When BuyReviewsNow contacted me, I immediately told them:
Jenny, I DO NOT BUY FAKE 5 STAR REVIEWS! Buying reviews is unprofessional and unethical. And more importantly, it is against Amazon’s rules. Anyone supplying reviews to writers and posting them to Amazon should know this. READ THE RULES ON AMAZON! And stop ripping off authors and setting them up. Amazon could strip the author of ALL reviews for this. I will be forwarding your email, complete with header information, on to Amazon.Her reply was to point out the Zonalert link to the site outing authors (I had been included in the list last year) for buying reviews:
Now this is real funny especially coming from you. www.... (Link to Zonalert deleted as I don't want him to get any traffic.) Go threaten someone else. I am just helping those who deserve.Wow, not very businesslike of her. It seems highly suspicious to me that she would come back with this kind of reply. Why would she search that link out? Did she know about it already? She was originally trying to get my business, wasn't she?
Update (sorry I forgot to add this part initially): And here was my reply:
First of all, that fake report at that website has been investigated and found to be fraudulent. An investigation was launched by a number of authors mentioned on it. That’s why the idiot who started it hasn’t posted anything new. Get your facts straight.I do wonder if she is in kahoots with the guy from Zonalert--and if so, authors beware! He had no proof of his claims, but buying reviews from this site would give him proof.
I have been very vocal about my stand on buying fake reviews. If you knew anything about me, you’d know that.
Amazon has already been notified. All of your clients face having their reviews deleted. Did they deserve that? No! But you’re the one not following the rules. Read Amazon’s guidelines—they’re very clear. “What's not allowed...Reviews written for any form of compensation other than a free copy of the product. This includes reviews that are a part of a paid publicity package.”
You’re not helping ANYONE. You’re doing exactly what that website states—providing fake reviews. Hmmm, I wonder now if you’re in kahoots with the ass running zonalert.
I believe I have made it clear in the past that I do not, nor will not, pay for fake 5-star reviews.
So if you receive an email from Jenny from BuyReviewsNow.com, please do yourself a favor and delete it. Buying reviews could lead to Amazon deleting all your reviews, as one sci-fi author discovered a few years ago. It's just not worth it.
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