Filter Amazon Reviews by Confirmed Purchase for More Honest Criticism
Online reviews should be an objective way to get product feedback before purchasing. However, manufacturers often play the Amazon system. Get rid of all the crap with the “Verified Purchase” filter.
As product review site Best Reviews points out, when a product hits Amazon, it has no reviews. This is not good for the company that made this product, so some will find creative ways to get customers to leave a review. While they can’t pay directly for reviews, companies like Snagshout can offer discounts on product samples to users who write “honest reviews.” However, as Best Reviews has found out by looking at some of the reviews, “honest” tends to be more favorable.
Paid reviews are more likely to receive 5-star ratings from Amazon users. Unpaid reviews are more likely to receive 1 star. (We determined whether the review was paid for by looking at the words “honest review” in the description, which is what distribution agencies require. This is not a perfect filter, but the results are obvious enough that we think it tells the story accurately.)
To be fair, filtering reviews by the phrase “honest review” isn’t the most scientific way to measure bias (which Best Reviews openly admits). Fortunately, there is an easy way to avoid the problem entirely. Filter your reviews by Confirmed Purchase.
Amazon has a special badge for purchases made on its site at a price close to what a repeat customer expects to pay. These reviews are accompanied by a small Confirmed Purchase icon. This means Amazon has confirmed that the reviewer did not receive a free unit and wrote an “honest” review. To find it, go to the item’s dedicated reviews page and click the drop-down next to Filter by: to change the setting to Confirmed Purchase Only.
This system is also not perfect. Best Reviews found some overlap between the “honest reviews” claim and the verified badge. However, there were very few of them. What’s more, Amazon claims to remove Verified badges from users who have purchased high-discount items. So, if you want the least biased review you can find , click this Checked filter.
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