Same thing happened to me in September after purchasing a $35 webcam for my high school sophomore from Amazon. The box contained a $20 "gift card" if I emailed proof of my 5-star review.
I documented everything including photos, my exchange with Amazon customer service, and the confirmation from the seller that they would pay me $20 for a 5-star review (I did not do this ... I was appalled at the situation and more than a little angry that I had been tricked by bogus reviews). Here's what happened when I reported the seller:
Me: Hi. The box for this product contained a card that says “Amazon $20 gift card” and looks like a gift card, but the back says I have to give a 5 star review and send my order information to an outlook email address. Is this legitimate? Is it really a $20 Amazon gift card?
Amazon: Thank you so much for your information on this, I will certainly pass it along here so that we can check this promotion or offer directly with the seller. Because I am not seeing that advertised on the item at all
And would not be capable of confirming if that is a legit Amazon gift card because, I do not see that offer on the item
Me: So what should I do?
Amazon: My best suggestion would be to contact the seller directly for this through this link [redacted] So that you can confirm directly with them if this is legit or not
Certainly giving away gift cards for good reviews is not professional
And I have to report the seller for that
Me: I thought this type of offer was forbidden by Amazon’s own policies for sellers. But I will contact them using the link you sent to ask them if that’s what you recommend.
Even though the CSR reported the seller, and I confirmed with the seller through Amazon's own communication system that they were paying $20 per 5 star review, nothing happened to the seller. The item (a webcam) is still for sale on Amazon, with thousands of additional 5-star reviews - more than 8,000 now, compared to 3,266 when I let Amazon know how they were gaming the reviews in September.
Once again, the good guys (in the case, customers and honest sellers) lose out while the bad guys win, with no repurcussions.
I had a similar experience with Amazon support. I posted a review of a power strip that caught fire, with a picture of the scorch marks.
The seller reached out repeatedly to me via email asking what they could do to get it taken down, including monetary offers and (after I rejected their approaches several times) thinly veiled "looks like you're having fun at the beach this weekend" references to my social media feeds in what I presume was an attempt to creep me out.
I reported them to Amazon. Seller and listing (with my review, so far) are still there.
I documented everything including photos, my exchange with Amazon customer service, and the confirmation from the seller that they would pay me $20 for a 5-star review (I did not do this ... I was appalled at the situation and more than a little angry that I had been tricked by bogus reviews). Here's what happened when I reported the seller:
Me: Hi. The box for this product contained a card that says “Amazon $20 gift card” and looks like a gift card, but the back says I have to give a 5 star review and send my order information to an outlook email address. Is this legitimate? Is it really a $20 Amazon gift card?
Amazon: Thank you so much for your information on this, I will certainly pass it along here so that we can check this promotion or offer directly with the seller. Because I am not seeing that advertised on the item at all And would not be capable of confirming if that is a legit Amazon gift card because, I do not see that offer on the item
Me: So what should I do?
Amazon: My best suggestion would be to contact the seller directly for this through this link [redacted] So that you can confirm directly with them if this is legit or not Certainly giving away gift cards for good reviews is not professional And I have to report the seller for that
Me: I thought this type of offer was forbidden by Amazon’s own policies for sellers. But I will contact them using the link you sent to ask them if that’s what you recommend.
Even though the CSR reported the seller, and I confirmed with the seller through Amazon's own communication system that they were paying $20 per 5 star review, nothing happened to the seller. The item (a webcam) is still for sale on Amazon, with thousands of additional 5-star reviews - more than 8,000 now, compared to 3,266 when I let Amazon know how they were gaming the reviews in September.
Once again, the good guys (in the case, customers and honest sellers) lose out while the bad guys win, with no repurcussions.
More:
http://leanmedia.org/amazon-is-broken/