Sounds like there's a need in the market. I think ideally the perfect review website would:
1. Be supported by donations only
2. Verify authenticity of users (require linking of a Google account? require a photograph of the finished solar install [or some other verifiable proof of a started/cancelled process]? require minimum number of words per review? restrict reviews coming from a single IP address?)
Any other thoughts on how to fix this problem? I'm tempted to make this a weekend project and see where it goes.
I just use my own "BS meter" when reading reviews, for anything I am looking for reviews on. I am not sure how you could fix it for any sort of review site, because if you make the requirements to post a review too onerous (requiring google account, requiring photos, requiring an invoice of a completed project, requiring a minimum number of words" many people would just say "I dont have time for this" and only the really "passionate" people would jump through all those hoops to post a review.
Then, what you end up with, is your site having skewed the data unintentionally... only people who feel very strongly would go through the hassle, and, in general, when people feel "very strongly" and want to "tell people online" its not because "everything went great!"
The other people who would jump through the hoops to post a review are those with a financial stake to do so, so you would be back where you started from, with only upset people and people trying to game the system posting reviews to such a site.
(the above is obviously all just my personal opinion)
For reviews on amazon, there is an app called "fakespot" that I believe has some machine learning etc to try to detect fake reviews but I am not sure exactly how they go about it.
So, like I said, for me, I just gather my own information, and understand that for some things, most reviews I will find will likely be negative because of the nature of the product. Ever tried to look for reviews on something like a washing machine for example? In general, people who are passionate enough to go post somewhere about a washing machine are doing so because they are unhappy with the one they bought, or the one they have. Or, the manufacturer is offering some bonus for submitting a review so you get "its great, I love it, I have had it 3 days and it washes awesome!" Every once in a while you get someone who actually put some time into it and those are the ones I pay attention to the most. Same deal here.
In the case of Tesla specifically, I have enough personal experience with them that for me, I know basically where they are. They are driving costs down by eliminating as much human 1:1 customer service they can, and basically going after what would be termed "low hanging fruit". The market is big enough that Tesla feels they can serve the niche of people who "just want solar" and have what would be "fairly simple" to implement, for less than other companies.
They try to fit most things into the defined buckets they have (not much or any choice on solar panel brand, etc). Most people at tesla try to help you, but sometimes things that should not take that long take forever... (like the people who have posted it took 2-3 months for tesla to fix a non working system).
Still, There is no malice with tesla, no one is actively trying to defraud anyone. If one can be patient, and work through their communication struggles sometimes, and get an understanding of what they would like (or conversely just be happy with what tesla offers for the most part), one can save a LOT of money currently. The installers do a good job from most reports that I see, and they (in general) really seem to care. Of course, humans being humans, there are exceptions, but in general, it seems to me that issues with tesla stem from people there being overworked, and having too much on their plate, vs Out and out Malice.
I can handle that, but would be lying if I said I dont put value on great customer service. On a project worth 10s of thousands of dollars though, how much is that worth? That depends on the individual.
To answer the OPs question specifically "how do I ignore those reviews on solarreviews.com" for me its because that site had zero credibility even before
@willow_hiller did his analysis. What I "felt" looking at it, was what
@willow_hiller showed with data. In general however, tesla has earned some of its scorn due to lack of communication, but as I said, I firmly believe its not malice, but overwork, and the occasional (very human) lazy person.
