Can I make fake reviews?
And get away with it?
I have friends and family that I can't say a lot to about certain types of products. One of them is a company called Amway. I know them all really well and they are my friends, but they are also extremely biased in their reviews of Amway. I'm always curious about how these companies make it through the system if we are allowed to make fake reviews.
I can see how this could be an issue, but if you know all these people, why wouldn't you be more hesitant to write bad reviews about them. I guess what I am asking is, how does Amway make it through all these fake reviews and still continue to sell their products? My honest opinion is that every company has its fair share of fake reviews, it doesn't matter who the reviewer is, I've worked with a lot of people that were biased and some that were really good at being objective. But I think you have to weigh your personal opinion and the truth of the review against the person or company you're writing it for.
How do you feel about it? Do you think there are any companies that make it through the system or is it just a bunch of crap on the internet? Well, here's my 2 cents. There are companies out there that do not care about anything but themselves. They don't care about customers, about reviews, about making money, they only care about themselves. If there is someone that knows one of these companies well enough and wants to make a little extra cash, then they would be more than willing to write a false review.
There are definitely companies out there that have legitimate reviews, but unfortunately, it's going to be very hard to separate them from the fake reviews. All you can do is check the company's reviews before you purchase from them.
If you purchase their products based on reviews alone, it's going to be extremely hard to tell the difference between legitimate and fraudulent reviews. I think there are so many people out there that think that if they write a good review that they will get something in return. They don't realize that there are scammers out there that are willing to do anything to make a quick buck.
Do you think it would be possible to get a fake review accepted?
Are there fake 5 star Google reviews?
If you've got high-priced Google Places listings for your business, chances are you've had a look through the 5 star reviews they offer, and at least a little bit of anxiety over those reviews having been 'bought'.
Google themselves admit that it's common to find 'bought' reviews. The site is open about it; when we search for ourselves, Google clearly shows the difference between authentic and bought reviews (and gives us the option to filter them).
Here are just a few recent searches I've done on the subject: The good news is that in my experience, even though Google does allow bought reviews, it's relatively rare. And by relatively I mean it happens maybe once every few months. But that means it's a regular pain, something I'd love to find a simple solution to.
So today I'm asking: Have you ever tried finding fake reviews for a Google Places listing? And if you have, how do you spot them, and can you spot any pattern in the people doing them? And what does this mean for businesses with high priced listings? Has anyone else had a look at their Google reviews? Have you noticed any patterns in who might have written fake reviews, and where they could be coming from? What's your business? Thanks for your interest in our site and our work. You can find our content-free newsletter, "Sixty Second Marketing," on this page or via subscription in the right rail.
When I ask my client's what their concerns are about their Google review, they are often shocked to realize that Google allows fake reviews. There is no reason for them to purchase reviews in the first place so why would they be paying to get someone else to write a review on Google Places? Most of the reviews they receive are 100% real. I am sure the ones that are not are the ones that I am noticing from the local grocery store. Some businesses buy fake reviews to boost their rankings because of Google's algorithm. It is hard to notice fake reviews, but if you find any, get rid of them ASAP. If you do get a fake review from a competitor, make sure to notify them.
I love it when they're bought. Especially when you know the person has been watching their competitors and decided that the best way to rank is to review for them.
How do I report fake positive reviews?
There's a common saying about Google reviews that has to do with whether you can trust them, and if you can trust them, then you should probably ignore them.
There are two parts to this: You shouldn't read the reviews of those who you trust. Read the reviews of others who you don't know personally. The first part of the saying holds true on Yelp as well: there are many fake reviews on the Yelp website and elsewhere. These are not necessarily obvious fakes, as they are often reviews by someone else that is just being mischievous or just doesn't want to admit to not liking your restaurant. If someone wants to be malicious on Yelp, it's usually because they want to drive down the prices of their competitors. You see reviews like this all the time in Google Places.
One of our favorite restaurant-going couples recently discovered they were being reviewed by a restaurant on Yelp that they had never been to and were really upset. They had to pay a lot more for a table for the same number of people. Had they gone to that restaurant and read the reviews, they would have known immediately that they weren't going to enjoy their dinner there. They paid extra for what was not the review of a real diner, but of someone who needed to bring down prices in their area. You should be able to tell the difference between people enjoying a visit to your business versus those who are trying to lower your prices.
So if you are reading Yelp reviews that you think are a fake and not coming from a place you know, please feel free to report them as such, as well as emailing us if there's a location you feel strongly about. One other thing. When you report a fake review, which we often do, when that happens, we will also ask that you leave the Yelp business and try finding a different one. This seems to be something Yelp tries to avoid, so you'll notice that they won't remove your negative review of an individual, but they will delete that business listing if you report the review as a fake.
Another thing to know, when you report a review, if that user deletes their Yelp account before you make the report, then Yelp doesn't always update the report accordingly.
Are fake positive reviews illegal?
Recently a client had sent me a copy of a film that was to be screened for us.
The person who submitted the copy was a local distributor, and the credits on the disc suggested that the work had been submitted to various distributors in North America as well as Australia. The film was submitted by email, and it was accompanied by a short covering letter in which the distributor assured me that he had received the rights from the distributor and that the work was being screened locally.
He asked that I make sure that I watched the film. If I wanted to, I could watch it online. He also asked that I please keep this confidential. I found this request surprising and somewhat disturbing.
When I viewed the film it was immediately clear that it was not the work that had been submitted, and that it was not intended to be screened. It was clearly not a feature film. There were no credits, and there was only a small print of the synopsis. I asked if I could watch the other copy of the film. He said that the other copy was an extended version with an hour and a half of additional footage. However, when I sent him the link for the second copy, I received the following reply: Sorry, but we have agreed to remove your contact details for the release of the film.
I asked him why I should remove my contact details. He said that it was agreed. When I asked him to explain what he meant by agreed, he replied We have agreed that you will not get in touch with us again. This was not answer. I then asked him how I could contact him about the film.
After I received the reply that I should not contact him again, I emailed him asking him what I could do. He never replied.
I sent him another email asking him if I could at least make copies of the print so that I could make a personalised DVD cover for the film. He did not respond to that either. He only responded after I emailed him about the film in a second time. In that email he asked me Can you please make a few copies of the film, as I'd like to give the DVD out personally?
At that point I realized that the fake positive reviews were not being removed.
Related Answers
How do you tell if a Google review is from a bot?
In the past few years, Google has taken a strong stance against on...
Are fake Google reviews a crime?
If you say yes to that question, you've just given me the idea of a book....
Can I purchase 1 star Google reviews?
What can I do to get one star reviews on Google? I recently wa...