Sham Reviews - Can You Spot?
Review is viewed as an endorsement of a product in today's environment, where e-commerce has changed everything. People often use reviews as a way to find information about a product they intend to buy.
Checking reviews enables buyers to know how previous buyers rate the delivery and quality, and if it is worth their pennies. Review checking might even be the very last thing a buyer does before adding to cart. Okay, you probably already know this.
You probably also know that reviews are important to sellers, so it makes sense that they would use them to their advantage, especially for new sellers who require some buyer confidence to initiate sales. The same principle also applies to the renovation industry.
Our contributors who have worked for companies that create sham reviews have compiled the results in the following sections using open source, which means that anyone can find them through a search engine.
The only question is, can you spot the sham ones? We examine some of the bigger names out there, the ones that have been around for more than a decade and are widely regarded as established.
There are some interesting things about this ID firm. One of the directors has been interviewed on radio and has spoken at sales motivational courses and HDB events. The firm works closely with influencers and media to get almost every inch of exposure. The other director is an incumbent member of the renovation association here.
They are certainly safe to work with, but please do not set too high expectations. They are our first choice when we look for firms in the dodgy category.
In the screenshot above, we have gathered only the reviews submitted by property agents. Almost all of our contributors indicated that their former bosses worked closely with property agents. These ID bosses are often in touch with agents to transact their personal property portfolios, and they will get them to write reviews for their company (because these ID bosses are their clients).
Three contributors had previously overheard such a conversation between the agent and the boss, about how to help get 5-star reviews on Google. One said she even heard her former boss ask if she (the agent) could get her family to review his business on Google Review.
On the other side, maybe you should give some reviews a benefit of doubt. Maybe the agent actually renovated with the ID firm listed above, or did he refer his client to the ID firm and wrote on their behalf? We'll let you decide for yourself.
Take this ID firm's for example. Over a thousand reviews on Google, super impressive review count. Look at the 5-star ones, most of them come with pictures and somewhat similar praises.
When you see praises like "top-notch", and "superb workmanship", you'd better start thinking if these overly praising remarks are even genuine. Then look at the 1-star ones, and make a comparison.
Are your senses telling you that if their services were indeed top-notch, dissatisfaction wouldn't be too far away in the spectrum?
Do the nice and neat images somewhat suggest the same photographer behind using the same device? or were they pure coincidence?
For all we know, this particular ID firm has its unique way of obtaining reviews, and sure they don't have over a thousand projects lah.
Don't get smoked.
How you should be reading reviews
As seen above, property agents gave their assistance on 5-star reviews. Note that this is a very common occurrence within the renovation and interior design industry. The other most common sources of shammed 5-star reviews are staff, family, friends, and duplicated reviews. Here are a few things to consider when reading reviews.:-
✸ Read through at least 20 full-star reviews and compare if there is any similarity in their writing style. Some companies practice writing reviews "on behalf of customers". There are also companies who practice duplication of reviews by asking the entire household of 1 customer to write on their Google review. There are property agents who are always willing and ready to help their client/client-to-be (the ID boss). So if you believe all the full-star reviews are genuine and impressive, very highly likely you are being fooled.;
✸ Full-star reviews with images are something becoming a review format because they are known to convey a certain degree of credibility to viewers. One of our contributors shared that her former employer use cashback to get customers to submit a 5-star review with images. For those customers who aren't happy, the ID will submit on their behalf not knowing this is being done without their consent. She said her ex-boss knew reviews carry a high stake in generating customers' confidence, and would request direct family members of the same project to review the ID in charge, and that his performance bonus rely on the number of reviews. This way their review count multiplies quickly, and could easily dilute the rating impact caused by 1-star reviews. If those photo reviews in comparison feature a similar angle, composition, and state of the completed look of the project, it is likely submitted by the ID firm themselves.;
✸ Those full-star reviews without comment or just a line are more than likely contributed by their own staff, friends, or family members. Why so? Imagine yourself experiencing a pleasant renovation, which is a big milestone often to many, would you simply give a 5-star rating without elaborating? even with a few lines to indicate why the given star rating?;
✸ ALWAYS read the 1-star, 2-star reviews as they may give a strong indication of their genuine performance, especially those lengthy complaints. Don't you think that generally, no one would make complaints in writing, unless there is really no better way to vent their disappointment? Through our review study, there are haters for sure, but quite rarely.
✸ Look out for patterns, like the first point, and spot the similarity in writing style, it will suggest if some of the reviews were written by the same person even with seemingly written from different accounts.
✸ Check the reviewer name and profile picture, if there are a few reviews given to ID firms from the same person. It can be less likely for someone to renovate 2 times within a short period since renovation is a big plan for many, although it may not be impossible. What we are cautioning here is property agents trying to do favours for their client, the ID boss, in order to serve sales interest in any potential property deal ahead. This type of fake review is more common than others;
✸ Look out for duplicated reviews. Duplication occurs when a whole household contributes reviews, usually with financial incentives. For instance, a family of 5 will contribute 5 reviews. We can consider this valid if we assume that all 5 family members are closely involved in the renovation process and the evaluation is based on individual perspectives. The question is: should these 5 count as 1 or 5?
✸ Ask yourself if you are comfortable with the practice of fabricated reviews to deceive potential customers like yourself. Is it okay to manipulate your judgment in their favour? If you think that's fine, it's weird, but if so, then all good, just keep praying all will be pleasant as you desired. On the contrary, if you think like a normal person, you can't change what is already a long-standing almost must-do ritual in many business owners' point of view. How many honest ones are there, no one knows.
We also find that they are a prime example of a ID company that is constantly trying to market itself through all channels, including faking awards and falsifying reviews. We also find that they are a prime example of a ID company that is constantly trying to market itself through all channels, including faking awards and falsifying reviews.
This is an established and relatively large ID company, but one that has failed to maintain customer satisfaction in general and largely lacks even the professionalism expected of it. This director also holds a key position on the "Renovation Association" Committee.
Now let us bring your attention back to the first ID firm above where property agents contributed their full-star reviews. The following excerpt shows their low-star reviews.
Let's look at other randomly selected low star ratings from 5 other firms who are the common names you seen on publications and media, a.k.a. the reputable companies (as they brand themselves to be).
In conclusion...
We are not saying that all reviews are fraud. In fact, there are many setups out there that don't rely on reviews and don't splurge heavily in marketing, yet prospering through word of mouth. In the perfect world, of course, we hope that all reviews are genuine so we as consumers can make a more accurate decision in our renovation plan.