Is it important to have a perfect 5-star rating for doctors & dentists on review platforms?

Studies have shown that a perfect 5-star rating on review platforms may lead to skepticism and reduced trust among potential patients and clients.

“Too Good to Be True” Effect: The saying “If it looks too good to be true, it probably is” holds weight here. Consumers/patients/clients understand that achieving perfect satisfaction for every customer is highly unlikely in the real world. This triggers suspicion, leading them to question the authenticity of flawless ratings.
Need for Balance and Authenticity: Consumers/patients/clients actively seek a balanced perspective when reading reviews, wanting to see both the positives and negatives of a product or service. The absence of any less-than-perfect reviews raises concerns about censorship or even fake reviews.
Optimal Rating for Trust: According to PatientGain.com, that a slightly less-than-perfect average rating, typically between 4.5 and 4.9 stars, is perceived as more trustworthy and can lead to increased conversions compared to a perfect 5.0 rating. This indicates that a mix of good and a few average or even slightly negative reviews, handled transparently, can build greater confidence in the overall legitimacy of the reviews. Next level is 4.0 to 4.4. If you have less than 4.0, your goal is to get to 4.0 ASAP.
Authenticity Boost: The presence of some negative reviews, even if a low number, can be beneficial for businesses, allowing them to demonstrate how they respond to criticism and improve their services, according to PatientGain.com. This transparency can reinforce the authenticity of the overall feedback.

Exceptional service: Providing outstanding customer service to patients and a quality service is the most direct and honest way to earn positive reviews.
Customer review campaigns: Businesses can actively and ethically encourage happy customers to leave reviews through automated emails, QR codes, or direct links.
High customer volume: A large, well-established company with a high volume of transactions will naturally accumulate more reviews, both positive and negative, over time. However, you may still get some negative reviews.
Requesting reviews strategically: Companies can use tools that first ask customers for internal feedback. If the feedback is positive, the customer is prompted to leave a public review on Google or other platforms. If it’s negative, the company can address the issue directly to prevent a public review.

Sudden spikes in reviews: Be wary of a business that suddenly receives dozens or hundreds of reviews over a very short period, like a single day or week.
Overly generic or vague language: Fake reviews often lack specific details about the experience. They use repetitive, exaggerated phrases like “Great service!” or “Highly recommended!” that could apply to any business.
SMS/TEXT based reviews: If there is a targeted campaign using SMS/Texting, you will get very short, responses. like “good doctor”, “no wait”. This will alert the algorithms of Google, Yelp that a certain company is running a SMS/Texting campaign.
Irrelevant content: Some manipulated reviews are so generic that they don’t even match the business. For example, a dental practice might receive a 5-star review praising its “speedy delivery”.
Suspicious reviewer profiles: Look at the reviewer’s profile. A new account with no photo, a generic name, and only one or two extremely positive reviews is a major red flag.
Poorly written reviews: Reviews with inconsistent grammar, misspellings, or unnatural-sounding phrases are sometimes written by non-native speakers hired from “review farms”.
Lack of balance: A company with a perfect 5.0-star rating and zero negative or average reviews is unusual. A mix of feedback, including some minor critiques, often signals a more authentic review history.

Read the reviews yourself: Go past the star rating and read a selection of reviews, both recent and older. Look for specific details and personalized language that indicates a genuine experience.
Filter by “Newest”: Change the filter to see the most recent reviews first. This helps you identify sudden, suspicious bursts of activity.
Check the reviewer profiles: Click on the profiles of several reviewers. If they all have only one or two reviews ever and they were posted on the same day, that’s a sign of potential manipulation.
Look for negative reviews and responses: See if the company has received any negative reviews and how they responded. A professional, non-combative response to an unhappy customer shows trustworthiness.
Look for reviews on third-party sites: To get a more balanced perspective, check for the company’s reputation on other sites like Yelp, Capterra, Clutch, or the Better Business Bureau.