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10 tips to a better Epinion youJun 27 '02 (Updated Jun 28 '02) Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line Want to write better? Learn to use your WOT list? HTML anyone? Well, here's some tips that have helped me. Hope it helps you too.
Sometimes you want to pluck chickens For a while I’ve been thinking about how best I should celebrate 3 significant events with my epinions life. -70th review, okay not that high, but still! -Over 2100+ member hits! -Over 10000+ total hits! I cannot believe that I have been here at epinions for almost two years now, and it’s kinda scary to think of all the changes that have gone on. We’ve rotated through different looks for the web site, different hats and titles for special members, and the rating system itself. So after all these changes and time, what can I write about here that will stay pretty useful for newbie members who are trying to learn the ropes from us old veterans? Well, I decided to put down a listing of tips and ideas that I have found to be really useful for me during my time here at epinions. Hopefully you will find this applicable in your writing and maybe even enriching for yourself. BTW, if it does enrich you, let me know how’s it going, ok? Tip #1: Choose a FUN subject! One of the things I have found about writing my reviews is that I usually find it a very enjoyable use of my time. The reason is simple. I actually have a strong opinion about my subject. Whether I love or hate it, whichever, if I feel strongly about it, my end product of my review will most likely be something that I would enjoy reading over again. When you enjoy your subject, you will inject your brand of humor, your insights, and also your passions about it. I’ve found that the reviewers that I particularly like can draw their readers into the article with the aforementioned items. They want to grab your attention because they really are passionate about their subject. Give it a whirl for yourself, you might found yourself really liking it. Tip #2: Be willing to take in constructive criticism Okay, this one is a little hard to take in, but all of us epinionators are not perfect writers! You may encounter time to time some members who will give you a low or unexpected rating on your article. Though it may be hard to not take offense, esp. if you listened to tip #1, remember that all of us at times have had very bad reviews too. Usually those who rate you lowly are just being honest and really do want you to improve. If members leave comments and feedback, look them over and see how you can work on your future articles. It also might be a good idea to read their reviews and see what things they do that could work for you. Tip #3: Break up your reviews Another helpful idea is to make sure you use paragraphs on your reviews. You have no idea how helpful it is to a reader, like me, whenever a person breaks their reviews into sizable chunks. It makes the reading process a whole lot easier, plus it helps the reader keep up with your thought processes. I’ve read too many articles where all the sentences were just in one large paragraph! Even though the review itself may have been fun to read and informative, it can be quite hurtful for the eyes. One helpful way to help readers along is to use html code. Epinions allows its writers to use the bold and italic commands. As you may have noticed, I use them quite often to help emphasize sections and words I want you to take away with. To start using html, use the greater and lesser than symbols on your keyboard. Since I can’t put them down here without getting an error, I’ll use “ “ to illustrate. To do bold text: “b”I like to pluck chickens.”/b” To do italic text: “i”I like to shoot chickens”/I” To do a combo text: “b” “i” I like to decapitate chickens.”/b” “/i” If it works out correctly, you’re on your way to coding html. Tip #4: Use a word processor!!! It has happened more than once when I was writing my review on the epinions web site, and then bang, my browser crashes, or worst of, my computer crashes! I have even lost reviews when epinions own web site messes up and doesn’t post my review! Ever since those days, I’ve always typed my reviews onto a word processor, such as Microsoft Word. You have no idea how it has saved many reviews. So use Word, or notepad, or whatever that allows you to save your text. You will not regret it. Tip #5: Rate often & leave feedback whenever applicable One of the great things about epinions is the little community that has sprung up from it. There are epinion sites that allow members to gather, discuss, and just have a good old fun time. Usually this happens whenever you are willing to read reviews that are not within your expertise, and other times when you leave helpful feedback for other reviewers. It promotes a spirit of comradeship and it helps sharpen you in your writing ability too. Tip #6: Choose people you actually trust One of the annoying things about epinions at times is whenever I see a member just going trust hunting! This happens whenever a member gets the delusion that if he trusts a hundred people, those people are suppose to trust him too. I’m sorry, that ain’t gonna happen! Moderation is the word with the WOT. Though I would love to trust a lot more reviewers because I do think they’re swell, I want to maintain a balance with the two lists of WOTs. The more people who trust me, the more people I will trust on my own, not necessarily those who just trusted me though. I’ve seen for some that they do a 2:1 ratio, others, like myself do a 1:1 ratio. It’s up to you. This has been discussed before in other articles, the basic gist for this thinking is some people may get the impression that you’re a trust prostitute. If your reviews are good and you’re consistently rating, you’ll garner trustees. Just be patient. Tip #6: Please no revenge rating!!! If you do get a bad rating on your review, please refer to the above tips again. Do not, and I mean it, DO NOT REVENEGE RATE!!! It’s really a sign of immaturity and people here at epinions don’t take well to revenge rating, esp. if you do it to a hat holder such as a advisors or top reviewer. If it becomes a consistent pattern, expect to be marginalized and placed on the community block list. I’m serious, so think before you overreact. On the other hand, if you are the victim of revenge rating, don’t give into the temptation to return the favor. Honestly look at your review and see if you could have made some things better. If there are, then work on that. If you don’t, then just graciously accept it from the member. If you do review their articles, please make your rating as objective as can be. If it deserves a VH, then give it to him, if it deserves a NH, then do the same. Tip #7: Challenge yourself with other areas It is a commendable thing to focus on an area that you are passionate about. For example, I focus on the electronic and music arenas. However, I have found it enjoyable to test the waters into other areas. The most recent has been in the area of DVDs and that was pretty fun to try out a new style and different way of thinking. Who knows, you might find yourself adding that area into your focus as well. I’m currently trying to add books to my list. Hopefully it’ll go well. Tip #8: Work on your profile page Come on, you know what I mean! You’ve seen some pretty groovy profile pages made by some pretty groovy reviewers. Follow their example! It’s helpful for a reader to get an idea about the writer and it goes a long way in helping them make a decision to trust you or be notify about your reviews. Tip #9: Can you read the words coming from my fingers??? Please, please, PLEASE, spell and grammar check your work as much as you can. It’s not like a rater would shoot you down to a NH for misspelling dog, but if it’s a consistent pattern, it communicates sloppiness instead of passion. I’m sorry, but that’s just a fact that people will view the hundred spelling & grammar mistakes as laziness. That’s another reason why using Microsoft Word or something similar is helpful to write your reviews. You get to at least check your spelling mistakes and correct them. The other thing to remember is that outside readers will be reading your article too. If your review is incomprehensible, it will not help the reader make a decision about the product at all. Then that defeats the purpose of writing reviews in the end doesn’t it? Tip #10: Eat a bag of skittles and two bottles of cola Umm.. in other words, you better have some energy for this place. You’ll need it. Chicken soup? All right, that’s about it for my little moment of all knowing wisdom. Try some of these tips out and see how they go for ya. Even if you’re not new, this I hope was a funny and helpful reminder for all of us here. Epinions is a great site and I hope we all strive to make it even better for our viewing public. Have a great day guys! Oh yes, feel free to leave feedback.  |
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