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Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

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Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#71

Post by onion2k »

timmytokyo wrote: post #46
spamizbad wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those hundreds of fake reviews are a feature, not a bug for Amazon. They drive sales. And when the chickens come home to roost, as you say, Amazon will probably figure out a completely different trick to juice sales.

In the short term Amazon may benefit from this. But the fake reviews, throw-away brands, and counterfeit items are gradually corroding Amazon's credibility and brand identity among customers. This is the first year I've heard family members (who are frequent Amazon customers) complaining about these kinds of issues.

But the fake reviews, throw-away brands, and counterfeit items are gradually corroding Amazon's credibility and brand identity among customers.

Amazon are very good at making money. This is not a problem for them; it's an opportunity.

Before Amazon lose all their credibility they'll introduce something like "Amazon Assured" that sells customers a guaranteed real item. They'll charge sellers for the privilege of having the "assured" status on the product page, and make filtering by assured status something that's only accessible to Amazon Prime users.

Users will believe Amazon are doing this to protect them.

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#72

Post by iratewizard »

jstummbillig wrote: post #69
noduerme wrote: post #56

I wish I could say I stopped buying things off Amazon for ethical reasons, but the truth is, I stopped buying because if you look closely at the reviews, you realize that almost everything for sale there is now a scam or a knock-off. This was a slow creep for awhile, but now the problem has grown exponentially. Amazon is what Canal Street was in the 90s - somewhere to buy fakes, stolen goods, and electronics that mig…

> Amazon has no interest in fixing this problem, because they know that well over half their "inventory" is now from knockoffs, IP theft and/or bait-and-switch scams. That sounds very much like they'd have an interest in fixing the problem. Short-sightedness does not appear to be one of Amazons issues.

Amazon chose to get deep into bed with China. This is part and parcel of favoring the Chinese vendors that sell on your platform. Just be glad there haven't been any reports of toys painted with lead (yet).

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#73

Post by estaseuropano »

TheSpiceIsLife wrote: post #34
ratsmack wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe that is what most people would consider as being dishonesty and fraud.

Two wrongs are two wrongs no matter which way you slice them. Still, it’s an amusing comment. Amazon is complicit in aiding a third party to commit fraud. Not all of us are just, up right, mature adults, of sound mind and strict morals. Sending them back a steaming pile of dog shit is kind of amusing.

No, because some minimum wage worker has to unpack it. You don't tskr revenge on the people responsible, but on a poor sob that just wanted to earn a living.

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#74

Post by 14 »

noduerme wrote: post #56

I wish I could say I stopped buying things off Amazon for ethical reasons, but the truth is, I stopped buying because if you look closely at the reviews, you realize that almost everything for sale there is now a scam or a knock-off. This was a slow creep for awhile, but now the problem has grown exponentially. Amazon is what Canal Street was in the 90s - somewhere to buy fakes, stolen goods, and electronics that mig…

I was recently looking for some Goodyear welt boots and a amazon suggestion popped up in the search feed. I did click it to see what they looked like but right away though no way I would buy a nice boot from Amazon I doubt they would actually be Goodyear welt boots. This should concern amazon. If I am afraid to buy something then they are losing money. You would think they would want to bolster public trust in them.

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#75

Post by Spivak »

noduerme wrote: post #68
winternett wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Scamazon, Wak-Mart, and Turget likely facilitate the sale of shoddy goods because consumers need to repurchase them when they break and overall that makes them higher profits. I've had to buy room fans almost every year because that's really the only local option I have now at big box stores near me, The smaller shops are all closed now. This is why we can't allow the concept of mom-and-pop shops to die off... Qualit…

Yeah, the problem is Mom-and-pop shops just can't survive on the customers who are willing to spend extra to make sure they get a quality product. It's not just that there aren't enough people in this country who're willing to pay extra... it's that you can't even get those quality products anymore . Stuff made ten years ago in every category from mattresses to washing machines is more durable and will last longer th…

What mom and pop shops are you going to? Seriously, if you peruse Aliexpress for a bit you will see that every “local” store has all the same junk. It’s not like John Mitchell from Wilmington Wisconsin is doing anything other than sourcing from the same wholesalers.

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#76

Post by BrazzVuvuzela »

winternett wrote: post #62
noduerme wrote: post #56

I wish I could say I stopped buying things off Amazon for ethical reasons, but the truth is, I stopped buying because if you look closely at the reviews, you realize that almost everything for sale there is now a scam or a knock-off. This was a slow creep for awhile, but now the problem has grown exponentially. Amazon is what Canal Street was in the 90s - somewhere to buy fakes, stolen goods, and electronics that mig…

Scamazon, Wak-Mart, and Turget likely facilitate the sale of shoddy goods because consumers need to repurchase them when they break and overall that makes them higher profits. I've had to buy room fans almost every year because that's really the only local option I have now at big box stores near me, The smaller shops are all closed now. This is why we can't allow the concept of mom-and-pop shops to die off... Qualit…

Lasko fans are the way to go. I have one of their utility fans that is good for continuous duty, it's lasted 10 years and shows no signs of quitting. I got mine on amazon but I've seen them in hardware stores too.

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#77

Post by andreareina »

jstummbillig wrote: post #69
noduerme wrote: post #56

I wish I could say I stopped buying things off Amazon for ethical reasons, but the truth is, I stopped buying because if you look closely at the reviews, you realize that almost everything for sale there is now a scam or a knock-off. This was a slow creep for awhile, but now the problem has grown exponentially. Amazon is what Canal Street was in the 90s - somewhere to buy fakes, stolen goods, and electronics that mig…

> Amazon has no interest in fixing this problem, because they know that well over half their "inventory" is now from knockoffs, IP theft and/or bait-and-switch scams. That sounds very much like they'd have an interest in fixing the problem. Short-sightedness does not appear to be one of Amazons issues.

By their actions, not so much:

- commingling of inventory means you're not necessarily getting the stuff from the merchant you're ostensibly buying from

- which doesn't really matter anyway because merchant reviews are hard to find (couldn't find them at all on mobile)

- being able to change the product being sold while keeping the rating and review history. WAT

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#78

Post by chaostheory »

winternett wrote: post #62
noduerme wrote: post #56

I wish I could say I stopped buying things off Amazon for ethical reasons, but the truth is, I stopped buying because if you look closely at the reviews, you realize that almost everything for sale there is now a scam or a knock-off. This was a slow creep for awhile, but now the problem has grown exponentially. Amazon is what Canal Street was in the 90s - somewhere to buy fakes, stolen goods, and electronics that mig…

Scamazon, Wak-Mart, and Turget likely facilitate the sale of shoddy goods because consumers need to repurchase them when they break and overall that makes them higher profits. I've had to buy room fans almost every year because that's really the only local option I have now at big box stores near me, The smaller shops are all closed now. This is why we can't allow the concept of mom-and-pop shops to die off... Qualit…

I shop at Target online regularly. I don’t see very many products being sold by 3rd party sellers. If I did start seeing them, I would slowly move on to another online merchant like I did with Amazon.

Re: Amazon still isn't doing enough to stop bait-and-switch reviews

#79

Post by chaostheory »

civilized wrote: post #3

I don't understand what Amazon thinks it's doing with its legions of data scientists, analysts, product managers and engineers that they consider so much more important than solving this problem, which will destroy their reputation long-term and create space for a competitor. At this rate, Amazon will be on its way to becoming Yelp -- untrusted, irrelevant, ultimately deserted.

Yelp? I think you meant eBay
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