Competitor offering customers MONEY for 1-star reviews
Hi all,
A customer messaged me the following:
'Hello, I just wanted to send something your way that I found rather interesting. I get solicited by Amazon sellers all the time to review their products, but never once have I been offered a commission to leave a negative review for a competitor. I am not sure why you guys would be targeted this way but they offered me money to leave a one-star review for your product and then return it. I actually think your product looks good and I have always wanted to try a cold plunge so naturally I refused their offer. Picture attached for so you can see. Thanks for your time.'
They also attached a screenshot of an email they received offering $10/$20/$20 commission for a written review, picture and video.
I only have 1 good competitor in the niche. I have a strong suspicion its them.
Has anyone ever experienced anything similar? would love to hear any insights or recommendations on what to do. Cheers
58 replies
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
The Government has a site IC3 (Amazon will remove the link if I put it here) where you can report the use of the internet for theft or fraud (and other things). In this case it is certainly interference in Interstate Commerce at least.
It is generally used to report on websites but it can be used to report others as well if you happen to encounter one of the Amazon scam crowd.
A report would at least put them on the radar screen for future activities.
Seller_Ew3YaU31cu8vc
I am experiencing same problem. From March, my hot sale items got 1 star reviews frequently. But when I report them to Amazon, they said they did not violate the review policy. So they left at least 30 negative review in the past 3 month. And I found Amzon did nothing help me.
Seller_Jlp3y1LcRq51s
When I launch a new product, I get a 1 star review with no review content. I think it's a competitor doing it. Old products are often subjected to such operations.
Seller_SUBrUFXJ9pHvQ
Wow. Amazon really has to do something about this. At a minimum, Amazon should require reviewers to use their real names on reviews and only offer the ability to leave reviews to individuals that purchased their products on Amazon. I think that is MORE than fair. Just like Amazon enabled accountability on the forums through similar means. I don't even think Google allows people to leave reviews anonymously. That would eliminate so much of this.
I am so glad that this individual had the morality to refuse and report this.
Is anything that serious to tear someone else down to have?? Not only that, but pay money to do it. People are weird
Seller_nWWwWQGgtBfZm
I once received an email. The content is: If you are willing to give me the product for free, I will leave a 5-star message with text and pictures for your product, but I did not respond
There is another comment, he has never bought a product from my store, leaving a five-star but saying that the product is cheaply made, junk product. This is very confusing.
Danika_Amazon
Hi @Seller_YQyoQKYHIcixHand thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. This kind of behavior is not allowed is a violation of our Code of Conduct that should be reported.
Have you reported this as abuse yet? If not, you should start here: Report a Violation
Quoting from the linked page:
"Sellers are responsible for complying with all laws, regulations, and Amazon policies when listing products. Amazon encourages sellers to report listing abuse or seller violations of Amazon's policies or applicable law.
All reports are thoroughly investigated by our team.
For privacy reasons, the results of our investigations can't be disclosed, but we'll take any disciplinary actions we find appropriate.
Policy violations are the result of a seller violating the activities listed on the Selling Policies and Code of Conduct page."
On the Report Abuse page, I would recommend selecting "An abuse issue that is not addressed by the other topics in this menu" and providing as much detail as possible in the "Please describe your issue" field.
Thanks for bringing this important issue to our attention. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
Thanks again,
- Danika
Seller_g6kcVHBFSy79y
Our 4.7-star rating product line is suddenly receiving a combination of customer return complaints saying the product isn't as advertised and product questions saying things like "I didn't get an accessory; I am not sure if this is fake or not". When answering the question, we asked the poster to contact us, and to no surprise, there was no contact. Two weeks ago, Amazon FBA support sent us a warning saying there were too many product return complaints and that they were about to check our product. Unlike the other time this happened, Amazon checked our product and found no issues with it, yet closed the case with a warning that "if this happens again, Amazon will take action." The curious thing was that neither seller central nor the account health team was able to see the return volume or complaints the FBA support was referring to. There must be another customer complaints database that only the FBA support can access. Selling on Amazon is becoming a nerve-racking experience. The platform is designed in a way that it is easy to knock out competition by using a combination of poor reviews, returns, complaints, and questions. And we don't know how to combat it.
Seller_EYVWpC8SnIg7v
does anyone know why MarketScout softwear was shut down by eComEngine? Does anyone know of a replacement service? Trying to look up multiple UPC at once for rankings and current retail price. Any help??
Seller_tAfXR7sVBEoZS
I have tried to give Amazon PROOF of a mailing to me by a competitor to give them a 5 star review for money and Amazon refuses to accept it. Gives me the run around about how to report it, etc. There is NO punishment for any seller that has a high volume, no matter what the violation is. Unless it will get Amazon sued such as a safety issue, Amazon will always turn a blind eye. Hopefully the new lawsuit against them will force them to at least follow their OWN POLICIES and not just make crap up anytime they don't want to issue a refund, correct an improper review, etc.
Competitor offering customers MONEY for 1-star reviews
Hi all,
A customer messaged me the following:
'Hello, I just wanted to send something your way that I found rather interesting. I get solicited by Amazon sellers all the time to review their products, but never once have I been offered a commission to leave a negative review for a competitor. I am not sure why you guys would be targeted this way but they offered me money to leave a one-star review for your product and then return it. I actually think your product looks good and I have always wanted to try a cold plunge so naturally I refused their offer. Picture attached for so you can see. Thanks for your time.'
They also attached a screenshot of an email they received offering $10/$20/$20 commission for a written review, picture and video.
I only have 1 good competitor in the niche. I have a strong suspicion its them.
Has anyone ever experienced anything similar? would love to hear any insights or recommendations on what to do. Cheers
Competitor offering customers MONEY for 1-star reviews
Hi all,
A customer messaged me the following:
'Hello, I just wanted to send something your way that I found rather interesting. I get solicited by Amazon sellers all the time to review their products, but never once have I been offered a commission to leave a negative review for a competitor. I am not sure why you guys would be targeted this way but they offered me money to leave a one-star review for your product and then return it. I actually think your product looks good and I have always wanted to try a cold plunge so naturally I refused their offer. Picture attached for so you can see. Thanks for your time.'
They also attached a screenshot of an email they received offering $10/$20/$20 commission for a written review, picture and video.
I only have 1 good competitor in the niche. I have a strong suspicion its them.
Has anyone ever experienced anything similar? would love to hear any insights or recommendations on what to do. Cheers
58 replies
58 replies
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
The Government has a site IC3 (Amazon will remove the link if I put it here) where you can report the use of the internet for theft or fraud (and other things). In this case it is certainly interference in Interstate Commerce at least.
It is generally used to report on websites but it can be used to report others as well if you happen to encounter one of the Amazon scam crowd.
A report would at least put them on the radar screen for future activities.
Seller_Ew3YaU31cu8vc
I am experiencing same problem. From March, my hot sale items got 1 star reviews frequently. But when I report them to Amazon, they said they did not violate the review policy. So they left at least 30 negative review in the past 3 month. And I found Amzon did nothing help me.
Seller_Jlp3y1LcRq51s
When I launch a new product, I get a 1 star review with no review content. I think it's a competitor doing it. Old products are often subjected to such operations.
Seller_SUBrUFXJ9pHvQ
Wow. Amazon really has to do something about this. At a minimum, Amazon should require reviewers to use their real names on reviews and only offer the ability to leave reviews to individuals that purchased their products on Amazon. I think that is MORE than fair. Just like Amazon enabled accountability on the forums through similar means. I don't even think Google allows people to leave reviews anonymously. That would eliminate so much of this.
I am so glad that this individual had the morality to refuse and report this.
Is anything that serious to tear someone else down to have?? Not only that, but pay money to do it. People are weird
Seller_nWWwWQGgtBfZm
I once received an email. The content is: If you are willing to give me the product for free, I will leave a 5-star message with text and pictures for your product, but I did not respond
There is another comment, he has never bought a product from my store, leaving a five-star but saying that the product is cheaply made, junk product. This is very confusing.
Danika_Amazon
Hi @Seller_YQyoQKYHIcixHand thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. This kind of behavior is not allowed is a violation of our Code of Conduct that should be reported.
Have you reported this as abuse yet? If not, you should start here: Report a Violation
Quoting from the linked page:
"Sellers are responsible for complying with all laws, regulations, and Amazon policies when listing products. Amazon encourages sellers to report listing abuse or seller violations of Amazon's policies or applicable law.
All reports are thoroughly investigated by our team.
For privacy reasons, the results of our investigations can't be disclosed, but we'll take any disciplinary actions we find appropriate.
Policy violations are the result of a seller violating the activities listed on the Selling Policies and Code of Conduct page."
On the Report Abuse page, I would recommend selecting "An abuse issue that is not addressed by the other topics in this menu" and providing as much detail as possible in the "Please describe your issue" field.
Thanks for bringing this important issue to our attention. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
Thanks again,
- Danika
Seller_g6kcVHBFSy79y
Our 4.7-star rating product line is suddenly receiving a combination of customer return complaints saying the product isn't as advertised and product questions saying things like "I didn't get an accessory; I am not sure if this is fake or not". When answering the question, we asked the poster to contact us, and to no surprise, there was no contact. Two weeks ago, Amazon FBA support sent us a warning saying there were too many product return complaints and that they were about to check our product. Unlike the other time this happened, Amazon checked our product and found no issues with it, yet closed the case with a warning that "if this happens again, Amazon will take action." The curious thing was that neither seller central nor the account health team was able to see the return volume or complaints the FBA support was referring to. There must be another customer complaints database that only the FBA support can access. Selling on Amazon is becoming a nerve-racking experience. The platform is designed in a way that it is easy to knock out competition by using a combination of poor reviews, returns, complaints, and questions. And we don't know how to combat it.
Seller_EYVWpC8SnIg7v
does anyone know why MarketScout softwear was shut down by eComEngine? Does anyone know of a replacement service? Trying to look up multiple UPC at once for rankings and current retail price. Any help??
Seller_tAfXR7sVBEoZS
I have tried to give Amazon PROOF of a mailing to me by a competitor to give them a 5 star review for money and Amazon refuses to accept it. Gives me the run around about how to report it, etc. There is NO punishment for any seller that has a high volume, no matter what the violation is. Unless it will get Amazon sued such as a safety issue, Amazon will always turn a blind eye. Hopefully the new lawsuit against them will force them to at least follow their OWN POLICIES and not just make crap up anytime they don't want to issue a refund, correct an improper review, etc.
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
The Government has a site IC3 (Amazon will remove the link if I put it here) where you can report the use of the internet for theft or fraud (and other things). In this case it is certainly interference in Interstate Commerce at least.
It is generally used to report on websites but it can be used to report others as well if you happen to encounter one of the Amazon scam crowd.
A report would at least put them on the radar screen for future activities.
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
The Government has a site IC3 (Amazon will remove the link if I put it here) where you can report the use of the internet for theft or fraud (and other things). In this case it is certainly interference in Interstate Commerce at least.
It is generally used to report on websites but it can be used to report others as well if you happen to encounter one of the Amazon scam crowd.
A report would at least put them on the radar screen for future activities.
Seller_Ew3YaU31cu8vc
I am experiencing same problem. From March, my hot sale items got 1 star reviews frequently. But when I report them to Amazon, they said they did not violate the review policy. So they left at least 30 negative review in the past 3 month. And I found Amzon did nothing help me.
Seller_Ew3YaU31cu8vc
I am experiencing same problem. From March, my hot sale items got 1 star reviews frequently. But when I report them to Amazon, they said they did not violate the review policy. So they left at least 30 negative review in the past 3 month. And I found Amzon did nothing help me.
Seller_Jlp3y1LcRq51s
When I launch a new product, I get a 1 star review with no review content. I think it's a competitor doing it. Old products are often subjected to such operations.
Seller_Jlp3y1LcRq51s
When I launch a new product, I get a 1 star review with no review content. I think it's a competitor doing it. Old products are often subjected to such operations.
Seller_SUBrUFXJ9pHvQ
Wow. Amazon really has to do something about this. At a minimum, Amazon should require reviewers to use their real names on reviews and only offer the ability to leave reviews to individuals that purchased their products on Amazon. I think that is MORE than fair. Just like Amazon enabled accountability on the forums through similar means. I don't even think Google allows people to leave reviews anonymously. That would eliminate so much of this.
I am so glad that this individual had the morality to refuse and report this.
Is anything that serious to tear someone else down to have?? Not only that, but pay money to do it. People are weird
Seller_SUBrUFXJ9pHvQ
Wow. Amazon really has to do something about this. At a minimum, Amazon should require reviewers to use their real names on reviews and only offer the ability to leave reviews to individuals that purchased their products on Amazon. I think that is MORE than fair. Just like Amazon enabled accountability on the forums through similar means. I don't even think Google allows people to leave reviews anonymously. That would eliminate so much of this.
I am so glad that this individual had the morality to refuse and report this.
Is anything that serious to tear someone else down to have?? Not only that, but pay money to do it. People are weird
Seller_nWWwWQGgtBfZm
I once received an email. The content is: If you are willing to give me the product for free, I will leave a 5-star message with text and pictures for your product, but I did not respond
There is another comment, he has never bought a product from my store, leaving a five-star but saying that the product is cheaply made, junk product. This is very confusing.
Seller_nWWwWQGgtBfZm
I once received an email. The content is: If you are willing to give me the product for free, I will leave a 5-star message with text and pictures for your product, but I did not respond
There is another comment, he has never bought a product from my store, leaving a five-star but saying that the product is cheaply made, junk product. This is very confusing.
Danika_Amazon
Hi @Seller_YQyoQKYHIcixHand thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. This kind of behavior is not allowed is a violation of our Code of Conduct that should be reported.
Have you reported this as abuse yet? If not, you should start here: Report a Violation
Quoting from the linked page:
"Sellers are responsible for complying with all laws, regulations, and Amazon policies when listing products. Amazon encourages sellers to report listing abuse or seller violations of Amazon's policies or applicable law.
All reports are thoroughly investigated by our team.
For privacy reasons, the results of our investigations can't be disclosed, but we'll take any disciplinary actions we find appropriate.
Policy violations are the result of a seller violating the activities listed on the Selling Policies and Code of Conduct page."
On the Report Abuse page, I would recommend selecting "An abuse issue that is not addressed by the other topics in this menu" and providing as much detail as possible in the "Please describe your issue" field.
Thanks for bringing this important issue to our attention. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
Thanks again,
- Danika
Danika_Amazon
Hi @Seller_YQyoQKYHIcixHand thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. This kind of behavior is not allowed is a violation of our Code of Conduct that should be reported.
Have you reported this as abuse yet? If not, you should start here: Report a Violation
Quoting from the linked page:
"Sellers are responsible for complying with all laws, regulations, and Amazon policies when listing products. Amazon encourages sellers to report listing abuse or seller violations of Amazon's policies or applicable law.
All reports are thoroughly investigated by our team.
For privacy reasons, the results of our investigations can't be disclosed, but we'll take any disciplinary actions we find appropriate.
Policy violations are the result of a seller violating the activities listed on the Selling Policies and Code of Conduct page."
On the Report Abuse page, I would recommend selecting "An abuse issue that is not addressed by the other topics in this menu" and providing as much detail as possible in the "Please describe your issue" field.
Thanks for bringing this important issue to our attention. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
Thanks again,
- Danika
Seller_ItT1fxfWwVVhy
This is a reverse-thinking issue.
Seller_g6kcVHBFSy79y
Our 4.7-star rating product line is suddenly receiving a combination of customer return complaints saying the product isn't as advertised and product questions saying things like "I didn't get an accessory; I am not sure if this is fake or not". When answering the question, we asked the poster to contact us, and to no surprise, there was no contact. Two weeks ago, Amazon FBA support sent us a warning saying there were too many product return complaints and that they were about to check our product. Unlike the other time this happened, Amazon checked our product and found no issues with it, yet closed the case with a warning that "if this happens again, Amazon will take action." The curious thing was that neither seller central nor the account health team was able to see the return volume or complaints the FBA support was referring to. There must be another customer complaints database that only the FBA support can access. Selling on Amazon is becoming a nerve-racking experience. The platform is designed in a way that it is easy to knock out competition by using a combination of poor reviews, returns, complaints, and questions. And we don't know how to combat it.
Seller_g6kcVHBFSy79y
Our 4.7-star rating product line is suddenly receiving a combination of customer return complaints saying the product isn't as advertised and product questions saying things like "I didn't get an accessory; I am not sure if this is fake or not". When answering the question, we asked the poster to contact us, and to no surprise, there was no contact. Two weeks ago, Amazon FBA support sent us a warning saying there were too many product return complaints and that they were about to check our product. Unlike the other time this happened, Amazon checked our product and found no issues with it, yet closed the case with a warning that "if this happens again, Amazon will take action." The curious thing was that neither seller central nor the account health team was able to see the return volume or complaints the FBA support was referring to. There must be another customer complaints database that only the FBA support can access. Selling on Amazon is becoming a nerve-racking experience. The platform is designed in a way that it is easy to knock out competition by using a combination of poor reviews, returns, complaints, and questions. And we don't know how to combat it.
Seller_EYVWpC8SnIg7v
does anyone know why MarketScout softwear was shut down by eComEngine? Does anyone know of a replacement service? Trying to look up multiple UPC at once for rankings and current retail price. Any help??
Seller_EYVWpC8SnIg7v
does anyone know why MarketScout softwear was shut down by eComEngine? Does anyone know of a replacement service? Trying to look up multiple UPC at once for rankings and current retail price. Any help??
Seller_tAfXR7sVBEoZS
I have tried to give Amazon PROOF of a mailing to me by a competitor to give them a 5 star review for money and Amazon refuses to accept it. Gives me the run around about how to report it, etc. There is NO punishment for any seller that has a high volume, no matter what the violation is. Unless it will get Amazon sued such as a safety issue, Amazon will always turn a blind eye. Hopefully the new lawsuit against them will force them to at least follow their OWN POLICIES and not just make crap up anytime they don't want to issue a refund, correct an improper review, etc.
Seller_tAfXR7sVBEoZS
I have tried to give Amazon PROOF of a mailing to me by a competitor to give them a 5 star review for money and Amazon refuses to accept it. Gives me the run around about how to report it, etc. There is NO punishment for any seller that has a high volume, no matter what the violation is. Unless it will get Amazon sued such as a safety issue, Amazon will always turn a blind eye. Hopefully the new lawsuit against them will force them to at least follow their OWN POLICIES and not just make crap up anytime they don't want to issue a refund, correct an improper review, etc.
