Lowstar Review Replies

The Amazon bots have a new task….deleting any product review replies that include mention of an email address.

Yes, I know, I know, it’s never been within the letter of the TOS law to direct customers off their platform. However, some clients needed us to do anything and everything to try to engage with their unhappy customers.

This was particularly important if they were having a really bad run with lowstar reviews.

As a result, when replying to a review, we would occasionally mention how to reach out direct eg support@yourbrand.com. 

Cheeky, yes! Our advice was if caught out, it would likely be a slap on the wrist as opposed to an account suspension issue.

However, Amazon have finally acted on this. Rather than making a fuss about it, we watched as review replies slowly disappeared on a client’s account. It was in slow motion, as if someone was reading the review replies, seeing the external email address and hitting delete.

We raced ahead, quickly editing a reply that made mention of an email, and watched as that reply stayed in place but a subsequent one disappeared.

So, it’s clear this door has been quietly shut by Amazon. Best you stop doing this if it’s one of your strategies to try and engage with your unhappy customers. You really do want these replies to stay in place so review readers will see that you’re a proactive seller who tries to resolve any customer issues.

If you have been doing this, go back 60 days and reply to any blanks. That way you have consistency as most people search by Most Recent Reviews when looking at lowstars. 

As always, ask us anything. If we don’t know the answer, we’ll know someone who does!