Reviews and Recommendations

Word of Mouth has and always will be a key element of any decision making progress, and regardless of what anyone wants to tell you about the ‘amazing innovations’ provided by the internet, at the end of the day the internet just gives a louder voice to a wider audience.

I have long held the belief that if I know you personally, have experienced your likes and dislikes then I am far more inclined to take your review or recommendation into account, than that of a total stranger.

Whilst this view dilutes the strength of internet recommendations and reviews, this is offset to a large degree by the volume of comments, which allows for a realistic judgment to be made.

Or does it?

Of late two ‘things’ have started to become more and more frustrating to me. Maybe I am just getting older, maybe I have been looking a little more than I used to but:

1. Reviews: it seems to me that companies are giving less and less time to form an opinion. More often than not an online purchase is followed up with a request to review long before I have actually used the product, and without fail always before what I would deem to be a reasonable period of use had been. If I am going to review a product (or take a review into consideration) then longevity is a key aspect. I also find it very frustrating when in the winter I buy a product ready for the summer, but I get a request to review it. My review could only be: it has arrived, it is in the box, what do you want me to say!?
2. Recommendations: when a recommendation includes answers to questions along the lines of “I haven’t bought the product, so I can’t comment”, but they give it a 5* recommendation then I start to give up home for the future of humanity. Another bug bearer for me …. when I buy a product through say Amazon, which is made by Company A, but sold by Company B …. through Amazon remember. Product arrives on time, does what it says on the tin (so to speak) yet Company B wants me to recommend them? Why? How? I bought a product you didn’t make, from a company that wasn’t you, so I am meant to recommend you for doing what?

I could go on, I often do, but for now I Think it fair to assume that I am not a fan, which is slightly ironic as we have a Testimonials Page on ALStrays for our transports, but we don’t ask for these and we certainly don’t worry of we don’t get any!