Does your review add any value to MS database?. Review on Mouthshut

If you think your name is going to be mentioned in this review for your glorification on MS, you can quit now! This review isn’t about how good a writer you are (period). On the other hand, if you are already scared that I will be ruthlessly criticising you in any way, fear not and read on, as this is not about YOU or ME. This is about US at MS – the community that we are.

CHOOSING THE SUBJECT MATTER

The MS community comprises of many members, as diverse as the species of birds on this planet! Some started off writing just on MS, some were accomplished writers before they joined MS. We also have members making it to the Best Debut, and if they are persistent and regular they also make it to the top being Star Writers. Are the Star Writers really the cream of the crop? The best writers, in my humble opinion are those who add value to the review they write and contribute that to the MS database. Those are the true contributors in the real sense of the word. The subject matter can be anything from a single product to service which is in the database, but, the only way of doing full justice to it is by putting forward information that the prospective buyer/user/information seeker is looking for. After all this site was created for visitors to find out about products or services and be able to make an informed decision to either go for it or not.

WHAT TO AVOID MOST OF THE TIME

If you dig Baingan Ka Bhurta or you hate it does not make any difference to the visitor here, you may be a member here but to the visitor you are a stranger, how does he benefit from your liking or disliking the Baingan Ka Bhurta? I know you must be wondering why I am saying this since the category does exist in the database. Agreed, it is there for you to write about, but, it does not mean you write only in those categories on a regular basis. The point I am trying to make here is that every member should be disciplined enough to write about worthwhile things majority of the time and delve into such mundane categories like “Ten foods that you like most” occasionally.

MS IS NOT A POST OFFICE!

We have ex-post office staff here as well; their job is to put a “Thappa” (stamp of approval) on the review and that too in most cases “Very Useful”. They are hypocrites of the highest order who simply do this to get the reviewer to reciprocate in similar fashion. Many do not even read the review on which they are putting their stamp. Beware of them, they usually never comment since they are incapable of expressing themselves in any way. You will come across them if you spend some time here at MS. Rate your reviews intelligently based on merit and merit alone, not just because you see 3 other members already have rated the review “Very Useful” or “Useful”, you also have to follow in their footsteps. If you do not wish to comment, it is OK, it is not mandatory but if you do rate the review “Somewhat Useful” you as a matter of courtesy have to put your comments to express why you did so. Rating “Not Useful” means a comment is mandatory since the system automatically will ask you to justify your rating.

HOW TO EXPRESS YOURSELF WITH YOUR COMMENTS

Same goes for the comments. Saying how much you like the review to the reviewer means nothing, express yourself by giving your own viewpoint on the subject or your experience on the product or service, this way you are adding value to the review already written. If you found the review not up to certain standards or is, in your opinion, totally out of focus or misleading, say so. Let yourself be heard! Make the reviewer understand that he has to get his act together. If all of this can be accomplished in a civilised manner, that is even better. Remember, there are many members here who will snap at you if you criticise them, don’t worry, such members do not last a long time on any forums, before you even know it they will fade away in cyberspace and forgotten. If you are to comment on any aspect of the review you should also go through all the comments already posted as it could be that someone has already said what you intended to say, in which case do not repeat it, it does not help. It is very boring to go through 50 comments all saying “I agree with you”, don’t you realise you already said that when you rated the review “Very Useful”?

THE REVIEW ITSELF

I think it would be futile here on my part to state how to write a review, there are many good guides available on MS and many good reviews on “How to write a review” available, consult them if you have to. After you have an idea of what a review is and how to write one, make an attempt to WRITE YOUR OWN REVIEW! Yes the bold letters are screaming at you to write your own and not to copy from here and there. There are many examples on MS where people not just copied from the net but copied the reviews written by other members and had the audacity to post them under their name! Those reviewers of course did not last here long. However when writing the review you must ADD VALUE to it, adding value simply means you put that information in your review which is not common knowledge. Let the reader feel that he gained by reading the review. That is what is expected from a good review. Don’t brag about your knowledge of the language or your vocabulary, more than half will not even understand if you use difficult to understand words and phrases and will give up on reading your review. The only place in my opinion, correct me if I am wrong is the books section, where you do expect visitors who will be able to follow your review.

THE CHOSEN ONES

Those who add value to a review are the ones you need to care about. They are the ones who are your teachers, your mentors and your well wishers! They have to be respected under all circumstances. It is not difficult to find them on the forum, they are the ones who shine like diamonds and are always glittering. They are not necessarily the Star Writers but they have the quality in them to be the Star Writers at MS. I have found some Star Writers to be glittering like diamonds as well and I look forward to hopefully discovering more.

Don’t just aim to be a Star Writer, be the diamond that I described – ADD VALUE to your reviews and comments TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Thank you for dropping by and reading what I write.

All test copyright Quadophile 2004