U.S. finance businesses reap rewards of improved customer service as volume of positive sentiment in reviews surges

• Data from Trustpilot’s quarterly ‘Online Review Index’ suggests positive sentiment in reviews of U.S. money and insurance businesses have surged in the last year with improved levels of customer service driving the increase       

• Positive sentiment in online reviews for this sector has risen by 4% year-over-year in the U.S., comparing Q2 in 2022 to Q2 2023  

• Consumers have praised customer service, contact with staff, and payment processes, as well as credit score and money transfer services         

• Just under 2 million service reviews were submitted to Trustpilot by consumers across the U.S. between April and June 2023 — a 5% increase in the first three months of the year, suggesting reviews continue to play a pivotal role in consumers’ decision-making processes 

• Trustpilot’s ‘Online Review Index’ provides a quarterly look into review data, highlighting customer sentiment across the platform — one of the world’s biggest online review platforms  

July 31, 2023, NEW YORK, USA – The finance sector in the United States has experienced an increase in positive sentiment in online reviews over the last 12 months — with customer service being singled out by consumers as an area that has seen improvement, according to new data published today by global consumer review platform, Trustpilot.

Trustpilot’s ‘Online Review Index’ — which tracks customer sentiment in reviews every quarter — has revealed a noticeable increase in positive sentiment in reviews for the finance and insurance sectors when comparing data for Q2 this year with the same period last year. Positive sentiment increased by 4%, and negative sentiment decreased by 3% year-over-year. 

The change is being driven by perceptions of customer service, with increasing numbers of U.S. consumers saying it has improved over the last 12 months. Other areas that have been singled out for praise include contact with staff, payment processes, as well as money transfer and credit score services. 

The data suggests that finance businesses are listening to the concerns of their customers and acting on them. In tough economic times, listening to consumer feedback is more important than ever, and businesses in the finance and insurance sectors are being urged to continue considering any feedback they receive.   

Mieke De Schepper, Chief Commercial Officer at Trustpilot, said: “Listening to feedback from consumers is crucial at a time when trading conditions are difficult. The latest data suggests businesses in the money and insurance sectors are doing this more compared to this time last year, but complacency must not be allowed to creep in. Now is not the time to stick your head in the sand — businesses need to embrace feedback because it’s valuable information that helps them understand where issues, and potential growth opportunities, exist.”      

The upswing in positive sentiment in reviews for the finance industry suggests that businesses are taking action in implementing necessary changes. One example is the banking sector. Last year, consumers were frustrated by cost-cutting measures made by banks, leading to fewer branches and, in turn, fewer people to handle customers’ needs. Additional pain points included faulty technology — which in some cases led to the freezing of accounts incorrectly — and not having received proper financial advice. According to a 2023 J.D. Power report on U.S. retail bank customer satisfaction, 47% of those who were given effective advice opened new accounts and those that received proper communication had high levels of satisfaction with their institution. 

While the finance and insurance sectors have seen an increase in positive sentiment in reviews, other sectors have not fared so well. The hospitality industry in the U.S. experienced a decline in positive reviews within the last three months of the year. There has been a fall in positive reviews for the restaurant and bar industries by 4%, as well as the events and entertainment sector by 3%. Consumers have singled out a number of areas of concern, highlighting issues with orders, refunds, delivery services, poor cancellation policies, and spam emails.

Trustpilot’s latest Online Review Index also revealed that over 8,000 U.S. businesses within the money and insurance sectors are now listed on the platform, helping thousands of consumers who visit the platform make more informed decisions to manage their money better.

For more information about financial planning, visit www.trustpilot.com/blog/buy-with-confidence/financial-planning. 

ENDS

Methodology:  

Insights for the ‘Online Review Index’ were drawn from aggregated consumer review data held by Trustpilot. Review texts and the selected keywords or relevant topics were analyzed within their contexts and scored for sentiment (positive, neutral, or negative), using cutting-edge Natural Language Processing techniques that draw on advanced statistical methods.

About Trustpilot

Trustpilot was founded in 2007 with a vision to create an independent currency of trust.

A digital platform that brings businesses and consumers together to foster trust and inspire collaboration. We are free to use, open to everybody, and built on transparency.

Trustpilot hosts reviews to help consumers shop with confidence and deliver rich insights to help businesses improve the experience they offer. The more consumers use our platform and share their own opinions, the richer the insights we offer businesses, and the more opportunities they have to earn the trust of consumers, from all around the world.

Over 213 million consumer reviews of businesses and products of over 893,000 domains have been posted on Trustpilot, and those numbers are growing by more than one review per second.  

Trustpilot has over 850 employees and is headquartered in Copenhagen, with operations in New York, Denver, London, Edinburgh, Melbourne, Berlin, Vilnius, Milan, and Amsterdam.