Check Out Ways to Spot and Save Yourself from Fake Reviews on Online Shopping Sites
Endorsements to deceive consumers into believing something are plentiful on the Internet. To solve fake reviews problem, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) put hundreds of companies on notice in October 2021. The step was taken to check if they use fabricated endorsements to deceive consumers.
A few companies reportedly suppress negative online shopping reviews from websites to mislead potential customers.
Various online shopping experience reviews are fake reviews. These online shop reviews are used to trick a consumer into purchasing a product. Fake online reviews could be done by the international online shop itself. They post fabricated positive reviews on their own site or negative reviews on a competitor’s site.
An international online store sends a product to a consumer at no charge. The consumer leaves a positive review for that international shop with no mention of how they received the product.
Finding fake reviews online is difficult. There are many ways to know how to spot a fake review.
Ways to be Kept in Mind to Know How to Spot Fake Reviews
Pay Attention
As a consumer, you should take notice of someone posting multiple reviews in a short amount of time. These online shopping reviews are either favourable or negative towards a product.
Dates of the Reviews
If there are many reviews in a short period, it is an indication the reviews are fake. A list of reviews that has a diverse range from different periods of time can be more trustworthy.
Extreme Negative or Positive Reviews
A review that is 100% positive or negative is a sign that the reviewer’s intentions are not genuine.
An overwhelmingly positive review is an indication that the person has blind loyalty to the brand. The other scenario is that they are paid for the review.
Similarly, a completely negative review is an attempt to damage the company’s reputation.
Notice the Language of the Review
A genuine review will appear like it is written by an average person. It tends to have a few minor grammatical errors, but it should be clear without sounding overly formal. A possible sign of fake reviews is when the quality of writing is either very bad or grammatically sound.
A perfectly polished review is a signal that someone was paid to make the product sound as great as possible.
Always be alert about reviews that use similar language. If there are an ample number of reviews posted in a short time using similar language, it is an indication that the reviews are fake. In exchange for a free product, there is an expectation from a consumer to use specified phrases when reviewing the product.
Excessive Humour
Lots of people treat the reviews section as a platform to test their comedic skills. Humour and sarcasm make it difficult to tell whether a review is genuinely funny or just writing a bogus review to get a laugh.
Put Focus on Irrelevant Details
There are a few online shopping experience reviews that are not relevant. They do not address the key question: whether the item is worth buying.
A common form of this type of review is complaining about slow shipping times, damaged boxes, or other tangential details. While it can be frustrating to have an item damaged during shipping, that does not affect the quality of the actual product.
Check Out Who is the Reviewer
A generic-sounding name is an indication that the review was made by a fake account. If a reviewer has submitted only one review on one product, that can also turn out to be a fake review.
Beware of Reviews on Social Media
The Federal Trade Commission guidelines require influencers to reveal their financial, employment, personal, or family relationship with a brand when promoting their product. Various social media influencers tell their audience to purchase or use a product without disclosing the relationship with the brand.
Check Whether the Reviewer’s Purchase Was Verified
An online review that shows it was from a verified purchaser is more trustworthy than a review that involves a supposed purchase that has not been verified. Many shopping sites display if the reviewer bought the item they are reviewing. If the person did not purchase the product, never trust what they have to say about it.
Beware of Customer Jacking
There are phrases like “I tried this product, hated it, and promptly bought the {competitor product here} and I LOVE it! Go buy it here now for 20% off!” reviews. These kinds of reviews always go for reviewers who leave a link to their own site in their review. Never use those links.
Free Product is Mentioned
It’s a common practice for an international online store to offer a free product in exchange for a review. They do not always state to leave a positive review. But, people who participate in schemes like these fear that they might get another invite for a free product if they leave a negative review.
Many sites have restricted these free product reviews, but that doesn’t mean they never happen. If you see someone who left reviews for companies that are known to offer such trades, treat them with suspicion.
Look Out for Website-Controlled Reviews
Finally, you should scan reviews that are not real user reviews at all. This is not a problem on an international online shop like Amazon Desertcart. It is common on first-party sites that are for software and products. In these cases, a lot of curated high reviews are observed singing the praises of a product. There are almost no negative reviews to balance those out.
If the site curates the reviews to make itself look the best, do not trust those reviews.
Conclusion:
With all the review fraud that is out there, is it even worth checking out online reviews? Fortunately, the answer to this is yes. Many sites are working on this to crack down on fake online reviews. They want to build up the credibility of legitimate reviews for an international online store. Online websites like Yelp, Google, and TripAdvisor are working on their fraud detection.
An honest international shop always thinks to benefit its customers.
There are many ways to combat fake reviews. If a website lets you report suspicious reviews, do that. Always compare multiple reviews, including professional ones. Try to get an aggregate opinion. Always write your reviews that will be useful to others in the future.
