Review Spam: Will It Be Fixed? (And How To Deal With It Today)

Posted by chrissb under Online Marketing
From http://smallbusinessshift.com 4670 days ago

Fake negative reviews are a huge headache for any business that is attacked. Will they be stopped? And how can you deal with this spam?

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Comments

Written by saraib820
4670 days ago

"I flew on the Hindenburg. It was a very pleasant experience. The service was great. The landing was a bit rough, but I recommend them highly for the discerning business traveler!"

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Written by chrissb
4670 days ago

Haha. I'm having a bit of trouble finding zeppelins on the travel search sites. Thanks for the recommendation though.

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Written by saraib820
4670 days ago

You have got to be kidding!

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Written by chrissb
4670 days ago

Thanks for the comment Duncan. You do have to take any online reviews with a bit of skepticism. The surprising thing is that surveys show a high amount of trust in online reviews overall.

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Written by saraib820
4670 days ago

Duncan,

I'm also wondering...

We've discussed here the phenomenon of buying Twitter followers and Facebook friends. It's probably only a matter of time before somebody comes up with the idea of selling positive reviews. $5 will get you: "I used product A. It changed my life. And the company? They were so understanding, efficient and professional! I highly recommend them"

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Written by chrissb
4670 days ago

I don't particularly want to link to them here, but there are a number of companies doing this already... Your $5 number's a nice coincidence, because such offers have even shown up on Fiverr.

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Written by businessavante
4670 days ago

Hi Chris.

Thanks for the article - this is one of my biggest bugaboos. Unless & until it's fixed I'll give no weight to reviews. 'Review sites' are a big part of the problem - people go there to 'nut-up' about whatever bothers them that day (or for payola, as you said - the bad side of human nature rearing its ugly head). Someday reviews may be limited to actual customers of the businesses in question - until then, they're worthless.

Duncan

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