Sellers are taking advantage of the online-shopping frenzy, using old and new methods to boost ratings on products
A charging brick recently caught my eye on Amazon . It was a RAVPower-branded two-port, and it had five stars with over 9,800 ratings. The score seemed suspect but Amazon itself was the seller, so I added it to my cart anyway.
The device arrived a day later, along with a clue to all that customer satisfaction. A small orange insert offered a $35 gift card—roughly half of the product’s price—with instructions on how to redeem the gift: “Email us A. Your order ID B. Your review URL .” Since the fast-charging tech is new to the market, “We want to see how people like it,” said Donny Dong, vice president of sales at Sunvalley, the parent of RAVPower. He said the company didn’t force customers to leave five stars in order to claim a gift card., which bans sellers from offering a financial reward for reviews.
Gift-card rewards are a common approach employed by sellers—even, in the case of RAVPower, Amazon’s wholesale vendors—to entice customers to rate products. They are also a reminder of how difficult it is for Amazon to police the manipulation of reviews, even on products it sells directly. The purchases are genuine, and the compensation is coordinated through email, out of Amazon’s view.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Is Harry Styles Olivia Wilde's Relationship Fake: Alleged PhotoshopFans are convinced that Harry Styles and Olivia Wilde's relationship is fake after they noticed an alleged photoshopped picture.
Read more »
These $25 Swim Trunks Have 31,900 Five-Star Amazon Reviews - E! OnlineThere are more than 45 colors and prints to choose from with inclusive sizing ranging from small to 5X.
Read more »
Amazon Is Pushing For Legalization, But It Probably Won’t Deliver CannabisEven after federal marijuana legalization, Amazon seems unlikely to start selling and delivering cannabis products.
Read more »
House Democrats unveil bills to rein in Silicon Valley giants — opening rift among RepublicansThe antitrust bills target the empires of companies like Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google and potentially Microsoft.
Read more »
CMT Music Awards Ratings Rise From Pandemic-Impacted 2020 TelecastBack to live format in their usual spring berth, The 2021 CMT Music Awards drew 828,000 Live+Same Day total viewers on CMT. That was up +10% vs. the 2020 CMT Music Awards, which were delayed until…
Read more »