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Do People 'Review' Too Much?
Cissy Fairfax
Posts: 11,833 Forum Member
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I'm not talking films, albums etc - more restaurants, hotels, holiday resorts etc?
It seems every time you google anything nowadays, even just to look where a pub or a cafe is on a map there are links to reviews of this?
Occasionally I browse them, but the more I read the more useless the reviews seem to be. There was a hotel I was booking only a night in (so couldn't really care less on the review - but had a look anyway). Of the 25 reviews it had something like eight 5*s and twelve 1*s. I'm not really sure what that's meant to tell you.
I can understand, if you're spending a fortune on a meal, holiday, hotel, health spa etc and 80% of the reviews are negative, then obviously that's useful.
But are a few paragraphs of criticism from me - or any old sod, who may not be particuarly qualified to speak - that valid?
Something else I notice is not every area reviewed are even actual restaurants or hotels. I've seen small little cafe's selling a few sandwiches, or little B&Bs reviewed as if they're meant to be The Ritz, criticising something that costs £3.50.
It seems every time you google anything nowadays, even just to look where a pub or a cafe is on a map there are links to reviews of this?
Occasionally I browse them, but the more I read the more useless the reviews seem to be. There was a hotel I was booking only a night in (so couldn't really care less on the review - but had a look anyway). Of the 25 reviews it had something like eight 5*s and twelve 1*s. I'm not really sure what that's meant to tell you.
I can understand, if you're spending a fortune on a meal, holiday, hotel, health spa etc and 80% of the reviews are negative, then obviously that's useful.
But are a few paragraphs of criticism from me - or any old sod, who may not be particuarly qualified to speak - that valid?
Something else I notice is not every area reviewed are even actual restaurants or hotels. I've seen small little cafe's selling a few sandwiches, or little B&Bs reviewed as if they're meant to be The Ritz, criticising something that costs £3.50.
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Comments
The important thing is just to take a sensible view of it all. That means acknowledging that not every review will be genuine, some will have been left by idiots etc but you take an aggregate average. If a business has 20 bad reviews and only 3 positive reviews it's safe to say they're going wrong somewhere.
It was lovely, fine, did the job, nothing more but people still graded it 1 star & hated it. I've no idea what there was to dislike it that much - a nice room with a bed & bath for £30.
Ok, not Champneys, nor a 5 star hotel, but for what it is I wonder what people expected.
I fell into bantery conversation (as usual) with my local fish and chip restaurant owner, who is a bloody diamond, and he said he'd had a bad review.
It really hacked me off, as the staff and him are immensely friendly, remember you if you've not gone in for a year, cook the stuff beautifully and it's the best fish and chips I've ever had and reasonably priced as well.
So I wrote one.
I read the horrible one and it was seriously unfair.
So - when reviews are important and become a sort of game, then the ordinary uses sort of HAVE to review.
I know right?! Sometimes I can't help but wonder what people expect from these things they review...
That's the one annoying thing I find about reviews. When people criticise something that really, for the price, isn't a criticism. Like "decor could do with updating" in the £30 a night b&b.
I greatly appreciate those people who leave reviews; especially on Amazon, MakeUpAlley and Clothing/Fashion sites.
I agree that people leave some crap reviews, but hey ho, after you waddle through the misery guts you get some helpful information.
Yes, the item I bought was packaged.