Negative online reviews can hurt local businesses – here’s how
A bad online review can have serious repercussions for a local business.
Almost nine-in-10 (88%) of U.S. consumers have decided against purchasing from a local business after reading negative online reviews. A new study from LocalImpact, “The State of Online Reviews 2026,” also shows that reading reviews has become a near-universal habit as 92% of surveyed U.S. consumers have read an online review in the past year and 67% check reviews before making a purchase either often or every time.
Survey data also suggests consumers use star ratings to screen businesses before reading a single review. More than 78% of respondents won't consider a business with a rating below four stars, and close to three-in-10 (27%) only buy from businesses rated 4.5 stars or higher.
In addition, more than four-in-10 (43%) respondents read between four and six online reviews before making a purchase and nearly one-third read seven or more online reviews.
Looking at popular sources of online business reviews, Google was the overwhelming favorite among respondents (86%), well ahead of Yelp (34%), Facebook (28%) and Trustpilot (15%). Respondents also mentioned checking reviews on Amazon, Reddit and YouTube.
When a business receives a negative review, 70% of respondents expect it to reply within one to three days. Almost eight-in-10 (78%) respondents said a thoughtful response to a negative review made them more likely to trust a business.
The survey also examined consumer behavior in writing online business reviews:
- More than seven-in-10 (72%) respondents have left an online review for a business.
- Almost two-in-three (65%) respodnents say a great customer experience is their main motivation for leaving a review.
- More than one-third of online business reviews are written on the day of the purchase and most online business reviews are written within a week of the customer experience.
Fake reviews also have negative impact
Another recent survey from LocalImpact shows that 72% of U.S. local business owners have received a fake review in the past 12 months. About three-quarters of owners said fake reviews have hurt their business in some way. More than half (52%) report damage to their overall star rating, while 40% report meaningful time spent managing or responding to fake reviews and 33% report lost potential customers.
[READ MORE: Majority of small businesses say fake reviews have hurt them]
"Online reviews have become the front door of every local business,” said Vitaly Motuz, CEO of LocalImpact. “Consumers are checking ratings and reading multiple reviews before they ever walk in or call, which makes review management a core part of the sales process.”
“The State of Online Reviews 2026” was conducted for online reputation management platform LocalImpact in July 2026 through Pollfish. All 1,068 respondents were U.S. adults.
