Are you a seller on Amazon that is fed up with the fake reviews on your product listings and no matter what you do you feel you are unable to avoid this plague? Well then you are in the right place. In this article we will discuss the problem that has brought down many good businesses on Amazon by no fault of their own and how you as a seller can tackle this problem head on and overcome it. Lets take a look at how to spot fake reviews on Amazon, how fake reviews affect Amazon Sellers and what can you do as a seller do to make this better.
Why do People use fake reviews?
Before we take a look at how to safeguard you from fake reviews. Let’s look at why do people online buy or write fake reviews. Shopping online has revolutionized how we consume products and the way we shop. Now we can just look for a product online, order and get it delivered within one or two days. This is great for buyers or consumers and sellers as their products can reach a wider audience. The problem arrives when a new product or company tries to enter the market.
This is because consumers only buy a product online that has great reviews and has been purchased by many. This becomes a challenge for new products and sellers as there are no reviews or assurances to back the validity of the product. In this case some sellers take the support of fake online reviews.
Another possibility is that a product has been present in the market but it is of low quality, so sellers hire people to write reviews and improve the sales of that product. The fake reviews are not only used by sellers to improve their performance but also discredit other sellers or products. In some cases sellers even swap reviews for their products for mutual benefit.
How do Fake Reviews affect Amazon Sellers?
In the previous section we saw why people on Amazon and even some amazon sellers engage with fake reviews. However what we neglect to address is the effect it can have on the reputation of the store and the seller. Amazon has strict policy that if an Amazon Seller engages in providing incentives or free exchange for positive reviews then they can ban your sellers account thus making it difficult for you to sell online.
Apart from this, consumers have also become aware of fake reviews and even have tools to figure out the percentage of fake reviews that can discourage them from visiting or buying from your store. This can also lead to negative word of mouth for the store and seller, directly affecting sales of the product. There are many you can use to find fake reviews.
In the next section, you can take a look at the different ways you can spot a fake review on your store.
Signs and Ways to spot fake reviews on your Amazon store
Here are some ways you can use to spot fake reviews on your Amazon Store.
1.Look for the Latest Reviews
Sort out the latest reviews and look for signs like the words used, product recommendations on the listing, similar words in most reviews, and mentions of competing products. High ratings with little or no review from verified users are also considered fake.
2.Check the headline
The headline of a review can tell you a lot about the review and the reviewer. A fake review or reviews will generally use one or two word title for their reviews. The review might use words like Awesome, awesome product, good, good product, must have, bad and so on. These words are repeatedly used in their reviews. Real reviews have longer titles that can describe good or bad features of the product.
3. Extreme Ratings
Another hallmark of a fake review is the extremely good or extremely bad rating that is given to a product. A fake reviewer will either praise the product or it will write very bad things about the product calling it fake. A genuine reviewer that has bought the product will not opt for 1 star or 5 star rating unless the product is that great or that bad respectively.
4.Notice the date and time
When checking a product, you should also look at the time at which the review was made and the time and date on other reviews. Reviews that have a really close timeline can be fake and you can avoid those just by keeping a close eye. People often write reviews and then the people keep posting those reviews in quick succession that can cause a change in rating. You can spot this easily and report these reviews to customer care. If there are many reviews on the same date on your product then it is likely that the reviews are fake.
5.Look for Reviews on other websites
As an Amazon Seller you can look for reviews on other reputed sites to find the review for the product you want. Websites like Youtube and Reddit are a good place to start as they give you an honest opinion of a larger audience that does not have any vested interest in the sellers or the product. While it is fair to argue that you can encounter fake reviews there as well but if you take an average of the reviews from Amazon and other sites you will get the complete picture of the product.
As a seller this can become a baseline of what to expect in a good or bad review, this way you can spot fake reviews if the review mentions completely irrelevant details.
Another way is by visiting the consumer’s profile. You can find customers reviewing a product, you will find the name of the reviewer alongside their profile picture. This is a clickable link that will take you to the reviewer’s profile. Here you can check the reviews written by the consumer for the products they have bought in general to get a better idea. If it is a fake profile, you will be able to figure it out and you can report that user.
What is Amazon doing to reduce fake reviews?
According to Amazon, it is constantly removing fake reviews from various products. It is tough however to find seller that engage in such practices. However some sellers incentivise the users by bribing them with gift cards in return for a 5 star review. Many companies have been banned because of this business but it remains a prevalent practice still.
To this effect Amazon issues Verified Purchase badge that tells you if the person writing the review has bought the product. Individuals and agencies also buy the “Helpful” votes to boost their visibility and some even engage in review swapping where sellers add favourable reviews for others products. Amongst all this the biggest problem is the number of products and reviews on the website, as a consumer you can only do so much with the report abuse link under the review. Many other ecommerce websites face a similar issue and so there are tools one can use to spot fake reviews on Amazon and other websites.
As a seller on Amazon it is important to beware of fake reviews as they can destroy you credibility and reputation. The good news however is that you can find and remove the fake reviews using the review checker tools listed below.
Tools to find Fake reviews on your Amazon Store
There are many different tools available that can help you to find fake reviews on your Amazon Store and products.
Fakespot
Fakespot is an Amazon review detector tool that can tell you the probability of fake reviews on your store. It has a rating system from A to F where A is the leaset concerning and tells you that the reviewer does not have a suspicious history. Any rating below this is a cause for concern and as a storeowner you should investigate the review personally. This can also give your store a rating based on the products. This tool can identify when a seller is buying fake reviews and tell you if the seller is trustworthy or not. You can download Fakespot Chrome Extension to get better access to the service.
TheReviewIndex
The Review Index can convert reviews ratings and other data into amazing product opportunities. It can also identify fake reviews, summarize useful reviews, and categorize them based on elements of each product. This means as a seller you don’t have to read every review to find useful feedback and it is automatically categorized that can them be prioritized accordingly.
ReviewMeta
ReviewMeta can detect and remove fake reviews from your store to give you a clear picture of the product. The way it works is that ReviewMeta runs a few tests to identify fake reviews, these reviews are then either removed completely or given lesser weight. Then the product is given an adjusted rating from 1.0 to 5.0 stars based on the genuine reviews.
How to choose the best Review Checker in 2024?
There are many different Amazon review checker tools available out there making it difficult to find the best one to fit your needs. But fear not, we will help you to find the best tool that can help you to keep your store safe from fake reviews. Here are a few things to consider while choosing the right review checker for you.
Price: First and foremost the thing to consider is the price of the review checker. Compare the prices of different tools to find the best deals on the best tools. This way you can look into the tool with a short term or long term goal, along with what offers are available for the tool. You can even check for free trials if you are looking for a tool for limited use.
Number of reviews: Different tools check different number of reviews based on your keyword, product name, category and so on. Looking at the number of reviews can be helpful to choose a specific item or retailer.
Type of Review: Review checkers have different criteria as to which reviews they will consider. Some tools check only verified reviews while other can check unverified ones as well as customer feedback to get a complete view.
Results Shown: With different tools there can be a variety of ways the information is depicted and the amount of information that is depicted. Some tools even show seller ratings or customer service ratings. Check what parameters are important to you and choose a tool accordingly.
🌟 Top FAQs on Amazon Fake Reviews
How much percent of Amazon reviews are fake?
According to a report by Fakespot, over 30% of the reviews are flagged as fake in 2020. This trend is said to grow in the coming years with the further rise of ecommerce businesses.
Is amazon strict about reviews?
Yes! Amazon has a zero tolerance policy for reviews that are written with the intend to mislead or manipulate customers. The website does not allow sellers to write reviews with the intent to promote . Amazon removes reviews by people who have a direct or indirect financial interest in the product.
Can Amazon sellers see my review?
Product reviews are not directly forwarded to the seller. Amazon offers great customer service when you reach out to them. If you have issues with your order you can contact sellers directly.
How can I remove fake reviews on Amazon?
You can get the fake reviews removed by contacting Amazon sellers support team. If you think the review is given by a competitor, you can get it removed.
What can I do if I’m getting bad reviews on Amazon?
If you think there has been a malicious attack of bad reviews on your products listings, you can report it to amazon by emailing [email protected]. It is suggested that you shouldn’t bulk in reporting the number of reviews as it may only lead to lower your internal reputation and rating as an Amazon seller. Precisely Report those comments that violate one or more of the Amazon guidelines.
Conclusion: What is the best way to spot Fake Reviews on your Amazon Store?
As we have seen in this article, there are a lot of ways you using which you can find and filter fake reviews on your Amazon store. As a Store owner you can keep an eye on certain factors that determine the genuineness of a review. This can help you to run a trustworthy store that is profitable as well. You can even use tools to spot fake reviews and stop them from ruining you store’s reputation. As a storeowner, the reputation of your store is in your hands.
