The State of Reputation: Overview of Reviews in the Pharmacy Sector is a groundbreaking survey in Brazil, conducted by Harmo. We collected and analyzed over 65,000 reviews published between January 2023 and September 2024, from more than 4,000 locations across 38 pharmacy chains, featured on Google Business Profiles.

Reviews express the experiences and opinions of these companies' customers, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Furthermore, reviews play a fundamental role in consumers' decision-making process. According to 99firms, 9 out of 10 customers read reviews before making a purchase, demonstrating the importance of this resource for companies seeking to acquire and retain customers.

The report offers a detailed view of the online reputation of these establishments, based on the voices of their own customers. Our goal is to provide the market with the first industry benchmarkbased on public reviews, allowing companies to compare their performance, identify opportunities for improvement, and strengthen their business strategies.

We hope that managers, entrepreneurs, professionals, and organizations in the sector can use this material to transform their businesses, promoting increasingly appropriate and personalized experiences for their clients and partners.

This report is an essential tool for understanding the current market, identifying opportunities for improvement, and strengthening the online presence of companies in the sector, considering the opinion of those who matter most: the customer.

Brands evaluated

Thirty-eight networks were analyzed. The majority of reviews came from the South and Southeast regions, accounting for almost 85%, with a balanced distribution between men (46.4%) and women (53.6%).

Demographic data

The Southeast region accounts for the largest number of reviews, representing 49% of the total, followed by the South (36.6%), Northeast (5.7%), Midwest (5.3%), and North (3.4%) regions

Average reviews per location

The average number of reviews received per location during the 23/24 period was only 15, meaning that each location receives, on average, 1 to 2 reviews per month. Of the 38 companies analyzed, only 3 registered more than 30 reviews per location—which equates to about 1 new review per day over a one-month period. This number is still considered low, especially considering the high daily flow of consumers in the stores.

Furthermore, reviews function as social proof; the more reviews a company receives, the more trustworthy it is in the eyes of consumers. In this respect, we can say that the places analyzed, for the most part, fall short of the ideal. 

Therefore, there is a clear opportunity for brands to increase the number of reviews and, consequently, improve their online reputation and customer engagement.

Response rate

The response rate reflects the percentage of reviews responded to by brands, and is a crucial indicator of companies' engagement with customer feedback and their concern for the consumer experience. In the sector, the average response rate was 67%.

The chart reveals that 11 companies achieved an ideal response rate, above 80%. In contrast, another 11 brands maintained rates between 0% and 20%, highlighting a lack of active engagement strategies on this channel, which could attract more customers to their stores.

This is an aspect that deserves special attention from the sector, since, according to 2024 data from the Local Consumer Review Survey, 88% of consumers say they prefer to do business with companies that respond to all reviews.

Sentiment rate

According to market benchmarks, the sector is significantly below the ideal target for positive reviews. Only 72% of reviews are positive, while the ideal would be 85%. The rate of negative reviews is also high, reaching 25%, five times higher than the ideal level of 5%.

Some effective strategies for increasing review volume include:

• Facilitate the evaluation process: Provide QR codes or direct links to Google at strategic touchpoints, such as at the end of the purchase or at the end of the service.
• Train the team: Encourage employees to ask customers directly for reviews after a purchase.
• Automate reminders: Use automated emails or messages after a purchase or service to remind the customer to leave a review.
• Focus on the customer experience: Constantly improve customer service and product/service quality to reduce the rate of negative reviews.

These actions will not only increase the volume of reviews, but will also have a direct impact on organic ranking in local searches.

Textual analysis of reviews

The results of this analysis were generated by artificial intelligence, which categorizes the text and assigns sentiment to the customers' verbalization. Of the more than 65,000 public reviews analyzed in 2023 and 2024, 67% contained a comment describing the experience with the establishment.

The chart to the side shows the topics most discussed by consumers and consumer sentiment regarding them. A general summary of the topics is provided on the next page.

Summary of negative reviews

According to negative reviews, the main problems faced by the brands analyzed include:

• Inside the customer service category We have points related to:
  • Slow service
  • Few employees;
  • Lack of communication and information;
• Difficulties in order delivery ;
• Difficulty in contacting establishments by phone or other channels; 
• The business hours information on the Google profile is incorrect.

Summary of positive reviews

In general, brands provide a good customer experience. The main positive characteristics highlighted by consumers include:

• Attentive and friendly staff ;
• Wide variety of products, including medicines, cosmetics, hygiene and convenience items; 
• Frequent promotions ;
• Good organization and cleanliness of the establishments; 
• Some pharmacies stand out for offering additional services, such as administering injections, laboratory tests, and 24-hour operation;
• Parking available .

Segment note

The average rating for the brands analyzed in 2023/24 in the pharmacy sector was 4 stars. The distribution of ratings reveals that half of the brands in the study exceeded the overall average for the segment.

According to the study, 92% of consumers only consider buying from companies that have a minimum rating of 4 stars.

This highlights the importance of brands having an online reputation strategy to maintain or achieve an average rating above 4 stars, which is considered ideal.

Brand ranking

Comparison: Number of locations and rating

Brand rankings by rating range

Conclusion

The report reveals a significant opportunity for the pharmaceutical sector: increasing the volume of reviews on Google. While other segments already recognize the strategic value of this practice, the pharmacy sector still has a considerably low number of reviews, with an average rating of 4.0.

The pharmaceutical industry, however, projects growth of 12.6% for 2024 and 9.3% for 2025, according to IQVIA. This economic growth outlook creates a unique opportunity for pharmacies to pay more attention to their online reputation, allowing not only greater visibility in local searches, but also attracting a growing number of customers to their physical stores, which can directly impact revenue.

Furthermore, the sector's growth has been driven by advances in technology and clinical services, such as rapid tests, vaccines, and health monitoring. According to Febrafar, online sales grew from 2.5% to 7.9%, demonstrating the sector's adaptation to consumer behavior. This scenario, coupled with the population's increased life expectancy, has led to an expansion of the range of offerings in pharmacies, integrating new products and services, which has further boosted the sector.

For pharmacies, investing in their digital reputation can be crucial to capitalizing on this expansion. Strategies to increase the volume of reviews can directly result in a greater flow of customers and, consequently, an increase in revenue. Studies indicate that 92% of consumers prefer companies with ratings higher than 4 stars, which highlights the direct impact of a good online reputation on purchasing decisions.

Therefore, by focusing on increasing reviews, pharmacies not only increase their relevance in local Google searches, but also strengthen consumer trust, improving online performance and generating greater economic growth for the sector.