Real vs. Fake: How to Protect Your Amazon Brand from Review Fraud With Shane Barker [The Opportunity Ep.178]

Apr 29, 2025

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If you’ve ever had to deal with fake reviews sabotaging your Amazon business, you know how damaging and frustrating it can be.

That’s why Shane Barker created TraceFuse, an AI-powered platform that helps Amazon sellers detect and remove negative reviews that violate Amazon’s policies, without you having to lift a finger.

In this episode, Shane joins us to discuss how TraceFuse came to life, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at how Amazon’s rating and review system really works. We dive into how to spot fake reviews, the consequences of letting them slide, and which niches are the biggest targets for fake review attacks. According to Shane,

“Reviews are the core of Amazon. They not only affect sales, they also affect your Best Seller ranking and your star rating. We’ve seen people lose anywhere from 10% to 50% of their sales because they dropped from 4.3 to 4.2 stars. If you're a seller, you need to really focus on reviews. They’re the biggest thing you've got going.”

Shane also shares some of the most surprising, and occasionally bizarre, fake reviews he’s come across, and walks us through the difference between the traditional manual reporting process and the streamlined system TraceFuse offers.

If you’re an Amazon seller looking to protect your brand, improve your ratings, and fight back against unfair review tactics, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.

Topics Discussed in this episode:

Shane’s background and the origins of TraceFuse (02:40)
How the rating and review system on Amazon works (07:11)
How to identify fake reviews (10:58)
The consequences of fake reviews (19:39)
The niches that are most targeted by fake review attacks (21:48)
The most surprising reviews Shane has seen (27:38)
The manual process for reporting fake reviews vs the TraceFuse process (31:36)
White hat vs grey hat reputation management (35:55)
The RIO Shane has seen for his clients by removing fake reviews (40:32)

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Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to manage fake Amazon reviews!