Amazon.com Inc. is asking online shoppers to provide information about product testimonials they’ve posted on TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, suggesting the e-commerce giant is more aggressively targeting paid reviews that merchants can use to gain a competitive edge.
In a questionnaire sent to a reviewer and seen by Bloomberg, a member of the company’s product review team wrote: “We are researching reviews and would like to talk to you about the interaction you had with the seller on this product.” Eleven questions followed, including one that asked: “Can you describe the work you’ve done for this seller as an influencer (eg posted videos on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram etc)?”
Amazon’s campaign coincides with a government clampdown on paid product reviews. In August, the Federal Trade Commission announced a new rule prohibiting businesses from paying for consumer reviews and giving the agency authority to seek civil penalties against violators.
Before announcing the rule, the FTC notified 700 companies, including Amazon, Facebook and Google, about its plans to curb a scourge that has become more prevalent in recent years. While paid reviews date back to the early days of e-commerce, millions of people have since become influencers who earn money to tout products but sometimes fail to disclose their brand affiliations.
It’s unclear how Amazon determines who should receive questionnaires or what it intends to do with the responses. It’s also unclear how effective the campaign will be since reviewers can simply ignore the questions.