Latest news with #DeepakSirwani
Business Mayor
20-05-2025
- Science
- Business Mayor
Stars or numbers? How rating formats change consumer behavior
What's the difference between a product rating of 3.5 displayed with stars versus standard numerals? It might very well be the difference between a 4 and a 3 rating in the eyes of the consumer, according to new marketing research from the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business. In six experiments, the researchers found that consumers tend to overestimate fractional star ratings and underestimate fractional numerals. In either case, the ratings can be misleading, potentially causing a company to unknowingly overpromise and underdeliver — or sell its own product short. 'Overestimating Stars, Underestimating Numbers: The Hidden Impact of Rating Formats,' was published May 15 in the Journal of Marketing Research . 'When these pictures communicate a fractional number — say 3.5, where there are three full stars and one-half star — our brain automatically completes this half picture,' said first author Deepak Sirwani, now an assistant professor in the Marketing and Behavioural Science Division at the University of British Columbia. 'But when the same rating is communicated using numbers, we focus on the left digit, which is '3,' and that's why 3.5 feels more like a 3 than a 4. That's why we underestimate it.' According to Manoj Thomas, a professor of management at Cornell University, this work is really about the human brain and how it processes images and standard Arabic numerals. 'Our results suggest that the brain representations that are activated when you process stars are completely different from the brain representations that are activated when you process Arabic numerals. That realization was the a-ha! moment,' Thomas said. 'Most people don't realize that, but it's a huge difference.' The researchers found consistent results across all six experiments they ran. In study 1, for example, they sought to measure the perceived accuracy of ratings using stars versus numerals. A total of 616 participants were randomly assigned to one of three experiment conditions based on the type of rating symbol used: stars; numerals; or both. Participants were presented with 17 numeric ratings, from 1 to 5, in increments of 0.25, one at a time and in random order, and were asked to estimate the position of each rating on an unmarked horizontal line, with endpoints 1 and 5. The participants consistently overestimated the magnitude of fractional star ratings while underestimating the magnitude of the numeric ratings. The group said their findings demonstrate that prevalent rating formats are misleading, highlighting the need for new industry standards. 'What makes this research powerful is the importance of ratings in the current marketplace,' Sirwani said. 'Most of us do not buy anything without checking its rating nowadays, and rating has become as powerful a predictor of purchase as price, or brand or even recommendations from friends and family.' Other research, he said, has indicated that even a rating jump of 0.2 points can increase sales by up to 300%. 'We are showing,' he said, 'that sales could potentially increase by orders of magnitude by just showing stars instead of numbers.'
CBC
12-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
Star ratings can mislead shoppers and impact sales, UBC study shows
Social Sharing If you're deciding between two products, both rated a 3.5, but one shows the score with stars while the other uses plain numbers, odds are you'll pick the one with stars. That's the key finding from a recent study by the University of B.C. Sauder School of Business, which reveals that consumers consistently overestimate ratings shown as stars and underestimate the same values when shown as numbers. "Whenever I see a star rating, especially if it's a fractional one, which leads to incomplete star pictures like 3.5 or 3.7, I take a moment to ask myself, am I being fooled?" said Deepak Sirwani, an assistant professor at UBC Sauder and co-author of the study. When a product rating is shown using stars, a score like 3.5 is typically displayed as three full stars followed by a half-filled fourth star. WATCH | How different rating visuals can affect buyer perception: Are star-based rating systems more accurate than numerical ones? 2 days ago Duration 8:12 Consumers tend to round up when they use stars to rate products but round down when they use numbers, University of B.C. assistant professor Deepak Sirwani has found. His research shows sales may triple if companies used star ratings compared to numerical ones. Visually, this creates the impression of an incomplete image, says Sirwani. "So we tend to round up and complete the incomplete picture with the visual ratings," he explained during an interview with CBC's On The Coast. In contrast, numbers prompt consumers to fixate on the first digit — a phenomenon known as the "left-digit effect." "We read from left to right, especially in Western civilization and a lot of other civilizations, so we focus more on three in the number 3.5 … and round down." That gap in perception, according to the research, can have a massive effect. Impact on sales "When you show a product using a star rating, your sales might triple compared to the same rating shown using numbers," Sirwani said. But the study also warns that star ratings might lead to inflated expectations — and eventually, disappointed customers. "[Consumers] might feel they were over promised and under delivered so that may increase negative reviews," the study's co-author said. Researchers recommend using "visually complete stars" — ones that only show a star's filled-in part, not its overall border — to minimize bias. Vancouver-based retail strategist David Ian Gray called the findings "clever" and "unique." "I don't think it's anything we're consciously thinking about day-to-day," he told CBC News. "But reviews are incredibly influential on consumer behaviour, spending choices." Gray says brands hosting their own internal reviews might consider switching formats — though he cautions that many consumers look for third-party ratings to avoid bias. "There are a lot of websites with dubious reviews, possibly paid for," he said. "Consumers are looking for objectivity." Gray says studies such as UBC's can make people more alert. "I think consumers, when they hear about this, are going to be a little bit more conscious of how they're intuitively reacting, and maybe double-check their thinking." WATCH | Marketplace investigates fake reviews: Faking It 10 years ago Duration 22:28 Just about everyone checks online reviews before buying anything. But how much can you trust those reviews? We reveal how cheaters pull it off... and fake you out. The researchers note the study's implications stretch far beyond product reviews, stating that similar visual biases may impact how people interpret battery life on a phone, fuel gauges, fitness trackers, and safety ratings on vehicles, among other things. The study is calling for industry standards and regulatory guidelines, not only to level the playing field between retailers, but to ensure consumers aren't being misled — even accidentally.
