Regulators and consumers are exposing fake reviews
When I searched the phone number of a used goods store where I shop for guitars and musical gear, I read the shop’s only online review posted in Google. It was negative, and directed a per- sonal attack at the business owner.
I called the shop owner to see if he had something in stock I was looking for, and I mentioned the review to him. He said he wasn’t aware of it. I visited his shop the next day. “Don’t worry mate,” he said. “I logged on and wrote two positive reviews!” He was also proud to tell me that he logged on from two different computers using differ- ent names to further disguise the fact he was “reviewing” his own shop.
This isn’t the right approach to online rep- utation management. This isn’t what I meant when I wrote in my last column that dealers should: “fight fire with fire” when improv- ing their reputations. The slippery slope of writing your own reviews, posting negative reviews of competitors, or even hiring firms to write fake reviews for you is a hot topic.
On March 11, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission levied a $250,000 fine against Tennessee-based Legacy Learning Systems to settle charges that it used misleading online “consumer” and “independent” reviewers for its Learn and Master guitar programs.
The FTC charged that Legacy disseminated deceptive advertisements by representing that online endorsements written by affiliates reflected the views of ordinary consumers or “independent” reviewers, without clearly disclosing that the affiliates were paid for every sale they generated, according to an FTC news release. Visit (www.ftc. gov/opa/2011/03/legacy.shtm) for the details.
Build a foundation of trust
Stay away from fake reviews. There are all kinds of firms sprouting up that offer online “reputation management services.” Some offer excellent services, and can really work with dealerships to help them understand how to improve their online reputations. But make sure you understand exactly what they are offering. If it seems too good to be true — it is. If what they are suggesting to do for you doesn’t strike you as legitimate or above board, it probably isn’t.
Above all, make sure those services don’t include writing fake reviews for your dealer- ships. When it backfires, and it will, your online and dealership’s reputation will take a severe public beating. Several already have. Type: “fake dealership reviews” in Google to see for yourself.
Some of these services use techniques such as hiring “an army” of copy writers to write reviews, using thousands of unique IP addresses and different Gmail and Yahoo email accounts that can be used to post reviews. If a firm you are working with offers these types of services, I’d suggest you cut your ties immediately.
Apart from the ethical and possibly legal implications, it’s just not good business. Con- sumers are very smart at discovering and exposing these types of deceptive reviews.
Fake Canadian dealer reviews?
Think Canadian dealers are above doing this? Perhaps not.
When exploring online ratings for dealers, I came across one post from a reviewer who discovered apparently bogus reviews about the Ontario dealership he was considering buying a car from. Here’s his post that now appears as one of the reviews when you search for that dealer’s brand on Google.
kensingtonresident@ : Mar 24, 2011: WTF?! I’m looking for a new (used) car and found (dealership name removed) online (considering buying a car back East). So I checked out the profiles of these people that left glowing reviews… These guys all have multiple “reviews,” but they all reviewed the same places, and none of the reviews make any sense…
I clicked on a couple of reviewers, and they were indeed very questionable. Here’s the comment from someone identified as “Sharon” writing about her experience with this same Ontario dealership.
Sharon: Feb 15, 2011: I bought my first (brand/model name: removed) and worked with (actual salesperson’s name: removed) He is one of the best sales consultants I have ever worked with and I would recommend him anytime to anyone. This dealership also has nice management staff, very nice showroom and huge stock of cars. Give this dealer a try if you are looking for a pleasant experience buying the vehicle and a wonderful (brand name: removed) service.
If you click on Sharon’s name, you can read the 58 other reviews she has posted for all sorts of services from scuba diving, concrete, auto deal- ers, and everything in between. In those reviews, she provides details of her direct personal experiences with these companies from all over the world. Sharon apparently visits stores in Santa Ana, California, Cincinnati, Ohio, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, Austin, Texas, London, Eng- land, Las Vegas, Nevada and Ontario and is always thrilled with the services. So happy, that all of her reviews offer 5 star ratings, and she posts glowing comments about these businesses and services.
For any dealers reading this who might have intentionally or unintentionally engaged in any of these practices, you need to revisit your strategy and rebuild a legitimate online reputation the old fashioned way – earn your reputation don’t buy it.
