat or The Seattle Times.