If you’ve shopped on Amazon before, there is a good chance that you might have come across several sellers and items labeled as “Amazon Choice”. Basically, these labels are to designate products that are recommended by Amazon due to them being highly-rated and being relatively well-priced.However, according to a report from BuzzFeed News, it seems that some Amazon Choice sellers have been found trying to bribe customers with gift cards and freebies in exchange for positive reviews. In one instance, a customer bought a waterproof case for his Samsung smartphone which had over 100 positive reviews and was labeled as an Amazon Choice product.
Upon receiving the purchase, the customer found that it was a terrible product that definitely did not live up to the many positive reviews, but he knew why it received said reviews. In the packaging of the case, the customer found a card that provided instructions on how to redeem a $19 gift card, which was in exchange for a positive review.
In another example, a customer bought some supplements in which there was a sticker on the cap that offered free refills. Upon requesting for the free refills, the customer was told to provide evidence that they had left a positive review. Amazon has since responded to the report by claiming that incentivized reviews are against their policy.
A spokesperson was also quoted as telling BuzzFeed News, “When a product we identify as Amazon’s Choice does not continue to meet our high bar, we immediately remove the badge.”
Filed in . Read more about Amazon. Source: buzzfeednews