How Reviews help you source trust and quality on an On-Demand Platform: Part 7/8 of the User Journey Series

This is the seventh part of an 8 part series called ‘User Journey on an On-Demand Business Platform’

Trust is a key concern for anyone on a virtual platform. Users on your platform require a way to gauge the reputation of the service providers and take decisions based on the experiences of other users. Conversely, service providers also need to know that quality of customers coming on the platform is good enough for them to stick to the platform. This calls for a feedback flow that lets both stakeholders review each other and bridges the gap between word-of-mouth and online reviews.

Reviews to curate demand and supply

Reviews can be curated internally or externally on a platform.

Internal Curation : It aims to control the quality of the demand i.e of the customer. Service providers can rate the customers on a scale and justify their ratings with comments or reviews.

For example, Uber lets drivers rate their customers as they believe an Uber trip should be a good experience for drivers too – drivers shouldn’t have to deal with aggressive, violent, or disrespectful riders. Passenger rating is so important that you will face great difficulty finding a cab on a busy day if you are rated low consistently.

External Curation : It aims to control the quality of the supply. Users can rate service providers and write reviews, enabling them to elaborate on their experiences, which can be especially helpful in businesses where the offering is not standardised. Often, such businesses also allow customers to rate the service providers on various parameters.

For example, AirBnB guests are asked to submit ratings for their accommodation for parameters like Accuracy, Communication, Cleanliness, Location, Check In, Value. This gives a more informative breakdown to a potential guest. Friends or guests can also write ‘references’ for hosts, detailing the qualities of the host.

Reviews and Ratings for the Platform

There should be a provision for users to provide feedback about the platform itself, so that it can be incorporated to improve the stickiness of service providers and customers on the platform.

For example, an on demand laundry service platform will not only ask for a user’s satisfaction levels with the quality of the wash (ratings for the service provider) but also if the delivery was prompt (ratings for the platform). Users could also be asked to rate their experience with a feature or a third party integration on the platform, enabling platform owners to identify and correct any problems.

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