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As a leader Amazon, the US online retailer, sells practically everything (as the logo says, from A to Z). Whether you’re looking for a cheap portable charger, eco-friendly cleaning products, or headphones for your kids, Amazon is probably your first choice. And when it comes time to choose between similar-looking products, most people rely on user reviews.
The problem is that many Amazon reviews are fake. Unscrupulous or desperate sellers pay for glowing reviews, and some offer gift cards or free products in exchange for five-star ratings. Sometimes sellers even solicit fake negative reviews on competing products. It’s hard to pinpoint what’s real, but you can reduce your risk of being scammed by knowing the warning signs. We have compiled some tips that may help.
Updated June 2024: We’ve added details about the manipulation tactics used by some sellers on Amazon, updated our existing tips, and removed the now sadly defunct Review Meta.
Fake Amazon Reviews
If you are shopping on amazonyou are very likely to see some fake reviews. recent UK government report suggested that 11 to 15 percent of consumer electronics reviews on e-commerce platforms are fake.
Most are positive, extolling the virtues of a product in suspiciously laudatory terms. Short five-star reviews are likely intended to game the system by boosting a product’s ranking and visibility. But there are also more subtle attempts to persuade you to buy, where paid reviewers go into some detail, maybe share photos, and even write something negative along with lots of positives. For example, they might rate a product four out of five stars, which can be very convincing.
Some sellers engage in paid negative reviews designed to criticize competitors’ products. These are usually one-star reviews that focus on the cons and often mention another product that compares favorably to try to steer you toward it.
Amazon isn’t the only e-commerce website with a fake review problem. Walmart, Target and many others have similar problems (the The Federal Trade Commission notified more than 700 companies in 2021 and it is considering a rule that would lead to harsh civil penalties for violators). Most of the tips we discuss here will be useful to you in general, not just on Amazon.
How Amazon Sellers Get Fake Reviews
Sellers want to increase their sales and reviews can do thatCritics want to make money or free products. That’s why the black market for fake reviews is thriving. There are foreign companies Selling blocks of positive reviewssocial media groups that organize teams of reviewers and companies that offer all kinds of incentives to persuade genuine buyers to leave a favorable review. Sellers also offer refunds or other rewards to convince buyers to remove or edit negative reviews. Answer everyone‘s”The magic storeThe episode covers some common scenarios and is fun to listen to.
How Sellers Manipulate Amazon Reviews
Before delving into the veracity of individual Amazon reviews, there are a couple of unreliable seller techniques to keep in mind. Some sellers abuse the variations system, intended to allow them to sell variations of a product (for example, different colors of the same device). Amazon’s variations policy prohibits sellers from adding variations that are “fundamentally different” from the original and that include new versions or models. But it’s very easy to find examples of sellers doing exactly that.
Let’s say a seller has a listing with 4000 positive reviews and an average of 4.5 stars. They can add other products with far fewer reviews, mostly negative, or even no reviews at all as variations, and at a glance it looks like they have a lot of positive reviews. If you find a listing with multiple variations, you need to scroll down to click on it. See more reviews and then select the All formats drop-down menu to filter reviews for the specific product you are looking at.