Friday 22 March 2024

One Person Found This Helpful

People seem to use the most random of starting places for making programmes [as anyone who has watched Dave Gorman on TV will know] OPFTH is the name of the new Radio 4 comedy programme hosted by Frank Skinner. It is all based on the reviews which customers give products which they have purchased online.
I have always been Very Careful with my money, I used to joke that in my family we did not have Loose Change, we had Tight Budgets. So if something needs replacing, I will check out carefully what is available, what it costs, and what others think about their model. I ask around among my friends, in person and via the blog.
I read articles in Good Housekeeping and similar august publications - "The Top Ten Air Fryers This Christmas" "What sort of Microwave does your family need?" "Find the best jeans for your shape" and I read the reviews online [on the manufacturers' websites, on Amazon, and on retailers' pages, especially John Lewis and Lakeland. 
With the demise of so many domestic items recently, I have spent a lot of time searching through reviews- and mostly deciding that I will manage with what I've got, and not spend my pension on inadequate products.
But along the way, Bob and I have had a good laugh at some of the things people say...
Most review pages require you to give a username, a brief title, a star rating and some comment.
I felt desperately sad for the person reviewing the steam mop, the title was I am in my 40s and this is exciting. 
And then there was 'Grandad' whose review of a steam iron entitled "never used an iron before"  said - This iron cuts through creases like a hot knife thru butter, I can't understand why my wife put up with the old heavy types" 
Frequently I find people who review within seconds of obtaining the parcel [I guess they get that email from A saying "take time to review your recent purchase" and feel obliged to do it then and there] There are so many that say "5* - I haven't unpacked it yet, but the picture on the box looks good." 
And the ones which say things like "I bought this as a gift for my Mum/daughter/sister and she hasn't said anything bad about it" 
Some reviews are so short and stupid you wonder why they bothered...
"5* It is an iron" is admittedly brief and to the point - but not very informative.
"This vacuum cleaner is good if you have carpets" - isn't that what they were designed for??
Others go on for ages, with complicated stories about how it was better/worse than the thing it replaced, what every member of the family thinks about it, and in depth details of the pets.
"I use this vertically on my curtains" 
 conjures up amazing pictures of someone waving a steam mop like Hermione's Magic Wand. 
So reviews can be amusing - but sometimes they are helpful. The M&S website [clothes and footwear sections] is good for letting you know about fit. I wanted to spend some vouchers on a particular pair of shoes - and many reviewers said 'these come up small, go up a half size". I did, and they fit perfectly.
Lakeland are good at responding, and have sometimes modified their products to meet customer requests. 
I won't even discuss the "fake" computer generated reviews. 
I write reviews occasionally - usually after a few months, when I am sure the product is still meeting up to my requirement, and my initial enthusiasm has calmed down. Which is why I haven't yet reviewed my new car here. But I will do so sometime!
Do you read reviews?... And do you ever post reviews of products you've bought? 




22 comments:

  1. I almost never leave reviews. My husband is the king of researchers when it comes to buying something new.

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    1. It is so useful to have someone to check things out for you 😊

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  2. My Dad likes checking out Which? for appliances. I've not really reviewed appliances as I've rarely bought them. Kx

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  3. My daughter will research and read reviews before she buys a product. I rarely do and never leave reviews.

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  4. I'm afraid I never leave reviews - so I'm no help to anyone!

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    1. You are a great help to many people - just not on review pages!

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  5. I do read reviews, particularly M/S, though sometimes I do wonder about the writers! I sometimes write a review and try to make it a helpful one.

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    1. I think the simple "this was good/bad because..." approach is most helpful to the reader

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  6. I do write reviews-good and not so good but like you, I wait until I have tried out my purchase. We have bought several new (large spend) items from AO as we have been very disappointed with John Lewis recently. I am beyond exasperated with M and S sizing. I bought two pairs of “ identical” jeans a couple of weeks ago, didn’t try the second pair and of course they didn’t fit. A 40 mile round trip to return them! So much for trying to shop in a store rather than online. Catriona

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    1. I've found M&S trousers to be quite inconsistent with sizes too. Bob cannot buy their regular trousers in store as he needs the longer leg length only available online.

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  7. I do both read and write reviews, and I'm always honest. Sometimes just reading through a review can save you a lot of wasted money.

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  8. We do occasionally leave reviews mainly because I do read them a lot before online purchases. Like you mention, some are hilarious, some are baffling and some are unhelpful. I like the tongue in cheek ones, usually written by chaps who are frustrated stand up comedians, often involves household stuff like irons or vacuum cleaners - and of course we are meant to feel sorry for the long suffering wife who has just received an iron or whatever for her birthday........then the penny drops, it's a wind up ( or maybe not 😀😉 )
    Alison in Wales x

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  9. I have read reviews, and sometimes left reviews of my own. Research is important when replacing items. I often go to more than one review of the "best" 5 or 10 of an item.

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  10. I also check the one star reviews at the bottom of the list, to find the main "cons" as well as the "pros" on the five star ones

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  11. I do review things if I think the item is exceptionally good or bad. My latest review was for a new cat flap ordered from Amazon France. We needed to keep the cat in so that we could take her to the vet and closed the flap. With three good thumps at it with her mighty paw she managed to force it open and escaped! I watched her do it! What use is that?!

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  12. Many public libraries have subscriptions to Which? online, which is wonderfully searchable - you do usually need to visit a branch to use it though (if you're about to spend a lot of money on an appliance or product, is often worth the while).

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    1. Thank you for that - Which Magazine is quite expensive to buy, but useful, and they do at least keep up to date with their product reviews. Free access to it in the Library is a useful resource

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