I've been on such a long journey as an top Amazon reviewer (Rank #302) and it has been so many emotions mixed into one. I would have never thought that I would get the opportunity to review so many amazing and interesting things over the months. From supplements to clothing it has been a blast! What could possibly go wrong in life? A lot!
I wanted to talk about the dark side of Amazon reviewing. A lot of people don't like to talk about it or even know about it. While you are getting a ton of free or discounted items/samples to review it is nothing but a ton of work in return. As my rank shot up from the quality reviews I would produce I would get about 15+ Seller pitches daily.
You eventually learn not to take everything because you would be inundated. I honestly am not sitting home all day just reviewing because I am a mom to two kids as well. I have a life outside of Amazon reviewing. (Who would have thought?!) Not only that but I am an avid gamer and tend to keep up with that lifestyle. (Blizzard fan girl ^__^ )
Products start to pile up and before you know it you have about 30 items sitting in a box waiting for a review along with Seller feedback. Not only am I writing for Amazon products but I also have to help promote items through my personal Instagram/Twitter feed. Guess what? I don't get paid for all of this work I have to do monetarily. I just take the free item in return as "compensation" and use it. I can spend hours taking pretty pictures of each item alone. I then have to think about all the positives and point out any negatives in my reviews. I'm not as harsh as some people who review but I think almost every item has positives you can find about it. Is an item priced too high for what it is? Maybe. That's probably the most negative I can ever find about something. Why do Sellers like me? I make their product shine which is how it should be if it's a good working product.
I must be crazy right? I know a bunch of reviewers who do the same as me. It's a thankless job, honestly. You are harassed until you get that review done and when it's all over you get a half-hearted thank you. That's it. No one tells you about the Seller asking for their review as soon as it gets delivered to your front porch. It would get so crazy sometimes! I kind of just learned to ignore it and complete the review within a few days after getting it to a week. They will get a polished review with pretty photos when it's all said and done.
I had a love and hate relationship with Amazon review but it was my drive every single day. I kind of looked forward to it all. I wanted all the emotions that came with it.
Fast forward to a couple of days ago when I saw that all my reviews were wiped clean. You don't understand the horror that I experienced seeing my profile had 0 reviews. I have Sellers emailing me like crazy asking what happened to their review. I have no idea what has happened and followed Amazon TOS to a T. I used my disclaimer of getting a free product but they are just gone.
I didn't get any email telling me I was banned and my account is still active. This is just one of the horrors you have to deal with on Amazon's side. I have contacted Amazon Customer support three times already with each CS rep just as confused as I was. What has become of my Rank #302 Amazon reviewer profile/Account? It's a big mystery and I suppose I shall find out soon enough hopefully.
Do you want to become a top Amazon reviewer? I totally recommend it but don't get sucked into reviewer groups/clubs. Another tip is don't get reimbursed for anything ( not even shipping). Don't pay anything out of your own pocket that you are not willing to stick with. Do your own thing. Already shop on Amazon? Review what you purchased with clear photos. You will get the Sellers emailing you in no time to review their products free of cost/discounted.
It was a fun journey but you are constantly stepping on egg shells around Amazon's rules even in your own best intentions. My journey will end here if my account is gone but it was nice while it lasted.
What are your thoughts about Amazon reviewing? I'd love to know :}
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UPDATE: My account has been shut down for reviewing as of about 3 weeks ago. The Amazon review team people are totally rude and basically said I was manipulating reviews. I post pictures with all reviews so this is just total BS. (Sorry not a nicer way to put it). They told me not to message them back because they will ignore me and not message me back about it. You can't even appeal whatever they think is "fishy" with your account. Be careful with your high ranks people. Amazon loves to shut down legit reviewers like a King in blood lust. Tsk tsk
