Brands Caught Astroturfing Risk Losing Mojo with Customers, Fans

Have you ever considered astroturfing online reviews? If the answer is “yes,” then you may want to reconsider.

Astroturfing is a social media, marketing, or public relations campaign that is formally planned by an organization or agency, but is disguised as spontaneous grassroots behavior. In other words, sometimes reviews expressed within online communities are coming not from legitimate, sharing consumers, but rather from hired posters.

A recent survey by R2integrated (R2i), found that most marketers believe that astroturfing of online reviews occurs, that the practice is wrong, and, most importantly, may stop buying from a brand if they learned that the brand was doing it.

When R2i asked 284 marketing professionals from several leading industries about their attitudes toward astroturfing, more than 35 percent thought it “highly unethical,” and more than 42 percent thought it “unprofessional.” Nearly 85 percent of respondents agree that the proliferation of social media has increased the practice of astroturfing, and more than 87 percent of respondents believe that companies plant reviews.

In terms of buying behavior, 49 percent of respondents indicated that online reviews influenced their purchasing decisions “most or all of the time.” Nearly the same percentage indicated “sometimes.” When asked if they would stop buying from a brand if they found that the brand had planted reviews, nine percent checked “yes,” 63 percent indicated “maybe, it depends,” while 28 percent checked “not if I liked their products.”

It is clear that online peer-to-peer recommendations play an important role in the buying decisions of marketers as consumers, and that they are sensitive about the authenticity of reviews. Because fraudulent reviews can greatly impact buying behavior, brands have to be completely honest and transparent with their information sharing, and keep a close eye on their social media, marketing, and PR outsourcing if they intend to retain customer trust or attract new customers.

What do you think about astroturfing? How can brands best benefit from outsourced social media services while remaining honest and transparent?