Being a tech enthusiast and in PR, I regularly visit technology portals carrying product announcement news, reviews and the like. In fact, the are days I’ve checked out portals like Engadget, NDTV, PC World, Techtree and others more than 20-30 times! What this has ensured is that I have an opinion on the way reviews are written/ carried out and I thought it would be helpful to tech reviewers if I shared few essentials to them:
So here it goes, in order of priority, 10 essentials to ensure more people read your product/ service review:
1. Look and feel
Most crucial parts here are the layout, font, font size and line spacing. I dare say, even before content, the look and feel attracts the reader to read the review. For nascent reviewers: Layout should be simple with minimalist design elements; font should not be fancy – stick to the regular; font size should not be too big or too small; and line spacing should always be cross checked before publishing the post.
2. Content
Almost all reviewers are great on the tech portion, but what many miss out is the angle from which they review the product. Every product has a particular positioning and it’s imperative to review the product from that positioning and many a times reviewers tend to forget that.
3. Review snapshot at the beginning of the review
In cases of an elaborate review, it’s good to have a summary at the start. For eg:
4. Quit the jargon
It’s great to know about Gingerbread, Froyo and other such jargon, but for the greater audience it’s good to simplify the jargon. For eg:
Enclosed below is the explanation of the Intel Hyperbaric Cooling system used in a particular laptop reviewed by The Economic Times:
“Importantly, the V130 is one of the first laptops to feature Intel's Hyperbaric Cooling system. Unlike a regular laptop which uses a fan to push hot air out, this technology uses a fan to draw cool air in and direct it precisely over the hot components. It may not sound like a big change, but the end result is that the machine is slimmer, it runs cooler, the fan runs slower and quieter and all this has an impact on overall system life.”
5. Give an alternative buy for the product under review
The Economic Times does this well. They always give an alternate option for the product that has got reviewed so the reader can get a choice. For eg; they said, the Samsung Galaxy S is a good option for people to consider, in a review of the Google Nexus S.
6. Make the product shots look good and different
This is applicable to both print and electronic media – irrespective whether the product is good/ not good to look at, in a good condition or not and if the is unique or common; a creative mind and a good cameraman is great to take good and unique product shots.
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