Attention Online Shoppers!

**pluckyduck** · #1 05-20-2002, 12:44 AM

I'm having a blast hanging out in online at Eps...but I could be having a bigger blast if I were hanging out more with you guys there.

I got to read about "Amy's Daily Shampoo" (reflect.com) the other day. I'm greedy though, that's not enough.

One of the things that missing from a lot of online reviews on Eps is the war stories. I've noticed that the biggest comment responses and emails I get from what I write in online is when I mention specific products I've bought. People seem to connect with the products, even more than store. (Phooey on long, drawn out descriptions of websites.

Like a real shopper cares!

)

My opinion is, we need a whole lot more shopping going on in online. I wanted to do some kind of "event" to get a bunch of the real shoppers here at EA to post a review....some kind of Shop Fest, but I think the world might be write offed out. I thought about a contest, but, hell, I wouldn't want to judge.

Any ideas? There could be something really fun in all of this, like, going shopping together and hanging out and showing off what we bought.

Are write offs lame now?

Andrea

**pluckyduck** · #2 05-20-2002, 06:57 PM

LOL!

14 views, no repsonses.

Guess that answers my question about write offs being lame.

Andrea

**Joubert**[$] · #3 05-20-2002, 06:59 PM

Eh, I would do it if you could see your way clear to reviewing a financial institution...

**pluckyduck** · #4 05-20-2002, 08:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by joubert
Eh, I would do it if you could see your way clear to reviewing a financial institution...

You are shameless.

Now, get out of my thread!

Andrea

nicholmere · #5 05-21-2002, 12:22 AM

It's not that I think write-offs are lame, I just do not handle the pressure of meeting deadlines very well.

The problem with most on-line shopping reviews from me would be that they would mostly consist of why I didn't buy from the site. After many attempts I've turned away from Harry&David, Sears, even Amazon's shipping policy has deterred me from shopping there again.

As to how to encourage more members to write more reviews? Give them money to buy the stuff?

... just kidding

Let's see ... shopping events hmmm ...

Maybe a Father's Day - buy a gift on-line, write a review, event?

Maybe encourage people to write a "my favourite on-line store" review. Or maybe the "worst shopping site ever" review. Or maybe a "My regular shopping site" ... or "my one-night-stand" review ... or .... "most unusal" ...

- Katherine

mtbat · #6 05-21-2002, 01:05 AM

If you give me a couple of days instead of a specific day to post a review I'd jump in and I promise to actually submit the review.

Fridai

**pluckyduck** · #7 05-21-2002, 08:15 AM

First of all, I can't meet a deadline to save my life, so you needn't worry that I would think of a specific day.

Okay, I could think of one, but you'd all show up and I'd be late.

Now, leave it to a good buddy of mine, Ms. Nicholmere, to bring up one of the trickiest online review issues --- The Store You Didn't Shop At.

I'd kill to get some shopper input on this one.

Here's my opinion. Tell me what you all think.

I think that it's hard, but not impossible, to write a truly very helpful review of a store you didn't shop at. One of the most crucial elements of any store review, for me, is going to be the order processing and fufillment. (I'm a nut for how things are shipped and packed, for instance.) Even if a website is so annoying to navigate that you turn away, that information may only be "helpful" but not "very helpful" (in the true meaning of the word and not the review "grade" that H and VH can often be).

A couple examples of truly "very helpful" store-I-didn't-shop-at reviews I've seen are:

* a comparision between two travel reservation sites, the reservation site being reviewed so utterly lacking in choice and selection that it became a "don't even bother going here" when compared to the other site.

* an electronics store where the reviewer had called customer service before placing an order and was so put off by what appeared to be underhanded practices that no order was actually placed.

What I see people write that I think can be helpful but not very helpful is

* website tours...many words going over what a somewhat obscure store offers. Can be useful for pointing someone to an off the beaten path resource, but usually stops short of being very helpful to me.

* smaller rants about how the prices on this site are too high, or something else is objectionable and the shopper turned away.

What do you guys think? Try to forget the whole Epinions grading culture thing and go for the essence of the word "helpful". You are the shoppers. Your opinion of all this means a big deal.

Andrea

**hadassahchana**[$] · #8 05-21-2002, 09:55 AM

What? You mean that in order to be in your write-off, I'd have to shop? As in, buy cool stuff? Oh darn- you're killing me!

When and where? And if I find some obscure shopping site, will you add it for me?

And can we lock Kevin out of this thread before he withdraws me from the WO?

Cindy

**pluckyduck** · #9 05-21-2002, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by hadassahchana
What? You mean that in order to be in your write-off, I'd have to shop? As in, buy cool stuff? Oh darn- you're killing me!

When and where? And if I find some obscure shopping site, will you add it for me?

And can we lock Kevin out of this thread before he withdraws me from the WO?

Cindy

Girl, you think like I do!

I wish I could add obsure sites right now.

I'm not in the first batch of folks with the tool, though.

Andrea