Problem 2 - Fake online reviews
How companies are using fake online reviews to mislead consumers and defeat competitors
What is the problem & how big it is?
Fake online reviews posted by companies are rampant on the internet. According to an online review monitoring service, Fakespot around 42 % of reviews (300 million) posted between March & Sep 2020 on Amazon are fake. In fact, some sellers are paying bribes to consumers to write positive reviews on Amazon. There are numerous click farms, Facebook groups, and companies where you can buy fake reviews.
Also, companies are removing the negative reviews of their products or services from the internet. There are now services which help companies remove negative reviews online. Glassdoor has been accused of moving towards that model where they are helping brands selectively remove negative employee reviews. Amazon is also allegedly guilty of doing the same, where they have banned negative reviewers.
Why does the problem exist?
Companies know that reviews form an integral part of the purchase process with a study revealing that almost 2/3rd (66%) of consumers read a review before making a purchase, hence companies artificially plant fake positive reviews to enhance their brand perception and eventually increase their sales.
Reviews are so crucial for businesses that leaving a negative one might severely affect their business. Hence we hear stories like negative reviewers being beaten by the business owner. Recently a US citizen was jailed in Thailand for leaving a negative review on Trip advisor.
What are the current solutions?
Amazon has time and again talked about working towards maintaining high standards of verification and removal of fake reviews. But the scale on which they are operating makes it difficult to remove bogus reviews and their efforts have been accused of not big enough by the watchdog.
A useful service is built by Fakespot.com where they analyze if the review is fake or not using data algorithms. This service has gained traction in the recent past.
Another heuristic can be to read-only 3-star reviews as they are less likely to be manipulated, and look for bad grammar and extremely positive reviews which are likely to be paid.
What is our proposed solution?
A community-based review sharing platform. The social good of helping others can be a driver for writing reviews. Readers of the reviews have a clear incentive of getting access to verified reviews.
There should be a strong focus on the verification (either manually or algorithmically) and strong moderation of all reviews on the platform. Something like what stackoverflow has done for programming, similar can be done for product reviews. Of course, there is more objectivity in programming than a product experience.
The identity of the reviewers should be protected, as sharing negative reviews might pose risk to them.
From a revenue point of view, ads and affiliate marketing can be initial sources. After decent traction is built paid features for consumers(for example limiting usage of the platform) or a donation-based path can also be taken.
Conclusion
The companies have an edge over common people due to more money, authority, and reach, thus can use it to manipulate the consumers. But, in the free market, it’s the consumers who should decide which company should grow and which should shut down. This can be an attempt towards giving the power back to the consumers to make an informed purchase decision and help only the authentic businesses grow.