4 ms·

There are lots of "favorites", but one of my favorites is when someone rates it highly and says that they ordered it, haven't yet received it, but are very exci

by z9znz 4y ago

There are lots of "favorites", but one of my favorites is when someone rates it highly and says that they ordered it, haven't yet received it, but are very excited to try it. So in other words, they have no idea, but they are so hopeful and excited they already rated it!

monopoliessuck 4y ago
My favorite is the question and answer area where they answer "I don't know".
- bombcar 4y ago
  Both of these are caused by the emails sent out, where unsuspecting people try to do their best to answer the question or write a review - sometimes thinking they have to.
  - currency 4y ago
    Yeah. Amazon didn't start the answers section like this. Once Amazon started emailing random purchasers to answer questions about the item they purchased, the quality of the answers went way down.
    - eru 4y ago
      In principle it would be very easy to Amazon to detect 'I don't know' type answers.
      - yencabulator 4y ago
        In principle it would be very easy to Amazon to detect when a product listing is switched to a completely different item, yet that fraud is rampant.
        eru 4y ago
        Yes. I was already implicitly blaming Amazon for the low-quality reviews..
vlovich123 4y ago
A lot of times manufacturers will offer discounts for a positive review.
- bigtunacan 4y ago
  They'll do more than a discount. They have entire groups dedicated to giving out entirely free products in exchange for five star reviews. They provide entire catalogs of products available; you put in an order request(s) then get a confirmation to place the order. Then you buy the item on Amazon and leave your 5 star review. After the seller verifies your review you are sent full reimbursement typically through PayPal. I got invited to join one of these groups from a friend and got tons of free products on Amazon this way. I remember getting a free home security system that was like $500 or $600. I never even took it out of the box, just re-sold it on Facebook Marketplace. Eventually I left the group because I felt bad leaving these good reviews when some of the products were absolutely garbage. It's an unfortunate situation for the sellers though too; people don't buy products on Amazon that don't have reviews. So if a seller can't bootstrap a few good reviews early on then they won't ever start making real sales.
jaclaz 4y ago
I would add that something like this often happens outside online shops for devices and more generally house appliances. My theory is that many people are "proud" to have bought something, either for its novelty or because they managed to get the whatever for a lowish price/discount, or - on the opposite - because they already spent an awful amount of money so it must be exceptional, or because they read somewhere that the thing is exceptionally good. Short of the thing completely not working, they are (in good faith) convinced that they got the best and talk endlessly on how good it is, and how nothing else is as good. Once upon a time it was typical of many self-appointed Hi-Fi experts but in more recent years I have seen the same behaviour in many other cases, from vacuum cleaners to Tv's.

by z9znz 4y ago

monopoliessuck 4y ago

My favorite is the question and answer area where they answer "I don't know".

bombcar 4y ago
Both of these are caused by the emails sent out, where unsuspecting people try to do their best to answer the question or write a review - sometimes thinking they have to.
- currency 4y ago
  Yeah. Amazon didn't start the answers section like this. Once Amazon started emailing random purchasers to answer questions about the item they purchased, the quality of the answers went way down.
  - eru 4y ago
    In principle it would be very easy to Amazon to detect 'I don't know' type answers.
    - yencabulator 4y ago
      In principle it would be very easy to Amazon to detect when a product listing is switched to a completely different item, yet that fraud is rampant.
      - eru 4y ago
        Yes. I was already implicitly blaming Amazon for the low-quality reviews..

vlovich123 4y ago

A lot of times manufacturers will offer discounts for a positive review.

bigtunacan 4y ago
They'll do more than a discount. They have entire groups dedicated to giving out entirely free products in exchange for five star reviews. They provide entire catalogs of products available; you put in an order request(s) then get a confirmation to place the order. Then you buy the item on Amazon and leave your 5 star review. After the seller verifies your review you are sent full reimbursement typically through PayPal. I got invited to join one of these groups from a friend and got tons of free products on Amazon this way. I remember getting a free home security system that was like $500 or $600. I never even took it out of the box, just re-sold it on Facebook Marketplace. Eventually I left the group because I felt bad leaving these good reviews when some of the products were absolutely garbage. It's an unfortunate situation for the sellers though too; people don't buy products on Amazon that don't have reviews. So if a seller can't bootstrap a few good reviews early on then they won't ever start making real sales.

jaclaz 4y ago

I would add that something like this often happens outside online shops for devices and more generally house appliances. My theory is that many people are "proud" to have bought something, either for its novelty or because they managed to get the whatever for a lowish price/discount, or - on the opposite - because they already spent an awful amount of money so it must be exceptional, or because they read somewhere that the thing is exceptionally good. Short of the thing completely not working, they are (in good faith) convinced that they got the best and talk endlessly on how good it is, and how nothing else is as good. Once upon a time it was typical of many self-appointed Hi-Fi experts but in more recent years I have seen the same behaviour in many other cases, from vacuum cleaners to Tv's.