Don't do the fake review it can cost you

A lot is being made about a recent lawsuit where a company paid $300,000 to settle a case where they were discovered posting fake positive reviews about their own business. You can read the NY Times article, and you should if you've ever asked yourself, what's the big deal?

This settlement slaps a pretty hefty fine and sends a very strong message that reviews are forms of marketing and are subject to the same standards as TV, print and other advertisements. If you post fake reviews, you are obviously using the web to manipulate consumers and now there is a legal precedent for how you can be punished.

Just don't do it. Encourage your customers to speak on your behalf. The happy ones love sharing praise. We've collected more than 1 million positive recommendations in 3 years. That's a lot of happy chatty customers.

Here's an excerpt from the article:

[One e-mail message, discovered by the attorney general’s office, told employees to “devote the day to doing more postings on the Web as a satisfied client.”

The company will pay $300,000 in penalties and costs to the state. It has also agreed to stop publishing anonymous reviews on Web sites in the voices of satisfied customers and to identify any content created by employees, the statement said.

Andrew M. Cuomo, New York’s attorney general, said in a statement that Lifestyle Lift’s “attempt to generate business by duping consumers was cynical, manipulative and illegal.”]