As many as 65% of Americans have used AI search, but only 15% say they trust it, according to Morning Consult research cited by Search Engine Land.
This lack of trust sentiment is bolstered with the fact that 72% believe that AI platforms should always identify where their information comes from.
And even though more people are now using AI to find businesses, the answers they get still have to come from somewhere.
Reviews are now becoming part of that mix.
Google may be the first place many people think of for local business reviews, but Yelp is now bringing its own data directly into ChatGPT.
This comes after Yelp has agreed to license its reviews, ratings, photos, and business information to OpenAI, which gives ChatGPT access to real-time Yelp data when answering local searches.
As reviews and customer discussions find new audiences through AI search, businesses may have less control over where reputation problems surface.
Global online reputation management company, Erase.com works further upstream by helping businesses and individuals address harmful reviews and other online content at the source.
The company's marketing and brand manager, Victoria Marshall, explains that businesses need to catch those problems earlier.
"A review doesn't have to go viral to become a problem anymore, and could sit on a platform for months and then show up when someone asks an AI assistant about your business," Marshall says.
"If you're only looking for problems once they reach search or ChatGPT, you're already late."
Online Reviews Are Reaching Customers Through AI Search
Someone asking ChatGPT where to eat, which contractor to hire, or which local service to use can now come across Yelp reviews without ever going to Yelp.
Reviews play a major role in how people choose local businesses, with 97% of consumers checking online reviews about local businesses before choosing where to spend their money, per Erase.com findings.
OpenAI also has a deal with Reddit, which gives it access to posts and discussions through Reddit's Data API.
"Most businesses keep an eye on the places where they know customers are talking about them, but the problem is that you don't know where that information might end up," Marshall adds.
"So the earlier you find it, the more time you have to deal with it."
Proactive Review Management Starts With Monitoring
Finding a problematic review early gives businesses more time to decide how to handle it.
A genuine complaint may need a response or an attempt to resolve the problem with the customer, with Erase.com adding that 56% of customers say that a company's response to a review can change their perception of that business.
Fake reviews, false information, harassment, impersonation, or exposed personal information can all be reasons to report a review.
But a bad review isn't automatically a removable one.
"Businesses sometimes see a negative review and immediately want it gone, but if someone genuinely had a bad experience, you have to deal with that." Marshall explains.
"Removal only makes sense when there's a problem with the review itself, not just because you don't like what it says."
Where Review Removal Fits Into Online Reputation Management
While a review can be removed, other complaints or discussions about the business may still be sitting elsewhere.
And if the same complaint keeps appearing across different platforms, the problem may be bigger than a single review.
Removing individual posts won't address whatever is causing customers to keep raising it.
Professional reputation management can help businesses keep track of those conversations and spot problems that are showing up across more than one source.
"When you start seeing the same complaint in different places, that's when you need to ask why it keeps happening," Marshall says.
"Reputation management can show you where the problem is coming from, but the business still has to deal with the underlying issues that’s causing it."
AI Search Is Bringing Online Reviews Closer to a Purchase
Yelp's Request a Quote feature is also expected to come to ChatGPT, which will allow users to contact local service providers without leaving the conversation.
For instance, someone looking for a contractor could ask ChatGPT for recommendations, see what Yelp says about those businesses, and request a quote in the same conversation.
The difficult part for businesses is measuring the customers who never make contact. A prospect who rules out a company after seeing its reviews in an AI answer may leave no lead, abandoned form, or other obvious sign of what changed their mind.
"By the time someone contacts your business, they may have already seen the reviews and made up their mind about you," Marshall concludes.
"You might never know how many people decided not to get in touch because of something they found first. That's why waiting for a reputation problem to affect leads or sales is too late."
A business can't choose which third-party sources an AI platform will use.
But does it know what those sources already say before its next customer asks?
