Amazon Again: The Ins and Outs of Going After Fake Reviews

Amazon Attacks Fake Reviews and Reviewers

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According to the LA Times, Amazon is suing more than 1,000 writers for selling recommendations (and reviews!) for books (and other items) they didn’t buy.

If you have read The Frugal Book Promoter, you know that I recommend writing reviews of other authors’ books as a way to network and as a way to give back to the industry that makes books possible. In fact, a free and unbiased review is the nicest thing you can give to an author as a token of appreciation. And one of the best places you can post your review is on Amazon where it has the best chance of being read by thousands of readers. There are, of course, other places to post them including your own blog, Goodreads, and other sites. You can also volunteer to review for sites like BookPleasures, MyShelf and Midwest Book Review that depend on those who love to read to keep their sites going even when profit margins are slim.

It is reported that Amazon sees reviews that are too glowing as a danger sign. That’s fair. Professional reviews can be rave reviews, but no book is perfect. In fact, a review is more trustworthy (and therefore sells more books--proved by studies over the years!) if it does point out places where the book is weak. Such critiques needn’t be snarky. They can be tactful, firm, and helpful to readers and authors alike.

Perhaps it was the offers on Fiverr.com that finally ticked Amazon off enough to do this. Many offered reviews for $5. And some of those promised five-star reviews. And, yes, this is—to put it mildly—unethical. You’ve probably seen me discourage authors and publishers from paying for reviews in the past because they aren’t credible even if they are honest.  People like bookstore owners, librarians, and other publishing industry professionals generally know they have been paid for even if they come from Publishers Weekly or Kirkus. In fact, those magazines put their paid-for reviews in a separate place or mark them differently so their readers will know! Reviews that aren’t credible are a waste of money and time. And, did I mention unethical? Ahem!

Some of these reviews offer to post reviews using multiple accounts and IP addresses. I say, go after them Amazon!  This kind of thing ruins the process for everyone. 

Nevertheless, I’ve seen Amazon pull reviews based on flimsy excuses in the past and so I worry.

The trouble with pulling reviews too aggressively is how they make the decision to do so. They use logarithms that tell them if a reviewer purchased the book. That seems like a good idea at first, but their site is not the only one that sells an item so if their logarithms are picking up reviews of items not purchased from them, they may be wrong, terribly wrong.

Here is why:

•   It is a publishing tradition that publishers and writers provide books at no cost--often special review copies (ARCs)  or galleys-- to those who write reviews of their book (s). These books would not show up as sales anywhere.
• Many who write reviews of a book or product may have received the book as a gift for their birthday or a holiday. 
• Many write reviews of books or products that they buy at a bookstore or any other retail outlet.
• Some may write reviews of books they borrow from the library or buy from secondhand bookstores. 

So are the bulleted review tracks above indications they are fake reviews? I don’t know how Amazon is selecting those people it will sue, (and I know they have plenty of money to waste if their selection is off base and they lose!), but I think they are once again on very shaky ground.

In the meantime, if you review for Amazon (and you should), be liberal with disclaimers like this:

“Disclaimer: This reviewer received a book in exchange for an unbiased and fair review. No fee was charged either the author or the publisher.”

And do avoid touting your own book in the review. The link used in the review (the one that Amazon provides) takes readers back to your profile page. That, dear author/reviewer should be enough for you. Offering this to authors and reviewers is indeed a gift from Amazon and we should not abuse the hand that feeds us.

Note: For more on this topic see the LA Times’ Technology page in their business section, Thursday, October 2, 2015.

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally books for writers as well as a novelist and poet. She is working on the third major book in the HowToDoItFrugally series of books called Getting Great Reviews Frugally and Ethically and she just published a book of poetry perfect for this silly political season. It is Imperfect Echoes, http://bit.ly/ImperfectEchoes . Her Web site is http://howtodoitfrugally.com 

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 Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Unsuspecting Authors Get Lead Into Scammy Marketing Schemes

 

When I was taking a class offered to UCLA instructors in ethics, my master professor (those who teach the teachers) said, "Leadership means ethics." He knew that wasn’t the dictionary's definition, but he knew it was a good start for his class.

I had taken ethics classes before—as part of my journalism minor and as part of a marketing class at USC. I didn’t really see a reason for another—this one with a focus on classroom ethics. My theory was that by the time we reach a certain stage in life, we’ve probably absorbed theories on ethics anyway. But as I began to teach new authors, I was glad to have this update because so many new authors get lead astray by what at first appear to be brilliant marketing ideas for their books. It’s a whole new field for us and we may be as starry-eyed as we are ignorant of the end results of our actions.

Authors often get lead astray because they are so focused on their passion—sharing their books with others—but when we look a bit more closely, many of these ideas smack of dishonesty at the best and are scammy at their worst. Things like, "If a library doesn’t have your book, ask your friends go into libraries and ask them to order one, you know, even if that friend has already read your book." This idea is not only unfair to the library but it deters an author from building a relationship with libraries on her own. 

Another one: "If you can afford it, buy a ton of books just before its release date so it will hit the LA Times or NY Times bestseller lists." In the early 2000s, one traditionally published author did this and got caught. The story hit national news and it was not a pretty thing to see—either for him or for the publishing industry.

Authors, like other celebrities, must lead by example. It's part of great branding and great branding is part of great marketing. This is such an important part of an author's marketing plan that I mention branding, ethics, and scams (author scams as well as scams perpetrated on authors) quite frequently in The Frugal Book Promoter.

On the other hand, marketing is part of the game. In fact, it's an essential part of the game.  As long as it's tempered by a good, strong dose of ethics, you can be a power marketer who does your writing career—and your book—proud. The reason at the lowest rung of the ladder that ethics are so important is Karma. Bad actions can come bite you in the butt. The reason at the highest run of the ladder is also Karma. You and your readers will reap the highest benefit when you do things for the highest possible reasons.

Here is a quote from The Frugal Book Promoter that I hope convinces you that ethics are important.

“I think the word "humble" is used far too often. The thing is, we should be proud of what we do. It's part of doing the right thing. Pride is the stuff that self-esteem is made of and by extension the stuff people (that includes authors) need to do good in the world. Friends may mean well when they preach modesty or being humble but they also may be exhibiting passive aggressive tendencies. In either case, it is probable that they don't understand the heart of a writer who usually only wants to share.”

It’s true. The more we "brag" (or "market") the more good we can do. The trick is, we must learn to do it right. It isn’t about us as authors or even about our books. It’s about the reader. If it’s clear to the people we target with our marketing (our future readers) that we have their interests at heart, we’ll be successful with it. They’ll be grateful. We’ll be happy we shared. Everyone benefits.

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .