Beware of deceptive and false product reviews
By BobbiRant
when shopping online this holiday
Many more people are choosing to shop online, especially this holiday season, due to trying to save gas in a bad economy and many times, shoppers can find great bargains on the Internet.
But this year when shopping, be aware of deceptive or bogus consumer ratings and reviews on the sites you shop, especially if you know little about the product you intend to buy. Many web sites and online reviews of products are pretending to use product reviews from legitimate purchasers, when, in fact, they may be false. The stuff you are reading may be for hire endorsements or promotional materials.
These deceptive reviews while on something like electronic gadgets or juicers, may seem harmless, can have some dire consequences if you are purchasing exercise equipment or anything that may cause you harm if the products are faulty in any way.
before you do this:
be aware Before you buy
why doesn't the law do something?
Well regulators for consumer safety are trying to stamp out these deceptive practices, but, according to ConsumerSearch.com, it is almost impossible for authorities to track down the source of most of the deceptive endorsements because they come and go very quickly. It is very difficult for regulators to police them. Basically, the buyer must be aware of these practices and just take every product endorsement with a grain of salt. If you know little or nothing about a product you wish to purchase, at the very least, go to a store, in person, and see if anyone there can tell you about a gadget or product you are interested in. At least, in this way, you will be armed with more information than you started out with before you make a hefty purchase.
Everyone tells us to' do our homework' when we are looking to find more out about what we want to buy, but it has now become very difficult to rely on online product reviews so it is best to speak to a salesperson face to face and then look for that nice online bargain.
Research conducted at Cornell University, has estimated that as much as 5% of all online product reviews are probably deceptive opinion spam and not real. The Federal Trade Commission has brought a couple of these deceptive advertising companies to court recently, but they pop up so often that it is almost impossible to catch them all.
One company even went so far as to have their employees pose as consumers from their own computers at home, and give false product reviews. These were not all the employees who made the products either, many were office people who may or may not have even purchased the products their company was making.
some wording to watch for
Be especially wary of those sites that claim: "I reviewed a lot of products and found this product to be the best by far.' the Consumer Affairs people tell us that the 'most glowing and even the most negative' reviews should be suspected of being false claims. Glowing ones may be fake and the bad ones could be written by competitors to steer buyers away from the competition.
Several months ago, Google even claimed that Facebook had hired a firm to give Google negative feedback and reviews on the Internet. Why would Facebook supposedly do that? Well Google alleged that because it (Google) was expanding out to the social media area, it was being targeted by Facebook and many negative reviews were being posted by paid reviewers to malign Google. Whether it was true or not, is anyone's guess. But Google was very upset by this and claimed they were able to track down those bogus reviewers and found out they were paid by Facebook.
But the moral is this: When buying something that could cause possible harm if not made well or even to help keep you from throwing your money away on a bad product, just be aware of the research you are looking at. Those wonderful reviews may be false and created by writers who never purchased the product in their lives.
Have a happy and safe holiday season, 2011.
Comments
I'll remember this hub the next time I read product review. thks for sharing.
Good advice for the upcoming holiday shopping season. Thanks for posting it.
Hiya Bobbi, good advice. We all know that on the net you can 'be who you want to be', so it follows that you can also write product reviews and endorsements et al that say what you want them to say, or more pertinently 'what people want to read'.
Everybody's looking to save time and hassle, so 'good news' sells more than ever. Whether it's true or not.
Just in regard to your comment about the upcoming holiday season, that's a minefield in itself. How many people check the "unsolicited" customer feedback / ratings / comments on travel and accommodation websites, prior to booking?
Probably everyone. But, how do you know if these are real? Probably, many aren't. It's not hard to set up free email accounts under bogus names and provide your own 'glowing reviews'. Not hard either, to exercise a little restraint and write less than 'glowing', but therefore more credible 'unsolicited reviews' that have the ring of honesty about them. We used to call it 'polishing shit'.
In the old days 'buyer beware' meant be careful what you buy. These days it means be careful what you believe.
One truism remains valid: Don't believe everything you read.
Good helpful Hub, Bobbi.
Bobbi, great hub with great advice. I've never been one to completely trust what I find on the web maybe because I grew up before its existence! I've always been buyer beware and always prefer seeing and feeling what I want to buy. Talking to an informative sales person also helps but again you've got to take what many of them say with a grain of salt. I've been purchasing more off line as of late. Some things you just can't find in a store here in Ontario. So far I've been happy but I tend to stick with reputable companies. Fantastic advice on your part however. The more I shop on line the more I will take heed. Thanks!
this reminds me of how research is often funded by the company that makes the substance/food being tested. I've never been much of an online buyer for things that I need to see in person first. When I buy online it is likely DVDs (of films I've already seen and know I enjoy) and books.
Great advice Bobbi. I never buy anything online. I have to see what i'm buying...
Excellent advice and information Bobbi!
But, I promise, I really did read all the books I've posted reviews on. (wink!)
I'll pass this on to my neighbor - she does nearly all of her holiday and birthday shopping online. I'm betting she'll find the article very useful!
This is so true. You can pretty much guarantee that all companies have someone writing fake product reviews all over the Internet. Definitely keep that in mind when buying something online.
diogenes: Yes, trusting very little on the Internet is a good policy. I usually buy little, except books or CD's that I know won't break. Thanks so much for commenting.
rai2722: I'm glad this little hub is useful to you. Thanks so much for commenting and welcome to my hub.
Drillsetc.com: You are very welcome and welcome to my hub. Thanks so much for commenting.
writeronline: Hello there! All you say is so true. Many times people think they can believe things, like news for example, they read on the Internet. Thanks so much for commenting.
Teresa Coppens: Hello. I'm hoping that this hub is useful for people while shopping the Internet this holiday. Thanks so much for commenting and welcome to my hub.
FloraBreenRobison : That's probably a good policy to have. I too do not like buying from the Internet, but I do sometimes if there is a really good bargain. I can many times, purchase items for half the price of even WalMart stores. Thanks so much for commenting.
always exploring: I hate buying online, but there really can be great bargains out there, one simply has to be very careful though. Thanks so much for commenting.
femmeflashpoint: LOL I did too, read all the books I mean. I'm glad you liked this and I hope it is helpful to your neighbor. Thanks so much for commenting.
IJR112: Hello! I know, it's sad that even product reviews cannot be trusted, yet many companies encourage 'peer reviews' problem is, they are not always true. Just one more avenue for deceit. Thanks so much for commenting and welcome to my hub.
Excellent words of advice, Bobbi. I used to shop more online, but this holiday season, I am going back to the stores. For some reason, I want to see, sense, and touch what I am purchasing -- also because I was burned twice last year with on-line shopping. Up and useful!
Genna East: I agree. Shopping in person and I love shopping locally finding things unique that you just cannot get online or at the big stores. Thank you so much for commenting.
Good Hub on a Timely subject Bobbi. I'm still one that has to go into a store and feel and look at the Items I intend to buy. We were also "Burned" the other day by a company we thought was Comcast in Florida with this great deal...when they faxed us our invoice it was not the same. We quickly canceled. When we get to Florida we will go to the Comcast store!
b. Malin: I'm sorry to hear you got burned and it is true, it's a different world we live in these days. Thank you so much for commenting.
How horrible, b. Malin. So far that hasn't happened to me, but it has happened to some of my friends.
Hello Dear Bobbi ~ Written at the right time of year. Yes! Online shopper beware. Get advice from friends who can reliably recommend a product. (HUGS) Debby
Debby Bruck: Hello there! Thank you for the compliment, I hope this helps some people during this busy shopping time of year. Thanks so much for commenting.
diogenes 6 months ago
Hi Timely: Trust nothing; trust no one. Learn to say "No" decisively. Best online is eBay because you can check and Paypal purchases carry a lot of security. We live in a world beyond the ability of anyone to control, so we need to take precautions ourselves...Bob