Big change to Amazon Review Policy

[val2525]

From Lisa Suttora:


Major news from Amazon today. Effective immediately Amazon has banned ALL reviews obtained from anyone else other than a REAL customer.

This means NO more:

Discounted Reviews
Free Product Reviews
Review Services
Review Clubs
Review by Family or Friends

Get the details here.

I've been predicting this would happen for the past two years. I suspected it would happen before Q4 2016. It finally has and it's a good thing.

This had to happen because too many ill-intentioned sellers abused the review system. And it's killing the credibility of the Amazon marketplace.

For the past few years I've been preaching about not relying on promotional reviews.

The Amazon marketplace is flooded with them and it was only a matter of time before Amazon had to take action.

Frankly, I'm surprised it took this long.

Buyers don't trust the product reviews any more.

And reviews have ALWAYS been a cornerstone of the Amazon marketplace.

But in 2011, there were courses that started teaching people to get hundreds of incentivized reviews to manipulate sales rank.

That process has always been wrong.

It's just that a new generation of sellers were taught that this is how you compete.

And it's not.

Now, the product and the seller will have to earn sales the old-fashioned way - with a good product, a good product page and using external traffic to drive sales.

On Tuesday, I will be hosting a Facebook LIVE event on my FB page at 12:00 noon Pacific to discuss this new policy and how you can sell successfully without getting promotional reviews.

Something my private clients and coaching students have been doing all along.

Click the link below, Like my Facebook page and join me LIVE Tuesday!

www.facebook.com/lisasuttora/

NOTE: If you have incentivized Amazon reviews in progress, DON'T have them posted. This policy is effective immediately and Amazon will suspend accounts that post incentivized reviews from here forward!


From eCommerceBytes:

www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abn/y16/m10/i04/s01

[kat]

I'm so glad. I hate having to filter through looking for verified purchaser reviews, then having to read the whole review to see if they have the incentivized disclaimer.

[Shirley U Geste]

That is really good news.

I wish more sites would do that.

[labbypaws]

I look around before buying. I read the negs/low ratings first and then shop. Hoping this helps with the integrity of product reviews.

[Deleted]

I wish there was a way they could just mass remove these from the site or a quick way the user could see only real reviews. I tried to shop there for water shoes for our trip but it was a mess. All of them were loaded with this type of review, it was impossible to see what was a decent type of shoe and what wasn't. I finally stumbled on fitkicks and ordered them directly off the manufacturer website, should have them on Monday. They look pretty cool and won't take up any room in the luggage, plus they could be worn around the house after we got back if we wanted since they are originally intended as casual comfy shoes. We'll probably keep them for our next trip and just use them as water shoes. Tried to get some quick dry sport towels for the trip and ran into the same issue with them, totally gave up on those and we'll just take some of the thin $4 WM ones.

Their screwed up fb system has cost them multiple sales from me (though I doubt my $200-$300 here or there hurts their bottom line). I just don't trust ordering from them since they started the incentive reviews. Now that they are gone I may start again but not if I have to wade through them to see what's real and what isn't.