Retailer Product Reviews

RedRag

Tesco just refused my review of a kettle which pointed out some shortcomings because apparently it '[FONT=&quot]did not meet all our website guidelines' - what guidelines would that be - only post reviews that help sell more products? Can anyone tell me what guidelines I didn't meet with this review?

[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]Stylish Kettle but some design issues[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The kettle looks good, the see-through window is very useful and it boils very quickly. However after using the kettle for about 6 months, there are a couple of design issues the manufacturers should consider. When tipping the kettle forward to pour, steam can rise out of the spout and because of the handle design, your hand can be directly above the spout and get a blast of steam. Secondly, because we live in a hard water area there is a build up of limescale bits of which are loose at the bottom of the kettle even though we have a wire coil thing in the kettle that is meant to attract the limescale. When trying to empty the kettle to remove these bits of limescale, there is a lip around the the inside of the top opening of the kettle which traps this limescale and I have to shake the kettle vigorously to get this out, in addition to what comes out of the spout after the filter is removed.[/FONT]

Davesnave

RedRag wrote: »

Tesco just refused my review of a kettle which pointed out some shortcomings because apparently it '[FONT=&quot]did not meet all our website guidelines' - what guidelines would that be - only post reviews that help sell more products? Can anyone tell me what guidelines I didn't meet with this review?

[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]Stylish Kettle but some design issues[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The kettle looks good, the see-through window is very useful and it boils very quickly.....etc etc etc [/FONT]

Surely you should be asking Tesco what their guidelines are and then detailing the answers here, which would be far more enlightening than a review of an un-named kettle!

Since we are discussing kettles, I have a posher version of this and I'm very happy with it.

http://www.philips.co.uk/c-p/HD4646_00/daily-collection-1.5-l-2400-w-white

I wouldn't advise buy anything like this from my local Tesco, because they operate a "don't you dare open the box" policy, even if the product is not displayed.

RedRag

Hi Davenave - yes Tesco have been asked about their guidelines. They say that any comments about the service, ordering or delivery would be rejected since they are only interested in product reviews - which really doesn't answer my question. Correspondence is still ongoing.

I didn't name the kettle since it was the Tesco review policy I was commenting on but for your interest it was a Waring WTK17CU 1.7L (as a new user I cannot post links).

My wife adds that when the kettle is full it spurts out boiling water onto the work surface.

Davesnave

This:

http://www.tesco.com/direct/waring-wtk17cu-17l-cordless-traditional-kettle-polished-stainless-steel/234-7538.prd

Waring......Household name?

RedRag

First Tesco said "Our staff has read your review and values your contribution even though it did not meet all our website guidelines".

When challenged regarding their website guidelines, they now say "Your review looks to be fine and appears to meet the guidelines however we at Tesco do not control this part of the website as this is operated by an independent company called Reevoo. To find out more information you may wish to contact them directly via the link below".

In my opinion Tesco are responsible for content on their website, even if it is managed by a third party, then the onus is on Tesco to get to the bottom of this and not to brush me off like this.

I still think there is some hidden policy that doesn't allow reviews that might affect sales and the latest correspondence from Tesco hasn't given me much comfort that I am mistaken in this view.

To be continued....

RedRag

Tescos just telephoned me to reiterate that their website reviews are nothing to do with them and they are sorry that I am not happy. I've told them the issue now is much bigger than a kettle review, it is about the confidence that consumers have in the fairness of the reviews published on their website against which consumers may make buying decisions.

I also told them that content on their website is their responsibility and so it is in their interests to get to the bottom of why only positive reviews are published and negative ones deleted.

The customer service agent said he will be asking his supervisor if he can get permission to talk to Reevoo himself. I've told him that in my opinion this should be escalated since there is now a discussion about this on this forum and that they should try to resolve this quickly because the way they have handled this issue so far could lead to a bit of a PR problem if it is not nipped in the bud.