Amazon gets these dumb answers because it emails buyers with the questions. So Joe Blow gets an email saying, "will this fit my XYZ?" and he answers, "I don't know, but it works ok on my ABC". It makes the Q&A section mostly useless.
this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2023
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Mildly Infuriating
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Yep. It's mind boggling that they still even do this.
The other thing I hate about reviews is when they use the same review page for different SKUs of the same product. So for example you'll be reading a review of what you think is a 2 litre plastic container because that's what you clicked on. The review will say something like 'it's too big for the fridge'. Meanwhile the review was actually for the 5 litre version of the same product. So then you have to scroll through a million reviews to find the relevant ones, with no way to filter them.
At least with that example, the products are related. Amazon lets sellers replace listings with completely different items - new name, picture, and description. So you'll find a scam 64GB USB drive that's pretending to be 1TB with hundreds of positive reviews, but when you read those reviews, you realize they're for the plastic fidget toy that shared the item number previously.
Hey I used to get those and answered almost exactly like that. I have not gotten a question after I got into a review argument about how I was being disrespectful yet I never really agreed to answer questions for Amazon's customers...(I probably did but those tos terms are always bullshit)
I'm sure Amazon blacklisted me from getting those questions because of my answers.
Also...9/10 times the questions literally made slno sense, were beyond dumb, or could be answered by reading the actual product page.
Probably helps the page show up in search results for will [product] fit my ABC? too.
It's because a lot of boomers think everything they see on the internet is sent personally to them. Took me years (literal years) to explain to my mom that someone's Facebook status was not that person sending her a message.
Most don't even realize the product questions are automated. They think amazon is personally asking them so they feel obliged to respond, even if they don't know the answer.
To be fair, Amazon does personally send people e-mails with those product questions and it's formulated as you specifically being asked...
I got one for ya. I was changing the oil in my fiancée's car and wanted to know how to clear the "maintenance required" light so I looked it up online. First result was of course someone asking the same question to some sort of car forum. The top response? "That is something the dealership can do for you".
Motherfucker if I wanted the dealership to do it for me, I would have had them change my oil in the first God damn place! Jesus fuck that response just ruined my day. Utterly useless waste of kilobytes. Luckily the response right under his had the answer I was looking for. This happened like a month ago and I'm still pissed off about it.
Yes! The amount of times I have looked something up (back in the days of Reddit) to find a post with tons of comments saying "did you google it first before asking here?". Obviously I looked other places first else I wouldn't be checking here.
Amazon used to send the question to you in a very weird way, Almost like th person was DMing you, so people would reply (maybe to the email?) In an honest way.
I took me getting one of those emails to understand.
Still makes me mad, but at amazon instead
Not for product questions exactly, but for product reviews instead.
These pointless reviews always drive me crazy. But nothing can be done about it probably. Shoppee and Lazada both reward people for reviewing a product they bought, and people want those rewards so they quickly spin up any review they can.
Haven't tried it yet, but the delivery rider is very cute and handsome 🥺👉👈 the bubble wrap in the packaging is very soothing 🥰 and delivery was fast. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My brother in christ you were supposed to review the product itself, not the deliveryperson's appearance or the product packaging
The worst are the ones who give 1 star when they CLEARLY did not even bother to read the actual description of the product.
NESPRESSO COFFEE PODS: Exist and are clearly labeled as such.
Beverly of Lone Star, Texas: THIS DOES NOT FIT THE KEURIG MY GRAMDSON ALLEN GAVE ME. ONE STAR, SCAMMERS!!!!
That drives me crazy and also the reviews who leave a confusing number of stars compared to their comment. "Best food I've ever had in my life, no complaints!" 3 out of 5 stars
I run an online business and the vast majority of people who contact me daily ask a question that is literally answered in the first sentence of the description.
I post rental properties when they're available on places like marketplace and the # of people who read zero of the words in my description drive me fucking bonkers. Like you're looking for a place to live, mother fucker. Maybe read the ad to see if it's a place you'd want to be?
My favourite is when my ad says "THIS IS AVAILABLE August 1" and they say "is this available tomorrow?"
If it was available now, the ad wouldn't fucking say the date it's available.
Or the random "Is this available?" click. Like fuck of course it is, I'm just coolly receiving a hundred messages on Facebook on this apartment and I only have it advertised because it's not available. 🤪
Some of the people posting on those platforms do not seem to know how to take a post down or alter it so people can see its not available anymore or reserved or something so i kind of get it.
On the other hand, if its just that question and nothing more its wasting both of your time which is another kind of infuriating altogether. Just like saying "Hi" and waiting for a reply. Just tell me what you want man. :D
Belief in the goodness of humanity rarely survives extended contact with humanity.
Yep exactly. It also doesn't make a damned bit of difference that you've worded it so clearly a lawyer could cry, and made them agree to a simple acknowledgement.
Definitely not an unpopular opinion, but I think it just comes down to Amazon specifically directing those questions (by email or prompts on the website) to people who have bought the product. And some people just dutifully answer the prompt without realizing their answer is going to be published in the Q&A section.
Yea it's incomprehensible why people answer questions when they don't know the answer. Who are you helping?
I think it's because Amazon sends emails making it look like someone asked a question specifically to you, and the people who fall for that are also usually oblivious enough not to know the answer to the question
I've literally seen ones that say "I don't know."
LIKE, WHAT??? Why??
"A: I don't know, I haven't tried it yet."
That one drives me almost as crazy as 1-star "Best product ever" and 5-star "Didn't even work" reviews. Sheesh.
Haven't tried it yet 2*s
I totally get it and I agree, however this phenomenon is also exacerbated by the way they phrase the emails encouraging you to answer such questions. "Can you help xxx?" Of course I can... and if I can't, I would still try...
Ik what you mean, it's just annoying to see all the review sections/ question sections filled with useless garbage.
Amazon intentionally sends misleading emails saying something along the lines of "someone asked you a question about the item you bought!" to make people more likely to answer thinking it's directed at them and it would be rude to ignore. The problem is half the time the answer is something like that.
there's a whole sub red dit for this, AmazonAnswers. Very entertaining when it's not you shopping
Hopefully this appears on Lemmy.
Yess!! I hate these reviews. The whole "I didn't buy the product but I think it's good" gets on my nerves.
I know exactly what you mean. I also like snow forts. I haven't made a good snow fort since I was like 12. Pointless answers suck
I like turtles
Best turtle I ever saw might have been named Bob for all I know. Or Susan.
Many of the online stores I shop at have offers like "leave a review and you'll get a coupon for your next purchase", so they get a lot of pointless reviews like "It arrived. Didn't try the product yet. 5 stars"
I find that there's a very strong correlation between the average age of the customer base and the uselessness of the reviews.
Haven't seen this before, but my step-cousin said the same thing once!
Yes, it's enormously annoying. Steam reviews also generally suck. Especially those with the checkmark style forms.
I'm getting sick of all the copypasta and joke reviews like "no one's probably going to see this so I'll just say I'm gay." There is no way people find all these overused memes funny or the ASCII art.
Also included in this are reviews on things that are not the product - I remember seeing one that was like "great product, but I'm giving it one star because it was delivered late and the delivery driver was rude" - and reviews based on the buyer's own failings, like "I didn't read the assembly instructions and put it together wrong, and then it didn't work properly, so I'm giving it a negative review".
The reviews aren't even done by real people who brought the product anymore.
If my review is so valuable why not pay me for it. A real "paid review".