Ask Dave Taylor
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • YouTube Videos
  • Top Categories
  • Subscribe via Email
  • Ask A Question
  • Meet Dave
  • Home
  • Amazon, eBay, and Online Shopping Help
  • Are Amazon Product Reviews Really Trustworthy?

Are Amazon Product Reviews Really Trustworthy?

April 3, 2023 / Dave Taylor / Amazon, eBay, and Online Shopping Help / 1 Comment

I was looking for a new bike helmet and was confused by the range of reviews on Amazon. Some people had 5-star reviews and said it was incredibly comfortable while others posted 1-star reviews and said they hated it. Who am I to believe?

While you’re asking about Amazon, you’re really asking about user reviews across the entire Web. The reality of the situation is that, unfortunately, there are very few online reviews that are entirely trustworthy because it’s impossible to know the author’s motivation. While Amazon is the most obvious, this conundrum proves true for every site that allows customers to submit reviews, and doubly so with influencers and social media sites.

In the early days of Amazon, I remember being at a bookstore and checking Amazon reviews before making purchase decisions. If the average review was poor, I’d typically skip my purchase. I still do that with some purchases, but am much more skeptical about what I read.

SELLERS GAME THE SYSTEM

At a certain point, authors realized that they could manipulate their book ranking by motivating fans to post overly glowing reviews. In fact, they can even manipulate the Amazon best-seller list. Ever received an email from your favorite author offering a big discount on their new book if you buy it on a specific day? That’s one common way authors trick the system seeking to gain best-seller status.

amazon ratings 4.6 out of 45,000 reviews

Manipulation isn’t limited to just books, lots of products — even apps! — now include a card inviting customers to write a positive review on Amazon. Heck, some restaurants offer free appetizers or desserts for Yelp or Google reviews.

The worst offenders in my book, though, are the vendors who have people deliberately leave bad reviews of competitors’ products. Products with higher star ratings get better visibility and are therefore more likely to garner good sales, so there’s some logic to it. But it’s certainly not ethical and it’s a pretty slimy business practice even if you can somehow justify it.

AMAZON FIGHTS BACK

amazon ratings reviews 3.5 out of 5 37 reviewsTo combat these scams, Amazon instituted a new program back in 2016 called the Verified Purchase program, where only people who purchase the product are allowed to review it. A definite help, but it doesn’t solve the problem, particularly for less expensive products.

Every day people are incentivized to buy products, leave 5-star reviews, then receive a gift card for the cost plus a few dollars from the seller. There are even Facebook groups dedicated to finding people willing to participate in these schemes.

Amazon also has a team that analyzes user-submitted reviews and claims that it blocks millions of bogus reviews every year. Perhaps that’s true, but let’s be honest, if I offer you a gift card from Best Buy to review my next book or gadget on Amazon, how would Amazon’s team know?

By the way, here’s what Amazon now explains about Verified Purchases. Notice it leaves the option of people who don’t buy the product on Amazon still reviewing it on Amazon:

amazon verified purchase review info

The key is “Reviews without this label…”. Can they really be helpful?

LET’S NOT FORGET INFLUENCERS

And we haven’t even talked about influencers and how they’re often paid hundreds, or thousands of dollars to share their (secretly biased) opinions on social media channels. How many are good at disclosure? How many think that they can extoll the benefits of a product or service then bury “#sponsored” in a cluster of 25+ hashtags and feel they’ve properly disclosed their relationship?

Here’s what Instagram says. Not very focused on the user experience, though, is it?

instagram branded content recommendation

What I suggest is that you take all reviews with that proverbial grain of salt: If someone’s over the moon about something pedestrian (like a charging cable: Why are there charging cables with over 45,000 reviews?) or loathes a mundane product (who bothers to complain about a coaster that isn’t perfectly flat when it only cost $3?), it’s suspicious. If there are fewer than thirty reviews, the disappointing truth is that they might all be bogus. Buyer beware.

To end on an up note, however, if there are lots of reviews then the overall sentiment is probably trustworthy, even if some individual reviews might be questionable. It’s still fascinating just how often every single product in a popular Amazon category is rated between 4.2 – 4.9, even across hundreds of products. Where are the 3’s? The 2’s?

The ultimate solution: Allocate the time to read more reviews to get a better sense of overall sentiment and you’ll likely get a good sense of the product in question. Good luck.

Pro Tip: I’ve been writing about Amazon since it was just a place to buy books, along with a lot more about shopping online, etc. Please check out my Amazon and Online Shopping Help area for more tutorials on this subject!

About the Author: Dave Taylor has been involved with the online world since the early days of the Internet. Author of over 20 technical books, he runs the popular AskDaveTaylor.com tech help site. You can also find his gadget reviews on YouTube and chat with him on Twitter as @DaveTaylor.

Let’s Stay In Touch!

Never miss a single article, review or tutorial here on AskDaveTaylor, sign up for my fun weekly newsletter!
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please enter all required fields
Correct invalid entries
No spam, ever. Promise. Powered by FeedBlitz
Please choose a color:
Starbucks coffee cup I do have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but first I'd like to say thank you, Dave, for all your helpful information by buying you a cup of coffee!
amazon reviews, influencers, online reviews

One comment on “Are Amazon Product Reviews Really Trustworthy?”

  1. Oldster says:
    April 12, 2023 at 4:09 pm

    Since I had a very bad experience with another site, I now get all my PC hardware from Amazon, mostly because it is delivered to my home (I’m in my 70s and have trouble going through brick-and-mortar stores). Because I regularly purchase hardware from them, I periodically get requests from Amazon to review what I have recently purchased. I do post reviews, and while most of them are good, only those purchases that delighted me get a great review while those that disappoint me get a bad one. I try to be objective and honest. If I don’t like a product, when I review it, I explain why as well as whether I returned it.

    Sometimes I get an offer to post a positive review from a seller. When I do, I don’t take the ‘gift’, but I do review the seller, telling all about getting the offer. After two or three, I don’t get those offers any more (anyone wonder why?). 🙂

    Ernie

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search

Recent Posts

  • How Can I Use Generative AI to Write Better Email in Gmail?
  • How Can I Hide Recent Apps and Docs on my Mac System?
  • Guide to Pairing Bluetooth Headphones with a Chromebook
  • How to Use Twitter Reply-to-DM Features and New Reaction Emoji
  • Find and Play Minesweeper, Solitaire and more in Win11

On Our YouTube Channel

Eufy Security 5-in-1 Smartlock Deadbolt -- INSTALL, DEMO & REVIEW

BlendJet 2 Portable Blender & Orbiter Drinking Lid -- DEMO & REVIEW

Categories

  • AdSense, AdWords, and PPC Help (106)
  • Amazon, eBay, and Online Shopping Help (166)
  • Android Help (234)
  • Apple iPad Help (150)
  • Apple Watch Help (53)
  • Articles, Tutorials, and Reviews (346)
  • Auto Tech Help (19)
  • Business Advice (200)
  • ChromeOS Help (38)
  • Computer & Internet Basics (789)
  • d) None of the Above (166)
  • Facebook Help (384)
  • Google, Chrome & Gmail Help (191)
  • HTML & Web Page Design (248)
  • Instagram Help (49)
  • iPhone & iOS Help (630)
  • iPod & MP3 Player Help (173)
  • Kindle & Nook Help (100)
  • LinkedIn Help (90)
  • Linux Help (178)
  • Linux Shell Script Programming (90)
  • Mac & MacOS Help (919)
  • Most Popular (16)
  • Outlook & Office 365 Help (35)
  • PayPal Help (68)
  • Pinterest Help (54)
  • Reddit Help (20)
  • SEO & Marketing (82)
  • Spam, Scams & Security (98)
  • Trade Show News & Updates (23)
  • Twitter Help (224)
  • Video Game Tips (66)
  • Web Site Traffic Tips (62)
  • Windows PC Help (962)
  • Wordpress Help (206)
  • Writing and Publishing (72)
  • YouTube Help (47)
  • YouTube Video Reviews (159)
  • Zoom, Skype & Video Chat Help (64)

Archives

Social Connections:

Ask Dave Taylor


Follow Me on Pinterest
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on LinkedIn
Follow me on Instagram


AskDaveTaylor on Facebook



microsoft insider mvp


This web site is for the purpose of disseminating information for educational purposes, free of charge, for the benefit of all visitors. We take great care to provide quality information. However, we do not guarantee, and accept no legal liability whatsoever arising from or connected to, the accuracy, reliability, currency or completeness of any material contained on this site or on any linked site. Further, please note that by submitting a question or comment you're agreeing to our terms of service, which are: you relinquish any subsequent rights of ownership to your material by submitting it on this site. Our lawyer says "Thanks for your cooperation."
© 2023 by Dave Taylor. "Ask Dave Taylor®" is a registered trademark of Intuitive Systems, LLC.
Privacy Policy - Terms and Conditions - Accessibility Policy