Navigating the world of investing and finances can be a serious challenge, which is probably why so many of us turn to looking at reviews for the companies that we might work with. Honestly, it is something that I have grappled with myself for a considerable amount of time. That is why today I would like to offer some advice on the topic!
While it can absolutely be stressful, as I mentioned, there are ways to mitigate those stressors. Perhaps the most common one is to start searching online for some answers. It is quite a valuable strategy, really, but the trick is that you have to know how to do it.
Some reviewers are sponsored and do not disclose it. Others do disclose, but it is not overly obvious. There are guidelines on this here, https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-evaluate-online-reviews, that may be able to help you understand the difference between them. That all being said, though, let us examine this through the lens of searching for a gold investing organization.
Why are there so Many Gold Investment Companies Out there?
I must admit, when I first started my own search, this was a question that weighed heavily on my mind. It almost feels too good to be true in some ways. If investing in precious metals is really such a good idea, then why are there so very many businesses out there trying to cash in on it that seem a bit…how to put this – suspicious?
What do I mean by that? Well, at times it can feel like some of the websites and articles that we read are filled with false promises. They can be hard to spot. Thus, there is good reason to try to understand how we should approach reading reviews as critically as possible.
I will discuss more of that later, though. For now, let us consider why this has become such a popular method of investment. A lot of it probably has to do with our general, societal level fear of an impending recession. Even with news pieces like this one, many of us are still quite worried.
It is no wonder that investors are flocking towards commodities and other forms of assets that have some real staying power. Gold is certainly amongst that category. There are a few reasons for that, namely that it does not lose value even when paper currency does.
That goes for all of the precious metals, really. Silver, gold, palladium, and platinum each have their own uses in today’s markets. A lot of the time, they are used in manufacturing electronics and automobiles. Even if there was not a huge market for jewelry made of them, clearly they would still have their purposes, meaning that they are not likely to lose value any time soon.
Reading Reviews
Let us think of an example. Say you are looking at one company, and you are looking at the reviews that pop up under their name on whatever search engine that you use. One is named “American Hartford gold review complaints and fees” while the other is called “excellent customer service, would recommend.” How do we go about approaching them?
Of course, it is a bit of a pickle, right? It is hard to know which to trust and which seems a bit more falsified. My advice is to take a look at the contents of both entries and to look for certain buzz words, as well as certain red flags.
When there is a large volume of reviews that all came in around the same time, and they are all exceedingly positive, that might be a sign that they have been purchased. This is not always the case. Still, I would approach those statements with at least some degree of skepticism.
Looking into the specific reviewer that you are analyzing is not a bad idea either. Check out their profile and determine if they have left their opinions on other products as well. This can help you figure out if your own tastes seem to generally line up with theirs, which impacts how much you should trust them for relating to your own needs. Now, if they made this account specifically to leave a super positive review on one company, there may be something fishy afoot.
You see, even with the posts like this, https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherelliott/2018/11/21/why-you-should-not-trust-online-reviews/?sh=324d51cc2218, we still tend to listen to the strangers who are customers of the same companies as us. I do not think that this cultural norm is going away any time soon, and if we really think about it for a moment, we have had equivalents for decades if not centuries.
Have you ever heard of word-of-mouth marketing? The same principles are applied as the ones that I mentioned above, but they are based on in person or phone call conversations (amongst others, but I am speaking as generally as I can here). The point of this kind of marketing, though, is that it does not come at any additional cost to the company.
In addition to that, though, the words of advice regarding a business or a brand come from a trusted source: a friend, family member, or other person close to the potential customer. So, if you are ever feeling uncertain about the things that you see online, consider talking to someone that you know. There is bound to be at least one investor in your close circle!