Spot Fake Reviews

Spot Fake Review An Incredibly Easy Method That Works For All

Have You Ever Wonder How To Spot Fake Reviews?

 

Spot ’em — Fake Product Reviews

 

The bad news is that we are lousy at identifying deceptive reviews. Take a look at this article from Cornell University.

In a previous post we saw how companies like Amazon, TripAdvisor, and Yelp depend on hundreds of thousands of consumer reviews that collectively point you to “the best of whatever.”

 

 

 

There are honest reviews as well as fake ones, of course. But there’s no central body of authority to rely on when it comes to affiliate marketing, no single agency to tell you who’s good and who’s bad.

 

In order for sites that rely on reviews to retain their credibility, many have started making efforts to crack down on paid for and fake reviews. ~ USA Today

 

Do “due diligence” for yourself!

 

Here are some pointers to watch out for to help you detect false reviews:

 

1. Fight technology with technology: You know the old saying: “It takes one to know one”? A good way to know whether a review is computer-generated is to a computer program.

 

Fakespot is an online tool that helps you work out which are the trustworthy reviews and which are not on both Amazon and Yelp. All you have to do is to  paste a review’s URL into Fakespot’s search engine and wait for the result!   It is fascinating!!!

 

 

 

This random example, which scored 4.5 stars on Amazon, was adjusted to 1 after analysis.

 

 

It may not always be totally accurate, but it’s a good place to start.

 

ReviewSkeptic is another online tool dealing specifically with hotel reviews.  It is based on research at Cornell University that uses machine learning to identify fake hotel reviews with nearly 90% accuracy.

 

2. Check the reviewer’s profile: 

If you are familiar with review, you know that most sites ask you to register an account before leaving a review. Click on the username to see past reviews. Real people will most likely buy a lot of products from Amazon or other companies.  Therefore, you should be able to see more reviews from them

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Look at their patterns — is this person only reviewing one type of product or one company? Is she leaving only very positive — or negative — feedback?

 

3. Compensation:

You also have paid reviews.  What I mean by that is that the reviewer receives the free product in return for a review.  This does not mean that it is a fake review, but it may be biased.

 

In that particular situation, the law requires the reviewer to report the product as a “gift”.   If you don’t see it, don’t be scared to ask in the comment, that will help a lot of people.  No answer? Then you have your answer.  Stay away!

 

Now if your comment gets deleted, report that in RipOff Report. Don’t accuse the reviewer but you can say that “I asked this reviewer of ABC Product whether they were an affiliate or otherwise receiving compensation for reviews. They deleted my question, twice. I wasn’t nasty or insulting – the review just didn’t feel right to me, so I asked. The deletion, in my opinion, speaks louder than the review.

 

4. Review Quality: 

You have reviews that individuals are getting paid to write them.  Those reviews will be short and non-specific. The goal here is to bump the item into the 5 stars as quickly as possible by posting as many “excellent” reviews as possible. So the author needs to be able to copy and paste a large number in a short time.

 

Here is a hint:  Look for words like “great product,” “wonderful service” or “can’t be beaten.”

 

5. Hotel Review – Lack of detail:

Look out for a false hotel review.  A vague review of hotels should be a red flag right there. The reviewer cannot be specific as they had never been there!  So they’d talk instead of the reason they were there. “Spent a wonderful weekend here with the family”; “will always use this hotel for future business trips” are the kinds of things you’re looking for. Look for the word  “Verified” on the hotel review.

 

ReviewSkeptic is an online tool dealing specifically with hotel reviews.  It is based on research at Cornell University that uses machine learning to identify fake hotel reviews with nearly 90% accuracy.

 

6. Lack of experience:

A reviewer that has never had an item. will review it more like a product manual than real-life experience.  On Amazon, look for reviews marked “Verified Purchase” for reviews by people who have bought the product.

 

7. Use of language: 

Some companies will provide templates for their “reviewers” for quick copy and pasting. Look for the same or similar words or phrases, that should be a red flag for you!

Watch for over-the-top words, too: “best thing ever!” and equally “worst thing ever!” without any explanation is most likely fake.

 

8. Blinding with science: 

Fake reviews for health products will often use a long list of “scientific facts.”

 

9. Is the review “all or nothing”?: 

Fake reviews tend to be either 1 star, or 5. There’s rarely an in-between. Make sure you check reviews at 2, 3, and 4 stars too — real reviews tend to be more moderate.

 

Spot ’em — Fake Trade Reviews

 

Moving into a different sector, if a product or service is not from a provider you already know and trust, you will need to conduct additional due diligence before even looking at the product itself.

 

“Making Money,” along with pain, illness, weight loss, diet, and some other categories are where you’ll find vulnerable consumers, and that’s where you’ll also find the most dishonest affiliates. The worst view of these consumers as “suckers,” nothing more.

 

These types of people used to take advantage of people through direct mail, offline.

 

They have turned to the dark side of affiliate marketing to make a buck at the “sucker’s” expense.

 

Here are some pointers:

 

1. Research the trader:

2. Don’t rush into buying a product because it sounds good. Take time to investigate the company first.

4. Check the domain name on whois.com

5. Make sure the owner’s full address and contact details are listed. If not — beware.

7. Is the business a member of a trade body?

8. For example, is that package protected by the Air Traffic Organizer’s Licence (ATOL)?

10. Check approved provider status:

11. Are companies selling financial products on the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (USA) or Financial Conduct Authority (UK) register of approved providers?

13. Security:

14.  If you’re buying online, is the website secure? Look for “https” in the URL and a green padlock in the address bar.

 

I hope this will help you spot fake reviews!  If you have any questions please use the comment box below!