Reviewing is the new Advertising
In a desperate search for simple truth in a chaotic media environment characterized by information overload, and relentless spin, consumers are turning to 'reviews' as their best hope of finding the facts necessary to make decisions. In the end we trust our peers (though they may be strangers) more than we trust the companies that are selling the products and services we are seeking to buy.
There are many more research studies, findings, dissertations, and so on that confirm the same fact: reviewing is the new advertising. This shouldn't come as a surprise: just as with other trends, what's unfolding now is a 'forever need' among consumers, one that's now being satisfied in a superior and previously unattainable fashion. In this case, the need is for trusted advice and recommendations--for feeling in control, for knowing the facts, for avoiding mistakes and disappointments--in order to make that perfect purchase. Which has become even more pressing as choice-overload continues: never before was there so much to choose from, in mature consumer societies, and thus such a need for reviews.
