Survey: 85% of B2B Service Adopters Trust Services Listed in Multiple Comparison Articles
Cone Inc. conducted a survey of 221 employees involved in B2B service adoption, revealing that 85% trust services featured in multiple comparison articles, and comparison sites are the most crucial source for information gathering.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 11, 2026 at 17:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 11, 2026 at 08:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 11, 2026 at 09:15 (43 min after Collected)
Cone Inc. (Headquarters: Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, Representative Director: Tatsuki Sato) conducted a survey targeting 221 employees who had been involved in considering the adoption of B2B services within the past year, investigating their online behavior when selecting services.
The results showed that 59.3% of potential adopters use comparison sites for information gathering, and 28.1% cited comparison sites as the most helpful information source, topping all other channels. Furthermore, 85.4% of respondents stated that their trust and interest increased when they saw the same service mentioned in multiple comparison articles, indicating that the number of listings in comparison articles directly leads to building trust.
Full Report
85% of B2B Service Adopters Trust Services Listed in Multiple Comparison Articles
[Survey Overview]
Target Audience
221 employees who had been involved in considering the adoption of B2B services within the past year
Survey Period
April 27, 2026 – April 28, 2026
Survey Method
Internet survey conducted by the research outsourcing service "c-slide lab"
Survey Conducted by
Cone Inc., which supports content marketing
Background of the Survey
Through the operation of our B2B service comparison site "slide lib," we receive many inquiries from B2B marketing managers asking, "Is there an effect of being listed in comparison articles?" and "Where should we be listed to be seen?"
However, many companies do not have data on how potential adopters actually research and select services online.
Therefore, we conducted a detailed survey of the online selection behavior of 221 potential adopters, from information gathering to initial and final selection.
◼︎ Comparison Sites are the "Most Important Source" for Information Gathering
When asked what information sources they used to gather information when considering B2B services, comparison sites and portal sites were the most common, at 59.3%.
Furthermore, when asked to choose the single most helpful information source, comparison sites ranked first by a significant margin at 28.1%, approximately 12 percentage points ahead of search engines (16.4%).
It also became clear that search keywords like "(category name) recommendations" were the most frequent at 72.4%, and comparison/recommendation-type keywords, including "ranking" and "comparison," were mainstream in search behavior.
Whether a company's service is listed in comparison articles that rank high when searching for "〇〇 comparison" or "〇〇 recommendation" is a turning point for making the first contact with potential adopters.
◼︎ Potential Adopters Read the Top 5 Articles, and Multiple Listings Convert to "Trust"
When asked how many comparison articles potential adopters read, "4-5 articles" was the most common at 33.5%, followed by "2-3 articles" at 29.4%, indicating that 62.9% read within the top 5 articles.
Furthermore, 85.4% of respondents said their trust and interest increased when they saw the same service mentioned in multiple comparison articles. The response "had no effect at all" was zero, numerically confirming that being listed in multiple articles directly leads to building trust.
◼︎ Being "Rarely Mentioned in Comparison Articles" Alone Leads to Exclusion from Consideration
When asked the reasons for excluding candidates during initial selection, "low evaluation or infrequent mention in comparison articles" accounted for 30.8%. This ranked third, following "pricing not disclosed and could not be compared" (49.8%) and "features did not meet requirements" (34.4%), revealing that insufficient listing in comparison articles is a factor for exclusion even before issues with features or price.
◼︎ More Than Half of Decision-Makers Refer to Comparison Articles Even in Final Selection
When asked what information was most helpful in narrowing down inquiries and business negotiations for final selection, "comparison tables in comparison articles" topped the list at 43.3%.
Especially among those who were the primary person in charge from selection to decision-making, 51.1% referred to comparison articles even in the final stage, demonstrating that comparison articles are consistently involved from the beginning of the purchasing process to the final decision.
About the Detailed Report
In addition to the above, this survey also publishes the following detailed data:
Comparison site dependency by category and position
Number of comparison articles read by company size
Impact of listing position (order within the article) on click-through rates
Behavioral data during initial and final selection
Please see the full report below for details.
View details of this survey
Other reference articles:
14 B2B Service Comparison Sites! Explaining the differences from business matching sites and how to choose
16 Content Marketing Outsourcing Companies. Explaining preparations before requesting and tips for success
21 Owned Media Operation Outsourcing Comparisons. Explaining from cost estimates to how to choose
To the B2B service comparison site "slide lib"
The results showed that 59.3% of potential adopters use comparison sites for information gathering, and 28.1% cited comparison sites as the most helpful information source, topping all other channels. Furthermore, 85.4% of respondents stated that their trust and interest increased when they saw the same service mentioned in multiple comparison articles, indicating that the number of listings in comparison articles directly leads to building trust.
Full Report
85% of B2B Service Adopters Trust Services Listed in Multiple Comparison Articles
[Survey Overview]
Target Audience
221 employees who had been involved in considering the adoption of B2B services within the past year
Survey Period
April 27, 2026 – April 28, 2026
Survey Method
Internet survey conducted by the research outsourcing service "c-slide lab"
Survey Conducted by
Cone Inc., which supports content marketing
Background of the Survey
Through the operation of our B2B service comparison site "slide lib," we receive many inquiries from B2B marketing managers asking, "Is there an effect of being listed in comparison articles?" and "Where should we be listed to be seen?"
However, many companies do not have data on how potential adopters actually research and select services online.
Therefore, we conducted a detailed survey of the online selection behavior of 221 potential adopters, from information gathering to initial and final selection.
◼︎ Comparison Sites are the "Most Important Source" for Information Gathering
When asked what information sources they used to gather information when considering B2B services, comparison sites and portal sites were the most common, at 59.3%.
Furthermore, when asked to choose the single most helpful information source, comparison sites ranked first by a significant margin at 28.1%, approximately 12 percentage points ahead of search engines (16.4%).
It also became clear that search keywords like "(category name) recommendations" were the most frequent at 72.4%, and comparison/recommendation-type keywords, including "ranking" and "comparison," were mainstream in search behavior.
Whether a company's service is listed in comparison articles that rank high when searching for "〇〇 comparison" or "〇〇 recommendation" is a turning point for making the first contact with potential adopters.
◼︎ Potential Adopters Read the Top 5 Articles, and Multiple Listings Convert to "Trust"
When asked how many comparison articles potential adopters read, "4-5 articles" was the most common at 33.5%, followed by "2-3 articles" at 29.4%, indicating that 62.9% read within the top 5 articles.
Furthermore, 85.4% of respondents said their trust and interest increased when they saw the same service mentioned in multiple comparison articles. The response "had no effect at all" was zero, numerically confirming that being listed in multiple articles directly leads to building trust.
◼︎ Being "Rarely Mentioned in Comparison Articles" Alone Leads to Exclusion from Consideration
When asked the reasons for excluding candidates during initial selection, "low evaluation or infrequent mention in comparison articles" accounted for 30.8%. This ranked third, following "pricing not disclosed and could not be compared" (49.8%) and "features did not meet requirements" (34.4%), revealing that insufficient listing in comparison articles is a factor for exclusion even before issues with features or price.
◼︎ More Than Half of Decision-Makers Refer to Comparison Articles Even in Final Selection
When asked what information was most helpful in narrowing down inquiries and business negotiations for final selection, "comparison tables in comparison articles" topped the list at 43.3%.
Especially among those who were the primary person in charge from selection to decision-making, 51.1% referred to comparison articles even in the final stage, demonstrating that comparison articles are consistently involved from the beginning of the purchasing process to the final decision.
About the Detailed Report
In addition to the above, this survey also publishes the following detailed data:
Comparison site dependency by category and position
Number of comparison articles read by company size
Impact of listing position (order within the article) on click-through rates
Behavioral data during initial and final selection
Please see the full report below for details.
View details of this survey
Other reference articles:
14 B2B Service Comparison Sites! Explaining the differences from business matching sites and how to choose
16 Content Marketing Outsourcing Companies. Explaining preparations before requesting and tips for success
21 Owned Media Operation Outsourcing Comparisons. Explaining from cost estimates to how to choose
To the B2B service comparison site "slide lib"