News

Restaurants most affected by dirty reviews online

A new Harris Poll conducted by Cintas Corporation found that consumers take online reviews seriously, especially reviews about the cleanliness of a business.

June 10, 2015

A new Harris Poll conducted by Cintas Corporation found that consumers take online reviews seriously, especially reviews about the cleanliness of a business. The survey, conducted online by Harris Poll for Cintas from April 9 – 13 among 2,023 adults ages 18 and older, revealed that 85 percent of respondents would not patronize businesses with negative reviews online regarding cleanliness. Restaurants (75 percent) and hotels (70 percent) ranked at the top of businesses where cleanliness most affected buying habits.

"With the increased use of consumer review sites, consumers form a perception of a business long before they set foot in the door," Senior Director of Marketing Dave Mesko, Cintas Corporation, said in a statement. "This study shows that if your business is dirty and someone mentions that in an online review, it will have a negative impact on your bottom line."

The top five businesses affected by negative online reviews include:

• Restaurant: 75 percent
• Hotel: 70 percent
• Doctor's office: 68 percent
• Hospital: 67 percent
• Hair/Nail Salon: 56 percent

Respondents also listed grocery stores, convenience stores, retail stores, entertainment parks and gas stations as businesses that would lose their patronage due to negative cleanliness reviews.

The study factored in gender as a variable impacting buying habits and found that women are less likely to do business with most types of facilities receiving dirty reviews. Of female respondents, 81 percent would not visit a restaurant with reported cleanliness issues while only 70 percent of men said the same.

Respondents with children in the household are also less likely to patronize any business considered unsanitary online.

"This study reaffirms that patrons put a premium on the cleanliness of a business," Mesko added. "To stay competitive, organizations should put cleaning strategies in place to maintain their facilities at peak cleanliness levels no matter the time of day. This will help improve the opportunity for a positive guest experience---and online review."