Self Serving Reviews

[LagniappeRob]

So yesterday Amazon put Zubie on a lightning deal. This company makes a OB2 car reader with a cell connection. Amazon.com: The Zubie Key, a Connected Car Service: Automotive

Checking it out red flags start popping up. They just got $10M in funding - using sales of information as a major marketing point. Not only are their serious privacy implications (legal, insurance, etc) but the company is posting self serving reviews.

Their Social Media Manager answers a question for a customer, and then at the same time posts a positive review. She tweeted me telling me I should try the product and not bash it... She then deleted the tweet. I think not realizing that it was sent to me the moment she sent it.

Not only is it unethical, but Amazon's terms specifically prohibit this...

To help illustrate, here are a few examples of reviews that we don't allow:

A product manufacturer posts a review of their own product, posing as an unbiased shopper

As "social media manager" shouldn't she know it?

 

[Rob73]

Well she either knows and doesn't care or she's ignorant to amazon terms. These days though it's not really surprising. You can purchase blackhat marketing services too trickle review, blog comments, forum posts, tweets, and so forth all day long.

 

[LagniappeRob]

As "Social Media Manager" she should know... In NY, the AG's office has been going after those "reputation" companies and fining them ($350,000).

 

[LagniappeRob]

Fake online reviews crackdown in New York sees 19 companies fined | World news | theguardian.com

 

[Rob73]

Oh yeah I'm well aware of the crackdown, however, it really won't put a dent into that type of marketing. Only thing they will stop is businesses here that outsource these methods. Which is not a bad thing, but if someone really wants reviews it's just a search away.

Depending on where you post your reviews many times the company itself will pay you to take down a negative review. A friend of mine got royally screwed by a major HVAC company in my area. He wrote a scathing review on yelp. They tried to buy him out cheap and he refused. They just kept calling him back with offer after offer by the end of the day they paid him thousands plus other incentives to take down his review. Next day he was signing legal documents, review is gone and he can never say a word about it again.

 

[sbell111]

Does the IAP have similar rules? Seems like half the threads are 'look at the awesome whatever that I just made and am going to sell you'.

 

[Dan Masshardt]

Does the IAP have similar rules? Seems like half the threads are 'look at the awesome whatever that I just made and am going to sell you'.

We don't sell pens to each other

Blank / kits sales are under marketplace I don't understand the connection

 

[sbell111]

Does the IAP have similar rules? Seems like half the threads are 'look at the awesome whatever that I just made and am going to sell you'.

We don't sell pens to each other

Blank / kits sales are under marketplace I don't understand the connection

The sales themselves are under marketplace. The marketing s everywhere.

 

[LagniappeRob]

It's a little different. What I was objecting to on the Amazon (and what Amazon says is not allowed) is representatives of the company posing as unbiased customers and posting reviews. There's a good bit of deception going on there.

On here, most of us are pretty well aware of what different people make/sell. I think most of us try to support each other in that. I know the vendors I deal with on here are very responsive to customers, and "play well together". I don't see them bashing others or posing as unbiased third parties to talk up their products. Actually I've see the opposite, I've seen them talk up other vendors and stay away from marketing their products in threads it would have been easy to do.

 

[LagniappeRob]

I know I'm repeating but I'm adding emphasis to make the point above. This is what Amazon gives as an example of what is not allowed:

To help illustrate, here are a few examples of reviews that we don't allow:

A product manufacturer posts a review of their own product, posing as an unbiased shopper

 

[LagniappeRob]

The Zubie "Social Media Manager" (one would think she should know social media etiquette as a requirement of her job), answered a question from a customer as the manager then turned around and posted a review failing to mention that she has a financial interest (or any connection for that matter) to the company. That's where the line was crossed...

There are several reviews on there that are highly suspect (names of company members and family members), reviews edited after "inconsistencies" pointed out, 5 stars but no other reviews from that person, etc.

The SMM's direct response to me confirmed she wrote it (already shown), and suggested she sees nothing wrong in shilling for the company using deceptive practices. I also don't believe her answer to the question the customer posted... but that's another story.

 

[Ed McDonnell]

Rob - Thanks for bringing this up. It's easy to become a little too complacent in taking online reviews at face value. I need a reminder every now and then about making sure I put the effort into doing my own due diligence before purchasing.

The examples you linked are clear examples of fraud in my opinion. But I'm always amazed at how many people I talk to these days who don't see this kind of thing as being a problem. Of course, most of them are doing more selling than buying and that might be skewing their moral compass.....

Ed

 

[Rob73]

The SMM's direct response to me confirmed she wrote it (already shown), and suggested she sees nothing wrong in shilling for the company using deceptive practices. I also don't believe her answer to the question the customer posted... but that's another story.

Out of curiosity have you contacted amazon? Be interesting to see what they do considering you have an admittance of guilt. The owners can be shady as well, she may be doing what she's told. Companies know the value of reviews and many of them really don't care if they attain them by deceptive practices. Unfortunately any type of morals these days is rare.. it's all about the $$$

 

[LagniappeRob]

I have contacted Amazon but haven't heard back yet. I even showed them how they can see that she admitted being an employee on their own site and then posted as a customer so that there's no he said/she said.

I have other issues with the product (they admit they'll sell your information to others - they used it as a selling point to get $10M in venture funding). If a manager (and possibly others) will play this fast and loose (and doesn't see a problem with it when confronted), is this an indication of how the company acts? Add in that a C-level exec has worked for a company with "ethics issues" (other people's description) during his tenure there.

Just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get me.:biggrin::biggrin:

 

[Rob73]

I lost my faith in companies years ago I assume they are all shady these days
Post if amazon replies I'm real curious to see how they handle it.

 

[Bocere1]

I've always loved the ability to buy things online, been buying / selling on ebay since they began and I really like Amazon. And the buyer / seller ratings and the customers reviews have always been the best parts of each. I have talked with other people over the years about the trustworthiness of these and about this, when companies started faking positive reviews in a deliberate organized way. I think now, that a cottage industry has began, only the negative reviews are useful. Maybe some competitors post neg reviews but at least this puts the onus on the seller to watch the bad reviews even more.
A funny thing I've noticed on ebay, for those that buy there, we now can see how many people are "watching" an item, l've always thought this would be cool and allow me to gauge the interest there is in something. But now I see something that seems to amount to a positive review, large amounts of "watchers" are appearing on items that are ridiculously overpriced for example 32 watchers on an item priced 99.00, while dozens or even hundreds of the same item is 19.99. It's kinda funny.
Hope this is not to far off the op, just now I can't believe positive reviews or watcher.

 

[healeydays]

Unfortunately my wife deals with these folks with her company on a daily basis and most don't have a clue.

"social media manager" is a misnomer in alot of companies. They pay that position usually peanuts and in alot of cases they get the job cause "I know social media cause I'm on Facebook and Twitter"

 

[monark88]

Thanks for bringing this up. I've often suspected all along that this was happening, but it was just my opinion and couldn't prove it. Thought maybe it was just my natural distrust of some folks in business.

Russ

 

[Haynie]

The evolution of the online market place, specially what I call the Amazon Zone has been very interesting. At the beginning all you dealt with was Amazon, then they opened their doors and now it is like some giant Bazaar where you can get everything, and have to look pretty hard in some cases to see who is actually selling the items.

The last items I bought from Amazon were bought as one of their package things. The "others who bought this item also bought blah blah and blah." Both items were shipped from different buyers and different parts of the world. If I had known this was the case I would not have purchased the items on Amazon.

As for Ebay, I check it out but seldom worry about buying from them. Lately everything I have wanted has been buy it now. No auctions at all for these items. Most of the time the Buy It Now price is higher than other places, and holy cow there is some high shipping.

I guess I am cynical, I never bought into the whole review thing.

 

[LagniappeRob]

Cynical or realistic?

I think the reviews are (were?) worthwhile. But are being made less so by things like this. It's a shame. I've used reviews for years when comparing products. Of course you have to use critical thinking to weigh each side. To quote Don Henley:

There's three sides to every story:
Yours and mine and the cold, hard truth

Fortunately, with enough exposure to them ferreting out fake reviews, at least for physical products (services/restaurants could be harder I suspect), isn't that hard.

 

[tbroye]

I went on Amazon and looked the product up there were some suspicious reviews on there. I always try and look at the one with a rating of 1 also and sometime I google for reviews on a product before I make up my mind

 

[butchf18a]

And we should care why???? Was this reported to Amazon or are we simply looking for a receptive forum? Go turn a pen

 

[Rob73]

And we should care why???? Was this reported to Amazon or are we simply looking for a receptive forum? Go turn a pen

Perhaps you should take your own advice if you have nothing to contribute to the conversation.