A survey by Aruru, a handmade-goods marketplace operated by SYSTEM RESEARCH CO.,LTD., found that nearly 60% of people check negative reviews and disadvantages before purchasing a product they want, and that the presence or absence of drawbacks influences their purchase decisions.
SYSTEM RESEARCH CO.,LTD. conducted a survey on pre-purchase search behavior through Aruru, its handmade-goods marketplace, targeting men and women aged 20–59 nationwide, and received 250 valid responses. The results showed that 59.6% of respondents searched for negative information before making a purchase, confirming a tendency to check even negative information when considering an actual purchase.
The most common reason for checking negative reviews was not wanting to regret the purchase, cited by 71.3% of respondents. This was followed by wanting to make a decision after learning about the drawbacks as well, at 53.6%, and wanting to know about actual complaints, at 44.0%. The results highlighted that respondents place importance on whether a product has drawbacks they cannot accept.
Product reviews on e-commerce websites were the most common place to check negative information, at 65.6%, followed by search engines such as Google, at 56.9%. Online reviews play a significant role among the information sources available before purchase.
Regarding actions taken after viewing negative information, 50.2% of respondents decided not to make the purchase, exceeding half, followed by 34.9% who purchased a different product. Meanwhile, 29.2% made the purchase after checking the negative information, and 34.5% ultimately made the purchase despite initially being undecided. The results indicated substantial individual differences in how people use negative information.