When you want to buy something, you always look for some feedback first. What people think about a specific product is very important, since it offers you a glimpse into the true nature of that very product, unclouded by marketing and advertisement tricks. And you know how misleading and inaccurate those might be sometimes.
We all understand that businesses need to market their goods, and there’s really nothing wrong with that. However, when it comes to actually exchanging our money for something, we need to be sure that we’re making the right choice and not wasting that money. And is there a better way to do that than by getting valuable insight from people who don’t work for that company?
There definitely isn’t. That’s why everybody is increasingly turning towards reading online product reviews, with the aim of getting as much info as possible about a specific product before deciding to buy it. There are a lot of review websites out there and they have become a rather useful asset in the process of making purchase decisions.
However, the rise in these types of websites has also lead to a rise in some less reputable and less trustworthy online places dealing with product reviews. Now you are probably thinking that those are the websites associated with the selling companies, but that doesn’t have to be the case. Even affiliate marketers are perfectly capable of giving honest reviews.
There are other factors that make reviews fake and it is important to be able to distinguish between fake and real ones. That’s why you need to be extra careful when visiting sites like these. Now, here are a couple of things that you need to take into consideration if you want to spot reputable and trustworthy reviews. If you keep these in mind, you’ll never get tricked by someone who has no idea what they are talking about, or why.
Look For Specifics
One of the worst things you could do is make your purchase decision according to vague information. It’s not enough for someone to say: “This product is really good”. What does that even mean? And then, they usually continue with offering variations on that same sentence. “It’s really great. I had a great experience with it” etc. Although that might not be wrong, it tells you absolutely nothing.
What you need to look for are specifics and details. What does the product exactly do? What does it offer? Are there any special features you need to be aware of? How can it help you and why should you consider spending your money on it? Trust the websites that offer an in-depth analysis of the product, instead of simply stating that it is “good” or “bad”.
Language Matters
You’re probably wondering what language has to do with anything here. But, it is actually one of the most important things you need to take into account, which is why it deserves to be explained in detail. This doesn’t mean that you should check whether the person writing has an extensive vocabulary and trust them if they use “complex” words, so that you might need a dictionary while reading their content. That has absolutely nothing to do with anything.
I suppose you have heard of “advertising language” already. The sole purpose of this language is to get you to buy something, regardless of its worth and value. It’s what marketers use in order to appeal to you on a subconscious level. And, the scary part is – it works most of the time. You develop a certain kind of an emotional connection to a specific product without ever having owned it before.
Here’s what I’m talking about: https://www.slideshare.net/pandaaditya14/language-of-advertisement
Sometimes, however, you can definitely spot the intentions behind the language of the person that’s writing. Some people are definitely not skilled enough to turn this into a subtle technique, so they are pretty open about everything. And even when they are skilled, you can learn how to spot the advertising language and be wary of it. This doesn’t mean that lies are told through that language – it simply means that it might cloud your judgement.
In order not to get your judgement clouded, you should always have this on your mind and observe the language that a review writer uses. When you see things like “this is the best product in the whole world and it has completely changed my life”, I suggest you be careful. Once again, this tells you nothing at all about the product. Trust the language that’s precise and informative – offering exact and accurate information about the thing that you are looking to buy.
Both Pros And Cons
Now, when you want to purchase something, you definitely need to learn both about its qualities and its flaws. Hearing about the good sides is nice and all, but in order to really get familiar with a certain product, you need to know about its less good sided. Otherwise, you might be taken by surprise after actually buying the thing, and that’s not what you want.
Keep in mind that every product out there absolutely has both good and bad sides. That means that you shouldn’t run away from it as soon as you see its cons listed. Find a review website that offers data on both the pros and the cons, weigh those out and decide whether buying the product is a good option. Remember, everything must have a flaw.
