As the acceptance of the value of online reviews increases for all businesses, opportunities arise for fraudulent vendors to reach out to business owners soliciting fake reviews, promising big returns for little capital outlay. The return is actually untold damage to a reputation that can take serious work to fix.
Verified review sites rely on their robust auditing practices to eradicate fraudulent reviews before they are even posted. They are easy to spot. A current trend is reviews posted from websites that offer an email address for ten minutes or less – just long enough to draft a fake review and try to post it.
The internet is rife with scams and misrepresentations and there is an army of duplicitous hucksters out to take people’s money with elaborate and apparently believable schemes
Authenticated review sites invest in accountable feedback processes and practices for one important reason – because consumers seek out reviews they can trust, and believe in.
The internet is rife with scams and misrepresentations and there is an army of duplicitous hucksters out to take people’s money with elaborate and apparently believable schemes. Luckily the majority of consumers can tell the difference between what is genuine and what is fabricated but fraudsters make their money off the very small percentage that go against their instincts and give away their hard earned cash.
For those who are caught out trying to have fake feedback posted, the damage can be lasting and harsh
So it is with fake review collectors. NoCowboys has had a number of reports of fraudulent operators selling fabricated reviews. None have passed their rigid security framework but it takes constant vigilance to keep them out.
The real question is why would anyone bother to take them up on the offer? Is it because their actual reputation is so poor that they want to manipulate it? To try and create any advantage over their competitors that they will pay money to shady operators to fabricate a lie?
For those who are caught out, the damage can be lasting and harsh.
Yelp’s Consumer Alerts
In the US fake reviews is an industry and third party feedback sites take them incredibly seriously. Since 2012 Yelp, for example, has put what it calls ‘Consumer Alerts’ on the profile pages of businesses who have paid for reviews. These alerts are obviously detrimental to the well-being of any business.
Acquiring reviews from satisfied customers is not difficult and thousands of Kiwi businesses registered with NoCowboys have satisfied customers more than willing to let their ‘fingers do the talking’. There is simply no need to manipulate the process and pay money to anyone promising great reviews from fake email accounts.
Note: NoCowboys is currently creating a Consumer Beware icon for businesses that are caught out trying to have fraudulent feedback posted on their profiles.
