Amazon shoppers: do you read or write reviews?

I always read the reviews before purchasing a product. One thing I have learned about people who write the reviews is that some negative reviews are due to the customer not knowing how to use the product properly or that the seller did not package it well or mail it quickly. Those should not be counted against the product. So I always take that into account when making a purchase. People will complain about a product not doing what they want it to do when that fact was in the description when they purchased it.

I have written a few reviews over the years. I try to give the seller feedback reviews also. I purchase a lot on Amazon and eBay and will check every few weeks over my purchase history and do a bunch of them at once. Having sold on both sites, I know how important it is to them to have that feedback. Amazon sellers recently have been including a coupon in my purchases for a 5 star review and in exchange they will send me a $15.00 Amazon gift card. Have to send them a screenshot in their email. I have not done that yet.
 

I usually don't bother. Nearly all my online purchases are from Amazon, so I would be kept awfully busy writing all those reviews. Once in a while, I do.

I always wonder about the reviews, though, especially the kind of Yelp. For instance, a perfectly good restaurant will sometimes get such a terrible review that I wouldn't want to go anywhere near that place. Maybe they are written by competitive restaurants? And maybe the good reviews are written by the owners, their friends and family?

For clothing bought on Amazon, one kind of review that I do find helpful is when they say whether the item runs large or small. If you are between sizes, that can be a big help, especially if a few reviewers say the same thing.
 
I always read reviews and they do influence my decision to buy. However, it is sometimes obvious that the reviews have been written by the same person, usually someone with a poor command of English!
 

When I was looking for my new slow cooker, I took brand suggestions from friends, and went to Amazon for a search for what I may want. Read reviews, I was amazed that the Crock Pot brand seemed to be getting the worst over all reviews. I picked my Hamilton Beach after I saw the number of positive reviews.
I have just used it once so far, but after another use or two I will write one too
 
ronk said:
I've written a few reviews. I always look at both positive and negative reviews. I want to see what people like or don't like. Amazon censors reviews to a point. I've seen some reviews which were outright hostile, and they are allowed to remain. I've posted some negative reviews that are tame compared to some other bad reviews. My negative reviews are often deleted. Inconsistency!
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Interesting you mention that. One slow cooker review I read said she had to resubmit her review of the product because she said the product she had was better than another brand,
 
Marie5656 said:
When I am shopping for something on Amazon that is either something I have never bought before, or a higher ticket item, I always read several of the reviews, both positive and negative. They usually will influence my decision on what to buy, or at least narrow down my options. I am especially interested in the 3 star or lower reviews mixed in with the 5 stars. What was it that caused people to vote something down?

On the other side of the coin, I will often review items I have purchased. Again, high or low stars, depending on my own personal experiences with the product. An example, I ordered one of those Damp Rid units for the house. It supposedly gets rid of mold, moisture and mildew. Within hours of setting it up, in a less frequent room of the house, I got headachy, and felt ill from the strong aroma. It was not an unplesant aroma, just VERY strong, even through a closed door. Ended up packing it up and returning it. Felt much better after getting it out of the house. Gave it 2 stars, based on my experience.

But I have made many decisions based on the reviews.
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I don't do much shopping on Amazon, but I do read online reviews for any item I am considering purchasing. It's helped me make the decision whether to purchase the item or do without it.
 
It depends on what I'm buying, if it's a big ticket item I'll look at the reviews. Also if it's an item I know I need I'll buy it without looking at the reviews because I usually know what I'm getting.

I write reviews if I'm very pleased or very displeased. If the issue may be that the product is defective as opposed to being poorly designed I'll often reach out to the manufacturer and explain my issue with the product rather than posting a review. If they don't respond or respond in a way that doesn't really resolve my issue I'll write a negative review. If they do respond and fix my issue I'll write a positive review about the service they provided.

I also do something similar in a restaurant. If I'm displeased with something that could be changed I'll reach out to the manager either during the meal or afterwards to discuss my issue. Depending on their response I'll write a negative review if I think they didn't respond appropriately. If my issue is resolved I'll usually visit the restaurant again before writing a positive review.
 
I only read the negative reviews, especially if there is a consistent thread to them. I don't read positive ones. Everyone writes glowing reports until the damn thing falls apart, and leaks all over the floor.
I only write negative reports, when the product obviously is inferior. I want to warn others.
 
Birdlady said:
I don't do much shopping on Amazon, but I do read online reviews for any item I am considering purchasing. It's helped me make the decision whether to purchase the item or do without it.
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I do that too, even if I am not planning on buying from Amazon. I find some of the best, and well written reviews there
 

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