Letters to the Editor
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Reviews by verified buyers
Product reviews are a lot more credible and helpful when you know that the people leaving the reviews have actually used the products.
On Buzzillions.com for example, the majority of the product reviews are left by 'verified buyers.' Every single merchant (ie. Staples.com, REI.com, etc.) listed on Buzzillions is a client to Buzzillions, so that way Buzzillions can verify that the person leaving the review has actually purchased the product.
Another cool thing is that it will show both the pros AND cons about a product, instead of just the generic 1-5 star rating. You can also filter through products based on the attributes you're looking for in the product. For instance, if you're looking for a digital camera for casual use and you want something with nice features and easy setup, you can see what other people who have purchased the product rate it on those qualities. This way, you're not only finding generic 1-5 star reviews, but you're finding reviews that are relevant to you.
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Hey Laurie
That's so funny, I was in Macy's looking for bathrobes and could tell just by touching them they were crap, so glad the reviews helped you avoid crap!
I got one at Nordstrom instead, it seemed of higher quality than the Macy's robes, but I won't know the washing aspect till my husband washes it after Christmas. It just seems like this season the robes are more fleece like than terry cloth or other heavy absorbent fabrics, I wasn't able to find one as nice as the bathrobe that has begun to tatter and has holes.
I've pretty much stopped reading reviews of bars, clubs, and resturants. Too subjective and plenty of places have off nights and I've found that many people are really picky about decor and the wait staff.
As for Amazon, I've found it to be helpful from time to time as long as there are some reviews, I usually read negative ones first but it's always disappointing to want to know about something and no one has reviewed it so then you just chance it.
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when two products are the same...
When two products are basically identical (like the tissue in this article) it probably doesn't really matter which one you pick, and as such the reviews are little more than an entertaining distraction (I mean, would you really trust someone who is so passionate about klenex that they log on to Amazon and right a review? I'd be rather skeptical about that fact alone).
Reviews are helpful when a product appears to be something it is not. I recently went and did my holiday gift shopping on Amazon and was looking for an ipod holder/gel skin. I found some pretty looking ones for a low price -- I was almost sold! Then I came to the reviews... averaging 3 stars... not a good start. I then read the several outliers who gave the product a 1 or 2... all of whom had experienced issues with shipping and missing pieces. That sort of information is invaluable in a customer review, since it isn't the sort of thing that a professional reviewer is likely to tell you.
Things like shipping time, broken products, helpfulness of customer service staff, and return policies are all important tidbits that often get lost in the ether of internet shopping. I suppose they're not so much a review of an actual product so much as the company who supplies it -- but either way, they're helpful.
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Reviews highlight needed information
Some other letters have touched on this, but my experience with digital camera online shopping recently made me realize that all the reviews can do is tell you information about buying, using, and repairing the item. What someone rates the product is less important than what they tell you about it. For example, does the camera take good photos in low light when used by an experienced digital camera user? Sometimes you find this information in customer reviews, sometimes not. Some people compare this product to other products, so maybe you're looking at the latest "greatest" thing, but everyone who used them both says this version is no better than the previous one, or it's worse because it's not constructed as well. Is there manual functionality? I care, but a lot of reviewers don't, so they might give it five stars and say "Automatic only" -- not 5 stars to me! (This is why dedicated review sites can be more helpful with gadgets.)
Customer reviews are much easier to sort through if you look at them for their information rather than their enthusiasm. A while back I did a review of a lunchbox I own and made sure to point out that I reviewed it as a person who regularly takes homemade lunch and needs a container that goes in a backpack, which was rather different from most of the previous reviewiers. Hopefully that perspective was helpful to someone else out there with a similar perspective and needs, because of the information I gave.
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More thoughts
This is a very thought-provoking subject!
One other thing I find customer reviews really useful for is what another poster mentioned... what is omitted elsewhere.
I'm a Mac person. So whenever I am in the market for software or accessories, Mac compatibility is job one... and that isn't always readily apparent from the info given. Often, even if the info says it is Mac-compatible, only the customer reviews usually tell me whether or not the thing actually works WELL with a Mac, plus they're often full of useful tips, pointers and workarounds.
In general, I look to the customer reviews to tell me whether or not to believe the hype. Those noise-cancelling earphones that are on sale look great in the sales blurb... but only the customer reviews will tell you they sound tinny, and fall apart after a week of normal use.
(Hey Lestat... I wonder if it was the same robe! LOL! Charter Club. I almost fell for it because I have Charter Club towels and I like them just fine.)