Marketplace Reviews: Bad Reviews hidden

[Azrikam]

I dont understand this either. I have written negative posts or lower posts in hope of constructive criticism might finally be heard when the owner wont listen to you in game or be shared to warn other potential customers of an items defects and flaws.  Many sellers with big names somehow hide negative reviews.  I don't get how this is being done or why but some people are able to do this. I don't understand the big ego trip people have on sl that they only want to be right and I too have experienced unbearable harrassment by members of staff like pro-street staff just for being honest about a products faults and flaws and there is absolute truth that they are hiding negative comments and reviews. While reading this post it seems like ive stumbled onto someone whos had the same "holier than thou" seller attitude. I wish that people would lighten up and just not be so cutthroat about it because it is not worth the issues.  Its very easy to say "don't like their product don't buy from them." well its not that easy to actually deal with. People should not be banned, blocked, or threatened for posting honest reviews. I do not want to get into the middle of any drama with anyone but honest reviews and merchants who show the honest reviews are merchants who genuinely care about their customers. Other merchants who have lots of money or big stores cant handle negative reviews? cmon you got enough customers, other products, take the information that customers are giving you. For me allot of hidden comments on a product is bad for business and makes me think worse of a seller than if they had shown the comments.
" 

[Pamela Galli]

Read what Dakota Linden says on the matter in this recent thread here 

Tldr: Merchants cannot hide or remove reviews. Ever.

Edited May 2, 2017 by Pamela Galli

[Azrikam]

I already read that post, and I know for a fact negative reviews are hidden on some stores. Because ive seen it and tested it with a friend. You will never convince me otherwise.

[Pamela Galli]

If you don't believe Dakota when she spells out exactly how reviews work and don't work, I would not try to convince you of anything.

[Chic Aeon]

Reviews CAN be REMOVED (not hidden) if they are really off target and have nothing to do with the product -- or the person obviously misunderstood and say thought they were buying a baby instead of a baby carriage (not sure WHERE I got that from LOL). People often don't READ. Oh my, that should be in giant text and bold and RED.  That isn't the creator's fault but sometime they get penalized.

I had a competitor (and alts and friends) write scathing nonsensical reviews of a product that they bought simply so that they could write those bad reviews. I remember Pamela saying the same. That happens. Eventually I wrote a "reply" on the product page pointing out that there was absolutely NO reason for a one star rating since there was an inworld demo AND a marketplace demo. Since then (thankfully) the one star ratings have disappeared stopped happening anew. That leaves me with 3 star ratings when the other sizes of the product all have five stars. Makes ya wonder doesn't it?

The Marketplace is the marketplace and while now and then some faulty reviews get removed many do not. And I am amazed how many people DON'T leave reviews. I have sold a hundred or more of some items with no or one review. What's up with that?

Anyway, I agree that this conspiracy theory is pretty dumb. 

That's my two cents. 

Edited May 2, 2017 by Chic Aeon
clarity

[Pamela Galli]

To be crystal clear, merchants can flag a review, but not remove or hide it. LL's policy, reiterated by Dakota in the linked thread, is to remove only reviews that violate the rules. 

[Talligurl]

Merchants can also leave comments on a review and tell their side of the story when a purchaser is being unreasonable, or as in my own case when I correct the problem, deliver a corrected item, plus a full refund, and the guy never changes the review or even says thanks to me in an IM.

[ChinRey]

21 hours ago, Chic Aeon said:

Anyway, I agree that this conspiracy theory is pretty dumb.

Yes! Never believe in conspiracy theories, they are all made up by the government to keep people's attention away from the real truth!

But seriously to sum this up (again):

If a merchant is unhappy with a review, they can report it to Linden Lab and if Linden Lab agrees the review is unfair, they will remove it. I've seen several claims that LL is playing favorites here but I've yet to see any plausible evidence to support those claims, it's all rumours.

Sometimes the merchant can get a negative review removed by talking to the buyer and fixing any actual problems there may have been. But as Talligurl said, there's no guarantee the buyer actually will do it, even if all problems are solved and they promise to. If that happens, you can reduce the damage a little bit by adding a comment to the review or in the item description but as Chic said, people often don't read.

I've never hear about it happening but it wouldn't surprise me at all if some merchants try to harass their customers into removing negative reviews. This is of course a despicable way to do it.

In all of those cases it is not the merchant but somebody else, either Linden Lab or the reviewer who deletes the review. The only way a merchant can get rid of a negative review themselves, is to remove the listing and create a brand new one for the same product. This is against the Marketplace's terms of service and if you see that happen, flag the new listing.

Any more questions? No? Class dismissed!

[Cindy Evanier]

8 hours ago, ChinRey said:

.Sometimes the merchant can get a negative review removed by talking to the buyer and fixing any actual problems there may have been.

This!

I would never leave a negative review until I had attempted to speak to the merchant first. More than one occasion I have.. it's been a simple oversight where the wrong colour was packaged or something and the merchant is extremely grateful for it being brought to their attention, fixes it immediately often with a refund and/or grateful thanks. From the flip side after getting a negative review for something that was completely our fault (listed LI as 5 when it was actually 6 after we forgot to check the increase adding scripts)  but I messaged him, apologised, refunded, fixed the LI in the listing  and without me asking he went and changed his review praising the customer service and bigger plus he has been a returning customer, purchasing more from us.

So my point is, have a chat with the merchant before writing a negative review.

[Pamela Galli]

3 hours ago, Cindy Evanier said:

This!

I would never leave a negative review until I had attempted to speak to the merchant first. More than one occasion I have.. it's been a simple oversight where the wrong colour was packaged or something and the merchant is extremely grateful for it being brought to their attention, fixes it immediately often with a refund and/or grateful thanks. From the flip side after getting a negative review for something that was completely our fault (listed LI as 5 when it was actually 6 after we forgot to check the increase adding scripts)  but I messaged him, apologised, refunded, fixed the LI in the listing  and without me asking he went and changed his review praising the customer service and bigger plus he has been a returning customer, purchasing more from us.

So my point is, have a chat with the merchant before writing a negative review.

I am indeed grateful for a heads up when I have made a mistake, and those who alert me to it* get my thanks and often a gift for any inconvenience.

* before leaving a one star review calling me a scammer, liar, and thief. 

 

Edited May 3, 2017 by Pamela Galli

[Dakota Linden]

Greetings All!

I have split the recent comments from the Necropost thread as the issue raised in these comments are different from the ones raised in the original thread. 

I am working on a mini FAQ & guide about reviews that I will sticky at the top of this forum when it is ready. If you have any questions, or concerns about reviews, please feel free to post them in this thread and I will be happy to include them in the Guide. 

[Pamela Galli]

Thank you Dakota -- this conspiracy theory has to be countered at least once a month. 

I would mention that contacting a merchant before leaving a review is not mandatory, but is a courtesy, and is more likely (tho not guaranteed) to result in a positive resolution to any problem. And once a review has been left, the buyer has no further leverage to induce a merchant to fix problems.

Edited May 3, 2017 by Pamela Galli

[Chic Aeon]

1 hour ago, Pamela Galli said:

I am indeed grateful for a heads up when I have made a mistake, and those who alert me to it* get my thanks and often a gift for any inconvenience.

* before leaving a one star review calling me a scammer, liar, and thief. 

 

Agreed.

Last week I had a note from someone who purchased a set of low land impact filler buildings. He wondered where the storage unit buildings pictured in one of the example shots was.

 

Now I have sold probably a hundred sets of those filler buildings with -- to my knowledge -- not one other person being confused over what was in the pack. The buildings are shown with a listing of land impact for each plus a big screen of explanatory text.  But I sent him the not very low land impact storage units anyway and took down the photo (showing the filler buildings in the background a that IS their purpose)  - LOL.   

[Dakota Linden]

Hi all!

I have posted the first draft of the Product Listing Review Guide and it can be viewed as a Sticky at the top of the forum.  It is a little bit cut-off at the end. I has job duties.

If you have suggestions, questions, etc., that would be good to be added, please let me know!

Thank you!!

[Pamela Galli]

4 hours ago, Dakota Linden said:

Hi all!

I have posted the first draft of the Product Listing Review Guide and it can be viewed as a Sticky at the top of the forum.  It is a little bit cut-off at the end. I has job duties.

If you have suggestions, questions, etc., that would be good to be added, please let me know!

Thank you!!

I think a review should include whether the buyer checked out any demo offered. Trying out demos is a buyers responsibility, and would eliminate most misunderstandings about what is being offered for sale.  The same is true of reading entire item descriptions. If selllers are to be held accountable for their item descriptions, it is only fair that reviews be held to some standard. So I think the reviewer should confirm whether he has tried a demo, and read the entire listing description, in any review. Maybe at some point just a checkbox? 

Edited May 4, 2017 by Pamela Galli

[Chic Aeon]

19 minutes ago, Pamela Galli said:

I think a review should include whether the buyer checked out any demo offered. Trying out demos is a buyers responsibility, and would eliminate most misunderstandings about what is being offered for sale.  The same is true of reading entire item descriptions. If selllers are to be held accountable for their item descriptions, it is only fair that reviews be held to some standard. So I think the reviewer should confirm whether he has tried a demo, and read the entire listing description, in any review. Maybe at some point just a checkbox? 

I apparently "answered" your comment  on another thread very similar to this, so here is the link to that. 

 

 

[Dakota Linden]

14 hours ago, Pamela Galli said:

I think a review should include whether the buyer checked out any demo offered. Trying out demos is a buyers responsibility, and would eliminate most misunderstandings about what is being offered for sale.  The same is true of reading entire item descriptions. If selllers are to be held accountable for their item descriptions, it is only fair that reviews be held to some standard. So I think the reviewer should confirm whether he has tried a demo, and read the entire listing description, in any review. Maybe at some point just a checkbox? 

Hi Pamela!

Updating or changing how the system currently works, with regards to adding checkmarks, is outside of the scope of the guide, however, I always encourage any user to submit a Jira Ticket with their ideas for updating/improving the system.

As with contacting a seller before leaving a review if the buyer has an issue is not mandatory, testing a demo is also not mandatory, although for obvious reasons, it is highly recommended.

I have updated the guide with the following:

Reporting issues that are outside of the control of the seller or are known issues.

• Failed Deliveries, Lost In-World Inventory 
• Re-sized Mesh Land Impact.
• Reporting issues already detailed in the Product Listing.

I have added the known issues text and bulleted the examples for clearer reading.

If a buyer leaves a negative review about an item being No Modify, for example, and the noted permissions and item description already clearly shows that the item is No Modify, Linden Lab will remove that review. 

This is NOT a change in policy, just an additional detailing of reasons why a review might be removed from a listing.

Edited May 4, 2017 by Dakota Linden
typos of course!

[cloexox1992]

On 5/2/2017 at 3:08 PM, Chic Aeon said:

Reviews CAN be REMOVED (not hidden) if they are really off target and have nothing to do with the product -- or the person obviously misunderstood and say thought they were buying a baby instead of a baby carriage (not sure WHERE I got that from LOL). People often don't READ. Oh my, that should be in giant text and bold and RED.  That isn't the creator's fault but sometime they get penalized.

I had a competitor (and alts and friends) write scathing nonsensical reviews of a product that they bought simply so that they could write those bad reviews. I remember Pamela saying the same. That happens. Eventually I wrote a "reply" on the product page pointing out that there was absolutely NO reason for a one star rating since there was an inworld demo AND a marketplace demo. Since then (thankfully) the one star ratings have disappeared stopped happening anew. That leaves me with 3 star ratings when the other sizes of the product all have five stars. Makes ya wonder doesn't it?

The Marketplace is the marketplace and while now and then some faulty reviews get removed many do not. And I am amazed how many people DON'T leave reviews. I have sold a hundred or more of some items with no or one review. What's up with that?

Anyway, I agree that this conspiracy theory is pretty dumb. 

That's my two cents. 

I guess time and the fact when people do leave a review good or bad most the time just get ignored by the merchant

[So Whimsy]

On 5/2/2017 at 5:08 AM, Chic Aeon said:

 And I am amazed how many people DON'T leave reviews. I have sold a hundred or more of some items with no or one review. What's up with that?
 

There's simply no incentive to write a review.

[Chic Aeon]

38 minutes ago, Syn Anatine said:

There's simply no incentive to write a review.

Well how about being "nice" or "helpful"?  I write reviews for the items that I buy on the Marketplace -- almost all of them. It is good for the creators and as long as it is an honest and on point review -- it is helpful to the folks BUYING.  

[Chic Aeon]

57 minutes ago, cloexox1992 said:

I guess time and the fact when people do leave a review good or bad most the time just get ignored by the merchant

Well "I" often write back with either an explanation or a simple "thank you for taking the time to review".  

[Pamela Galli]

10 minutes ago, Chic Aeon said:

Well "I" often write back with either an explanation or a simple "thank you for taking the time to review".  

I send thanks. Sometimes more.

[Tari Landar]

1 hour ago, cloexox1992 said:

I guess time and the fact when people do leave a review good or bad most the time just get ignored by the merchant

Two things

A-The notification system that tells a merchant a review has been left has been mostly nonfunctional for years. It sometimes works, but that's not very common. I'm sure this is in the "to do" bin somewhere at LL, but I doubt it's going to be really addressed or fixed anytime soon. Cut merchants some damn slack..a lot of the problems with the MP are 100% out of their control. 

B-Why would a merchant need to contact someone after they leave a good review? I mean, what exactly are you expecting, and why? (yes I'm serious, I want specifics)

As far as negative reviews are concerned, merchants are under no obligation to contact you after that either but the vast majority of them will, and do. How often do customers contact merchants before leaving a negative review though? I'd be shocked if more than 30% of people who leave negative reviews even contact the merchant first.(and I think I'm being overly generous with the 30%). I have had people leave a negative review MONTHS after they bought something, never once contacting me, and I still have always maintained a high(I think) level of customer service and will still go out of my way to help them and make things right. MOST merchants are the same way...very few don't actually give two craps, most of us care very deeply for what we do, and it's insulting to suggest anything other than that. Why are merchants expected to hunt down customers who leave bad reviews though? Why is the onus on the merchant and not the customer who actually knows what their experience was like? Why are customers not expected to lift a finger to help themselves, but merchants have to bend over backwards to ensure customers have a fantastic experience?  Those last two questions may sound catty, but they're not. Customers have certain expectations, as they well should...but merchants aren't allowed to have any because.....well, I don't know, lmao.

Thousands and thousands of merchants will keep right on trucking though, because they like, love, may even depend on, what they do. So, again...give merchants some damn slack, the vast majority of them are doing an amazing job. The few that aren't, don't ruin the bunch. 

[Pamela Galli]

17 minutes ago, Tari Landar said:

As far as negative reviews are concerned, merchants are under no obligation to contact you after that either but the vast majority of them will, and do.

I don’t. I figure if they wanted to talk to me, they would write me instead of writing a review. So I don’t disturb their peace.
 

 

Edited November 23, 2019 by Pamela Galli

[So Whimsy]

1 hour ago, Chic Aeon said:

Well how about being "nice" or "helpful"?  I write reviews for the items that I buy on the Marketplace -- almost all of them. It is good for the creators and as long as it is an honest and on point review -- it is helpful to the folks BUYING.  

Unfortunately this isn't a perfect world, so no incentive means low to no reviews.