I’m sensitive about this because I come by all my reviews honestly, and a recent report by Chris Chmura of NBC Bay Area News Responds reminded me of how much this bugs me: the multitude of fake online reviews.
He pointed out that, according to Yelp, one quarter of their reviews are either biased or fake. That Facebook keeps trying–and failing–to solve the problem. And that Google is tight-lipped (but seemingly unsuccessful) about their attempts at curbing these bogus reviews. Yet, most of us continue to check to see what others have to say about a company we’re considering hiring.
Ah, the companies. Seems like it’s not just reviews from individuals with a grudge or promoting their relative’s business. Businesses hire people to do reviews for a specific company or even for a bunch of companies in the same line of work, in order to enhance that industry’s image (and revenue).
What can we do? Chris Chmura suggests looking at a reviewer’s profile. Don’t trust them if all their reviews are 5-star positive or very vague. Watch for brand-new reviewers, too, who are suddenly online posting a good number of reviews (maybe they’ve just been hired to do this?). Or people who seem to review only companies in a particular industry but in different cities and states (also hired?).
The government is suing these fakers when they can find them, but there are so many that it’s an uphill battle.
One more thing: you can file a complaint, find out about the latest fraud, and–only if you want to–sign up for fraud alerts at www.fraud.org.