Here’s everything about buying items with no reviews on Amazon: There are a few cases where it makes perfect sense to buy an item on Amazon with no reviews.
If you already know you like the item, have a recommendation from a trusted source, or really don’t have an alternative purchase option, go ahead.
Otherwise, reviews can help you make good purchasing decisions.
So if you want to learn all about purchasing things on Amazon with zero reviews, then this article is for you.
Let’s get right into it!
What Is Amazon?
I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume that you’ve heard of Amazon. It’s one of the biggest and most successful companies of all time.
In fact, there’s a very good chance that you have ordered stuff on Amazon before, but just in case, here’s a quick breakdown.
Amazon is an online store.
Actually, it’s a marketplace.
Under the single umbrella of Amazon.com, you can shop for a nearly endless list of items, services, and other things. It’s safe to say that you won’t find a wider selection in any single location anywhere else on Earth.
When you shop on Amazon, you browse the items via the website.
If you want to make a purchase, you can do that through a series of clicks or touches (you’ll have to input payment information as needed).
Amazon will process digital payment for your purchase, and then they will handle delivery of the item(s) and/or service(s).
It’s convenient. It tends to be fast. And, because the selection is so big, you can find things on Amazon that won’t be anywhere else.
There is one thing to note about how Amazon works. I told you that it’s not really a store but more of a marketplace.
That’s because individuals can have Amazon stores. In fact, you can set up your own shop within the Amazon marketplace. If you do, you will be responsible for actually providing the goods or services that you sell on Amazon.Â
There are also things sold directly by Amazon and not independent shops, meaning that you can have a wide variety of experiences when you shop on the site.
All of that said, everything sold on Amazon is ultimately backed by the company, even if there is a third-party retailer involved. That’s the Amazon advantage.
A giant, multi-trillion-dollar company is guaranteeing your purchases.
What Are Reviews on Amazon?
This brings us to reviews.
When you shop on Amazon, you ultimately will pull up a product page.
Whatever you’re trying to buy will have its own web page under the Amazon umbrella. On that product page, you can see all of the important details, initiate a purchase, and look at reviews.
The reviews are posted by people with Amazon accounts.
In theory, they are true accounts of the experiences people had when they ordered the very item from the very page you are seeing.
In most cases, that’s what happens with reviews. People buy a thing and then post a review.
If they were happy with the experience, it’s a positive review. If they were unhappy, it’s a negative review.
Amazon also has a rating system where reviewers can rate their experience from one to five stars, with a five-star rating being the best.
The thing to remember is that not all reviews are reliable.
How hard would it be for you to ask a friend or family member to post a positive review on your site if you had an Amazon shop? So, take individual reviews with a grain of salt.
The real value in reviews is when there are a lot of them. If a ton of people rate something positively or negatively, the review consensus is more reliable.
What Does It Mean When There Are No Reviews for an Item on Amazon?
If you have done much shopping on Amazon, then you have probably seen a lot of reviews.
You may or may not read them, but they’re on the product pages all the time.
It’s uncommon (although not unheard of) for a page to have absolutely no reviews.
When that does happen, is it an omen? No, this mostly means that the product page hasn’t been listed for very long. You’ll find that in a lot of cases, a product will have reviews with a different seller. You just happen to be on a newly posted page where people haven’t had a chance to make new reviews yet.
That’s the gist of it. A lack of reviews is telling you that the listing is new—nothing more.
How Much Should Reviews on Amazon Affect What You Purchase?
Here’s another way to look at things.
Even when there are reviews, they aren’t the whole story. Reviews are not the sole determiner of whether or not you buy things. McDonald’s has a lot of bad reviews, but you’ve eaten there, haven’t you?
Let’s put this in perspective. Reviews are supposed to be helpful, but how much should they influence you?
It really depends on your comfort level and working knowledge.
If you’re an engineer who designs desk chairs for a living, you don’t need reviews to analyze a new chair and make a smart purchase.
You have a high level of confidence in your working knowledge.
But, that same engineering background might not include much knowledge about kitchen knives, and so you might need a lot more outside information to figure out which knives are right for you. That’s when reviews will hold more sway.
The easiest way to think about it is like this. Reviews are there to try to help fill knowledge gaps. That’s all.
Should You Buy Amazon Items With No Reviews? (3 Situations)
Considering all of that, let’s return to the original question.
Is it ok to buy something from Amazon when there are no reviews?
The short answer is that it depends. There are times when it makes sense to go through with the purchase. There are times when that will feel a lot riskier.
A lot of it has to do with your confidence in the product. If the product is made by a brand that you trust a lot, you might not be so worried about reviews.
If you’re shopping for a gift, and you’re way out of your depth, reviews are paramount. So, let’s look at some of the scenarios where it makes sense to ignore a lack of reviews.
We’ll also cover times when you really should care about reviews and what they have to say.
#1 When It’s OK to Make the Purchase
First, let me reiterate a simple sentiment.
You’re a free person.
You can do what you want.
But, since you came here for advice, I’m going to suggest three scenarios where it makes a lot of sense to buy an item, even if it has no reviews.
Keep in mind the second part of that sentence.
You don’t need to specifically seek out items with no reviews.
But, if you’re in one of the three scenarios and the only option you find on Amazon has no reviews, you don’t need to worry.
Just go for it.
Scenario 1: Familiarity
If you already use the product, and you’re just getting a replacement or an extra, then who cares about reviews?
Your own experience is the review, and you can trust yourself on this one.
Just to put this in perspective, here are a few examples of when this might occur.
Let’s say that you have found the perfect trash bag.
It’s your favorite for all of the little reasons that you might love a trash bag, but none of your local retailers sell it.
When you need a refill, you can order it on Amazon, and if the Amazon entry doesn’t have reviews, you don’t care.
You already know what you’re getting.
This can basically occur for any type of consumable item that needs to be replaced regularly.
It also comes up with gifts.
If you have a favorite power tool, and you want to get one for your friend/neighbor for Christmas, you don’t need reviews to tell you why you like the tool.
Your own stamp of approval is worth more than all of the reviews in the world.
Scenario 2: Trust
This is an inversion of the first scenario.
In this case, you haven’t tried the product yet, but your neighbor and friend really swear by the power tool.
They have you convinced, so you can feel comfortable making the order.
This doesn’t have to come exclusively from friends, either.
If you have a trusted online reviewer, then you don’t need to bolster what they say with Amazon reviews.
It’s a general sentiment.
If someone you trust tells you that a product is a good choice, then you’re taking their word for it, and the Amazon reviews no longer matter.
Scenario 3: Necessity
Sometimes, you need something specific, and you don’t really have options.
This could be true if you’re trying to fix something, and you need a specialized part.
You might only be able to find one seller online that has the part in stock.
You know it’s what you need, so reviews shouldn’t really matter.
You’re just trying to fix the thing.
There are other aspects of need too, and it makes the decision pretty simple.
If you don’t have alternative purchasing options, then the reviews don’t really matter.
You can’t shop around, so you’re going to order from the sole source that is available.
#2 When You Should Probably Shop Around
If the three scenarios above are not present, then it might be better to shop around.
It’s always nice to order things with a little bit of confidence, and reviews can help with that.
You want to know what you’re getting into, so if you don’t have reliable external knowledge as to how good something is, then you’re going to turn to the reviews to overcome that ignorance.
It’s why the reviews are there, and in most cases, you can find multiple shops on Amazon that sell the same thing.
If one has reviews and the other doesn’t, then you can stick to the one that has reviews (assuming the reviews are overall positive).
There’s something to remember with all of this.
The reviews don’t just cover the product and its value.
The reviews also rate the seller, and as you learned earlier, Amazon is a marketplace for a huge number of sellers.
The point is that a seller with no reviews might be slow or unreliable.
A seller with positive feedback is likely going to keep working the way they always have, and you can trust them (in addition to the product) more than someone with no reviews.
#3 Amazon’s Guarantee
While we’re on the topic, there’s a final piece of information that can help you make informed decisions.
Amazon does have a customer satisfaction guarantee.
It’s limited in scope and coverage, but it does mean that you have some wiggle room when it comes to ordering from new shops or trying out new items.
Basically, Amazon will give you a money-back guarantee when the seller refuses to give you a refund.
So, even if you take a chance on a new seller or a new item, Amazon has you covered.
What you need to understand before you make a commitment is that Amazon’s guarantee includes very important exceptions.
The following items are NOT included in Amazon’s A-Z Guarantee:
- Payments for services
- Payments for subscriptions
- Digital merchandise
- Cash or stored value instruments
- Prohibited items (including items violating the Amazon Payments Acceptable Use Policy)
- If you paid by credit card and the issuing bank has initiated a chargeback
- Damage or loss that occurs to goods after they are delivered to the destination you provided to your seller
If your situation is not on the exclusion list, then you are eligible for a refund of up to $2,500.
Remember that this is an Amazon policy.
I can’t make any guarantees on their behalf.
I can only relay what they claim in their literature, which I linked above.
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