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Topic: Amazon Cuts Customer Reviews...And?
| Author | Message |
| GalleyCat | Posted – 5/31/2007 2:10:40 AM | show profile Gather.com mentions changes in Amazon.com's customer review presentation that seem to have upset some customers. The basic gist: "Amazon is cutting the number of book reviews displayed on its book product pages by half," says Steve Weber, the author of an online marketing guide called Plug Your Book! "Now just three reviews will be displayed in their entirety, followed by a link to other reviews." So is this actually the decimation of a popular, revenue-enhancing feature of the site, or nothing to get excited about? |
| writesonwater | Posted – 5/31/2007 5:55:27 AM | show profile | email poster That's not good news for readers or for publishers or writers. I look at those reviews when I buy books -- and I buy a lot of books on Amazon. Instant access to that kind of feedback has been what separated Amazon from the corner bookstore, in my opinion. What if the first three reviews aren't representative? All that internet resource, what could it cost them to let people post -- "It's a piazza" -- like Tom Hanks said in You've Got Mail. I've been thinking that I should support my local bookstores more, anyway. |
| homerepairishomicide | Posted – 5/31/2007 11:42:21 AM | show profile amazon reviews Depends on which three reviews they display, doesn't it? I mean, if I get to choose 'em, then that's fine. But if not, then maybe not so much. |
| jsherry | Posted – 5/31/2007 12:23:23 PM | show profile | email poster most popular It was my understanding that it is only the three "most helpful" or "most popular" reviews that would get on the front page of each item, sort of like the Spotlight Reviews (which was random, and this coming from a sometimes Amazon reviewer which a fair amount of Spotlights). The Spotlights, at least, were followed by the 3-5 most recent reviews and after that we had to click to get all the reviews. Overall, no biggie. If you weren't a Spotlight Review and you didn't have one of the 3-5 most recent reviews, you weren't on the front page anyway. This won't have much of an impact, I don't think, and it is the reviews voted "most helpful" which will be on the front page...presumably because they are...well...the most helpful. |
| mjpadgett | Posted – 5/31/2007 12:59:47 PM | show profile Amazon Customer Reviews Other than the Bush administration, nothing makes me fear for the future of this country more than these reviews. Just think of the things in all their subliterate glory and dwell for a moment on the fact that these things are written by the people who read. It's really creepy. Take them all down. Three is three too many. |
| foodlit | Posted – 5/31/2007 2:16:38 PM | show profile Actually, I kind of like this new change. I could care less about what those first three reviews say, I scroll down to the new cool chart that shows you what really matters I think, it's a graph that breaks down the reviews into percentage of 5 star, 4, 3, 2,1. That is really interesting, because a book could have an overall 4 star rating, but be mostly 4 and 5 stars or it could be split between 5 and lots of 1s, which means you'll likely either love it or hate it....think Devil Wears Prada. I take all reviews with a grain of salt anyway. :) Pam |
| s.l. | Posted – 5/31/2007 3:51:01 PM | show profile totally not a big deal. if the customer reviews are really that important to your purchase, is it really that difficult to click on the link to see all the reviews? i mean, seriously. |
| breezit | Posted – 5/31/2007 7:00:25 PM | show profile Most Popular The three "most popular" reviews are not random, but are selected based on the number of helpful votes the reviewer has received, and some other factors. It is all done via a formula of some kind. On average, I trust Amazon reviewers more than the snobs and blowhards who constantly fear for American culture. |
| freerangelibrarian | Posted – 5/31/2007 10:17:23 PM | show profile | email poster I'm with foodlit I like the additions, such as the graph, and I don't hold much store by what reviews are on the first page. ------ http://freerangelibrarian.com |
