YourCareHome comments on the CMA's report on Online Reviews and Endorsements.

Too many organisations in healthcare and social care filter and game online reviews to put their own financial needs above the health needs of their potential customers.

Along with our sister site Hootvox, we welcome the recommendations made by the CMA and support their efforts to eliminate dishonest reviews and endorsements from the sector and the wider internet. Online reviews and endorsements play a crucial role for the majority of today’s digital consumers. This report and any enforcement actions that the CMA take against organisations who maliciously set out to mislead the consumer will be a welcome step towards making the internet a safer place for consumers.

Too many organisations in healthcare and social care filter and game online reviews to put their own financial needs above the health needs of their potential customers.

From the review collection methods which are purposefully designed towards positive bias to the broadcasting of manipulated reviews throughout media channels both online and offline, this industry along with many others needs cleaning up.

Mark Sadler founder of both YourCareHome and Hootvox says. “The CMA’s recommendations clearly detail what are, and what are not best practise methods for review and endorsement sites and they clearly seek to protect the consumer from businesses who intend to profit at the expense of their competition (who do not engage in dishonest practises) and at the expense of their customers. I’m looking forward to following the CMA over the coming months.”

Sadler adds “It’s nice to know that Hootvox is ahead of the curve and that we are ticking all of the right boxes for the CMA.”

Hootvox is a ‘Closed’ review service which care providers can use to survey their residents and their family members or even commissioners of care services. Hootvox provide the care provider with a plug-in so they can add genuine feedback to their own website and to other websites across the wider web.

Every customer gets surveyed, after moderation all reviews are published and cannot be filtered or gamed in any way.

Sadler adds "In social care there is potential for real harm to be caused by faked and filtered reviews and we are determined to make a real difference here. For this reason Hootvox costs just £20 per care home or home care location per year, and we will donate the £20 fee to The Starlight Children's Foundation." 

Please email: [email protected] for more informtion.

You can also contact @Hootvox on Twitter.

CMA - Competition and Markets Authority.