In a recent study published in Production and Operations Management (2024), Son, Wowak and Angst examined the impact of online platforms identifying restaurants in New York City as Black-owned. This feature, introduced by several platforms after the Black Lives Matter protests, was intended to help customers easily locate and support minority-owned businesses.
The findings are striking. Once identified as Black-owned, restaurants experienced a 13.7% increase in the number of online reviews, but their average rating decreased by 0.12 stars. The effect was not uniform: popular restaurants attracted more reviews, while less popular ones saw ratings fall. The decline was largely driven by ratings from non-minority and male reviewers, and particularly from less credible reviewers whose anonymity allowed biased or unjustified criticism.
The researchers also noted changes in review content. After the Black-owned label was applied, comments increasingly focused on staff and service rather than atmosphere, while food-related feedback remained constant. Importantly, they found that credible reviews—those with photos or from verified or experienced reviewers—did not show the same decline in ratings, suggesting that bias was concentrated among less accountable reviewers.
These results highlight a troubling paradox: while visibility initiatives can drive customer engagement, they can also expose businesses to new forms of bias. For minority-owned enterprises, this means that well-intentioned digital tools may inadvertently harm reputations and affect success.
For leaders, the lesson is clear. Increasing visibility for underrepresented groups must be matched with safeguards that address bias and ensure fairness. Online platforms, organisations and policymakers alike should consider credibility filters, stronger moderation, and proactive reputation management strategies when designing interventions aimed at equity.
This study is an important reminder that advancing inclusion requires more than increasing visibility; it requires tackling the systemic and subtle ways bias continues to operate.
You can read the original article here.
