Fake Amazon reviews and ways to see through them

Click the reviewer. That is where I start when a product has a wall of five stars, and this episode is the rest of what I look at before I believe a review, whether it is glowing or vicious. I share the patterns I see in bought and botted reviews: profiles with one or two reviews, the same wording repeated across accounts, the "leave us five stars for a coupon" card in the box, the negative campaigns run against products that are doing well, and the LinkedIn posting parties where forty reviews land in two hours after two weeks of silence. I also share what I would rather read: the four star review, the person who took three weeks to write it, the one written subjectively rather than "this is the best." And a feature I wish Amazon would add, the time between delivery and review, because a beard oil reviewed on day one tells me nothing and reviewed on day twenty one tells me something. For businesses putting reviews on their own site: "John S. says this is the greatest thing" with no link is worth very little. Back link to Google Business, Yelp, Trustpilot or Amazon so a reader can see the person exists. I would rather have a thin profile that is real than a full one that was bought. The reviewers are not held liable. So if you buy on the strength of reviews you never checked, that ends up on you. Dig a little deeper. Written transcription, chapters and links: https://lorenweisman.com/2025/01/01/fake-amazon-reviews-transcription/

Wait What Really OK is hosted by brand communications and optics strategist Loren Weisman.
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