For consumers Reliability of reviews
Reviews of a quality mark
Every member of WebwinkelKeur also collects reviews. This allows us to select honest entrepreneurs at the gate and give their customers a voice to share real experiences. This makes our reviews extremely reliable. We therefore advise consumers never to rely solely on a quality mark, but to also check reviews. This can be done, for example, via the member page on WebwinkelKeur.
How reliable are reviews?
We pay a lot of attention to collecting, checking, and managing real, reliable reviews for WebwinkelKeur members. We use different labels for each review to explain its origin:
verified customer of ...
Before posting a review, our members' customers receive an invitation by email. This email is sent automatically by our system after an order has been completed within the web shop's webshop software. These reviews are displayed on the member page with the label 'verified customer of ...'.
customer of ...
In addition, customers of our members have the option to write a review without an invitation. These are so-called 'unverified reviews', which are displayed on the member page with the label 'customer of ...'.
How do we monitor the authenticity of reviews?
• The review writer must confirm their email address.
• The online retailer does not have the option to edit a review themselves.
• All reviews are posted immediately, both negative and positive.
• We have an algorithm that checks various characteristics to determine whether a review is potentially fake.
• Suspicious reviews are removed after being checked by our customer service team if we identify them as fake.
• Members can submit a moderation request if they suspect that a review did not come from a customer. We will then investigate.
• Consumers can report a review they suspect is fake. This will also be investigated.
• We do not allow our members to collect paid reviews. This includes reviews in exchange for a product (to test), money, or a discount.
• We take strict action against members who publish fake reviews and may also revoke their membership.
Terms of use
The review terms of use for you as a consumer can be found here
Tips for reading reviews
As a consumer, it is good to be critical, which you can do by reading reviews, among other things.
• How many reviews are there? Multiple reviews say more than a few reviews.
• When were these reviews posted? Recent reviews are important. Reviews collected in recent months also indicate that the online store is stable.
• How are complaints handled? Every company makes mistakes sometimes, so negative reviews are not a problem. However, it is important that complaints are taken seriously and that a solution is found.
• Check multiple sources. For example, Google the name of the online store and search for more experiences. If known, we also refer to external sources on our member page to assess the reliability of the online store.
Average score
The average score shown is not only based on our own assessments, but in many cases also on reviews from external sources if these have been added to the profile. For example, we can include Google's score in the calculation.
Calculation of the score
The rating is based on a 'Likert scale', in this case consisting of 1 to 5 stars, which translate into a score of 2 to 10. According to this formula, a score of 3 stars is equivalent to a 6. This formula means that a score of 1 star gives the online retailer a 2 and not a 1 or 0. The score shown is an average of all ratings, with and without review text.
External sources
After calculating the score based on our own reviews, WebwinkelKeur can also include reviews from external platforms in the average score. These reviews count equally towards the average score. For example, 100 reviews on WebwinkelKeur (with an average of 9) and 100 reviews collected elsewhere (with an average of 8) result in an average score of 8.5.
Influencing scores
Reviews collected via WebwinkelKeur must be an honest representation of the customer experience. Webshops are not allowed to edit, delete, or select reviews based on their content.
In some cases, a webshop may invite customers to write a review in exchange for a discount or reward. When this happens via WebwinkelKeur, it is clearly indicated with the label 'Sponsored'. This label makes it clear to consumers that the reviewer has received an invitation offering an incentive.
The content of a review always remains the personal opinion of the customer. Both positive and negative reviews remain visible and are not modified by the online store.
In addition to reviews collected via WebwinkelKeur, some profile pages may also display reviews from external sources. These external sources may (partly) consist of paid reviews or reviews arising from a contractual relationship. When external sources are added, this may influence the average rating.
Removal of reviews
In principle, we do not remove reviews, only in cases of offensive language or when they are demonstrably unjustified. This may be the case, for example, when a competitor or someone who is not a customer writes a review or an angry customer deliberately tells untruths. It is important to note that we do not engage in discussions about feelings. For example, one customer may be very dissatisfied when an order is delayed by a few days, while another customer may not find this as serious. We only check whether the facts are correct and, in other cases, give the online retailer the opportunity to respond to the review. Our terms of use are leading in this regard.