Removal of Reputational Damage from Amazon Customer Reviews

With over 80% of the population now using the internet, we have come to a point where we can purchase almost any product through online shopping. However, a significant drawback of online shopping is that we cannot physically examine the products. The information provided about the products online is often insufficient.

This is where ‘reviews and testimonials’ come into play to supplement the missing information. On review sites, purchasers post their thoughts on the product’s usability and other aspects, and people seek detailed information from these reviews.

A variety of products are sold on Amazon. Amazon’s customer reviews, which describe the user experience and features of the products, have become an essential factor in making purchase decisions.

So, how should individuals and companies selling products or providing services on Amazon deal with these customer reviews?

What is Amazon?

Amazon.com, a global leading company in e-commerce, operates websites in Japan, the UK, Germany, France, Canada, China, Italy, Spain, and other countries. In Japan, it offers over 200 million types of products, including Japanese and foreign books, CDs, DVDs, PC software, games, electronics, stationery and office supplies, home & kitchen items, toys & hobbies, sports, health & beauty, cosmetics, watches, baby & maternity, apparel & shoes, jewelry, food & beverages, and more. Furthermore, the Merchant @ amazon.co.jp service, which allows general business owners to list and sell their products on Amazon, has also started, further expanding the range of products available.

According to recent surveys, as of June 2018, the number of users of Amazon’s online shopping service in Japan was approximately 40.8 million, which is said to account for 56% of the population aged 18 to 64 in Japan.

What is a Review Site?

A review site refers to an online platform that publishes so-called “word-of-mouth” information, such as reputations and rumors about individuals, companies, products, and services.

Review sites are generally categorized as follows:

1. Sites primarily intended for the exchange of review information
2. Sites that post travel, gourmet, and product information, and as part of their service, provide a platform for exchanging reviews about inns, restaurants, products, etc.
3. Blogs and other websites that provide information about “recommended products” and the like

Amazon is a prime example of the second type of review site.

How to Use Amazon Customer Reviews

How you use Amazon and its customer reviews may vary from person to person, but the following is one typical example of how they can be utilized.

According to a survey, the top category of products that people purchase based on word-of-mouth information is “home appliances, AV equipment, cameras, etc.”

Let’s say, for instance, a person living alone is considering replacing their refrigerator.

First, they go to Amazon and search for “refrigerator” in “all categories” because it’s difficult and cumbersome to look through the approximately 30 items listed vertically in the “Electronics & Cameras” or “Home & Kitchen” categories.

Then, with 6 items listed horizontally and 11 vertically per page, they can select a refrigerator that matches their desired capacity and approximate budget. Clicking on a product will bring up its page, where they can learn about its detailed specifications such as features and size.

Below that, there’s a section titled “Customers who viewed this item also viewed,” which may display items like washing machines and microwaves suitable for single-person households. Seeing these might inspire them to consider purchasing other items. Further down, there’s another section titled “Customers who viewed this item also viewed,” where products of the same price range and size are listed. Even further down, there’s a “Compare with similar items” section, where about five items are listed for comparison. You can use this to help you compare and consider your options.

Narrowing Down Products and Customer Reviews

Earlier, the example of “selecting a refrigerator that matches your desired capacity and approximate budget” was given. At this point, most people are likely to choose from the 50 or more products displayed on the screen, focusing on those with a high number of customer reviews. It seems that many people use the number of customer reviews as their initial point of reference.

Just because a product has “many customer reviews” doesn’t necessarily mean it’s “selling well”, and just because it’s “selling well” doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a “good product”. However, these three factors are often viewed as one and the same, and choosing a product with many customer reviews can provide a sense of reassurance.

This is known as the bandwagon effect. It refers to the phenomenon where the fact that a majority has chosen a certain option increases the number of people who choose that option. The term “bandwagon” refers to a wagon carrying a band at the head of a parade, and “jumping on the bandwagon” means following the trend, siding with the majority, or backing the winning horse. This can help avoid the situation of being the only one who made a mistake or failed, providing a sense of security. If everyone is crossing together, there’s nothing to fear, and if you’re not the only one who failed, there’s less need to blame yourself and less regret.

Even when you try to research in detail and choose a different product, you’ll likely choose a product with many customer reviews.

At this stage of “narrowing down to about five products”, the “number of customer reviews” plays a significant role and is thought to be a major factor in determining product sales.

Product Selection Process and Customer Reviews

Let’s assume that you have carefully compared and narrowed down your options to two or three products, and you are about to make a decision. Ideally, you might want to go to a physical store, see the products with your own eyes, and make a decision after trying them out. However, this is not always feasible, and for electronic products, it may not be necessary.

Instead of going to a physical store, many people read and compare customer reviews to make their final decision. At this point, not only the number but also the content of the customer reviews becomes important, and it is crucial to determine whether the reviews are trustworthy.

In a survey mentioned earlier, the following factors were each cited by about 20% of respondents as reasons why they would trust online reviews:

• There are many reviews
• Various people have written reviews with the same opinion
• Not only the recommendations and good points, but also the negative points are written
• The content of the review is convincing

Customer reviews play a significant role at the entrance and exit of product purchases.

In fact, in the same survey, about 30% of respondents said that they:

• Were unsure about whether to buy a certain product or service, but decided to buy it after reading reviews
• Chose to buy the product or service with better reviews among multiple options
• Were unsure about whether to buy a certain product or service, but decided not to buy it after reading reviews

These results are generally consistent with other surveys.

Can We Trust Amazon Customer Reviews?

Many review sites have little to no restrictions on posts or scrutiny of the content reviewed. Amazon is no exception. While “Tabelog” (Japanese restaurant review site) has made various improvements, such as significant changes to its scoring algorithm due to issues with rigged reviews, Amazon largely allows reviews to flow freely, making it less trustworthy.

The number of products is simply too large. The total number of products is said to exceed 200 million, and it is impossible to scrutinize all customer reviews for these products.

Originally a bookstore, Amazon has an enormous number of books alone.

The Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications announces the number of book publications every year, with approximately 75,000 to 80,000 titles published annually. Even over a five-year period, this amounts to about 400,000 titles. This is the number of products, even excluding magazines.

In contrast, “Tabelog” deals with about 900,000 restaurants. If Amazon were to focus solely on books, it might be able to scrutinize customer reviews more closely.

Amazon and Book Customer Reviews

However, in reality, the most unreliable and questionable genre of customer reviews on Amazon is books.

One of the common criticisms of “word-of-mouth review sites” is that they are “subjective”, but aren’t all book customer reviews “subjective”? No one questions the size, weight, or ease of handling of a book.

Tabelog, a review site that asks for “subjective impressions and evaluations”, requests corrections from posters or deletes posts in cases such as the following, considering them violations of their guidelines:

1. Posts with definitive expressions that are not subjective (e.g., “It’s not worth going to such a bad restaurant”)
2. Posts by users who did not actually eat at the restaurant (e.g., “I didn’t eat and left because I didn’t like the atmosphere”)
3. Posts that stereotype, criticize, or discriminate against specific races (e.g., “It can’t be helped that the service level is low because they are —‹—‹ people”)
4. Posts that negatively affect the restaurant and are difficult to verify the facts (e.g., “They don’t turn on the air conditioner to cut costs”)

There are many posts on Amazon’s book customer reviews, where subjective impressions and evaluations are posted, that fall under “definitive expressions”, and you can also see posts like 3. I also think there are quite a few like 2.

In fact, Amazon states, “You can post up to 5 reviews per week for products not purchased on Amazon.co.jp”.

In addition to this, it’s inevitable that things will get out of hand since one person can register multiple anonymous accounts.

another example can be seen when looking at the customer reviews of a certain Japanese novel (a paperback book costing about 700 yen) that won a major award and was made into a movie.

There were 403 reviews, with 44% giving 5 stars and 13% giving 1 star. Of the 52 people who gave 1 star, 14 purchased it on Amazon. Some of the content seems to have been read carefully, but most of it is filled with comments like “boring”, “waste of money”, and content that doesn’t seem to have been read, with a lot of insults and abuse. By the way, the first 40 people who gave 5 stars all purchased it on Amazon.

Companies, Consumers, and Customer Reviews

It’s not limited to Amazon, but among those who post customer reviews, there are people who write bad reviews or criticisms unrelated to the product due to personal grudges against the seller or company. In addition, there is a certain number of people who post with the intention of so-called “trolling”. There are also people whose purpose is to vent their frustrations by disparaging people or products that everyone else is praising.

The existence of “stealth marketing”, where advertising is done without consumers realizing it, has become a social issue, and Amazon is no exception.

“Negative campaigns” to undermine competing companies seem to be common on Amazon as well.

People and companies selling products or providing services on Amazon need to keep an eye on malicious vendors and reviewers’ customer reviews to ensure customer satisfaction.

If you are troubled by defamatory comments, please consult with our lawyers who are knowledgeable about internet issues at our law firm.