Are You Reviewing Products Correctly?

Almost every blogger loves to review products and write their opinion for the company or business they're working with, but are you correctly reviewing the product or service?

There really isn't a guidebook on how to review a product or service but there are some unwritten rules that, to some, are common sense.  Some bloggers really need to put more thought into their reviews or even follow a small outline for their reviews, it will make their reviews catch a consumer's attention better.

I see many reviews that are simply a blogger promoting the product or service and calling it a review.  Granted, many bloggers are hesitant to say anything negative about the product or the company, but that is what many companies want.  They want to know the positives and negatives of their product, the pros and the cons, they want their item compared to something comparable within their competition to see how their product weighs up.  They want you to tell your readers and other consumers why their product should be in homes rather than another brand within the same genre. Don't be afraid to state both the pros and the cons of the product, that is part of a review.

How do you write a great product review?

- Take a photo or video of the product you are going to review. You want the consumer to see an actual photo of the product, not just a stock photo or the photo of the box.  Some bloggers even go as far as to take a video of the product they're going to review/are reviewing so the consumer can see the product in action.  Videos are not mandatory unless your client requests one, but they are very helpful in reviewing.

- Write your review.  The first paragraph should be an introduction to the product that you're reviewing.  Let the consumer know some basic information about the item such as the name, the usage, the size, style, colors available, price and so on...  

The second paragraph should be a paragraph describing what type of customer is the target demographic for the item.  Is it for a busy mom on the go?  Is it for a teenager that is just graduating high school?  Is it for a college student to make their lives easier?  State the reason why the product is a target for that demographic and why it will be ideal for that person.

You want the consumer/reader to know that you actually used and tested the item, So either give a very in depth review of how the product works and how you would go about using it, take photos of the item being used or as we said earlier; go a step farther and video the item being used.  

** NOTE THE PROS AND CONS. If a review is overly positive or overly nice to a product, the reader/consumer won't take the review seriously.  Even though you add a disclaimer to the end, the consumer still may think the company paid you to write a fake review.  This always casts negatively on the product/company since you need to compare and contrast.  Companies will not get angry at you for stating the pros and cons, they look for the constructive criticism to better their product the next time. 

The next paragraph should let consumers/readers know how to purchase the product along with a link to the manufacturer site and any promo codes you may want to add. After letting them know how to purchase the product you can note any giveaways that you are hosting for this product.  A great lead in is, "(Company name here) has offered one of their great (product name here) to a lucky blog reader..." [Alter that to fit your blog!]  And state the entries/rules/regulations to the giveaway itself.

- USE SEO.  Make sure your review and the title to your review utilizes SEO keywords. (Search Engine Optimization)  SEO keywords are very important to your review being seen/picked up in a search engine.  


- DISCLAIMERS. Very important...the FTC now requires bloggers to state a disclaimer at the end of their post letting the reader know that they received compensation or a free product for the review.  You also should disclose that the review was completely your opinion of the product and was not solicited by the company itself.  This is a mandatory disclosure now and needs to be posted.

Writing a review is fairly simple but writing a review that has impact takes a little more skill.  Remember, new companies do look at prior reviews that you've done for other companies.  They want someone who can give the full impact of what their product delivers and gain them new customers.  By sending a free product or monetary compensation for a review, they are making a small investment in you and your skill.  Make the best of that and show them what you're made of.