WHAT DO THINK IS THE BEST ADVICE TO GIVE NEW MEMBERS ?

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

When you read piles and piles of new members reviews, and they are all either SH or less, what do you think is the best advice you can give them to try and help them ?

Number of posts : 67 Registration date : 2006-03-06

Read other people reviews, and slow down in order to get the most out of writing reviews.

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: slow down in order to get the most out of writing reviews

But would you as a member have understood a message like that when you were new, say on your first couple of days ?

Number of posts : 67 Registration date : 2006-03-06

I would explain that to them In their GB rather than in a comment. Would type more but need to sleep Neutral

Number of posts : 107 Location : Somerset Registration date : 2006-03-07

How to edit their review.
Time after time everyone says add more to the review. Let me know when you update and so on. Most new members don't know where their edit button is confused

so it would help them if you told them

Same with off topic reviews. When the review is moved let me know, you need to get this moved and so on and so on. Rolling Eyes

Why not help by letting them know how to move the review and leave the e-mail address of where to send their request, leave the url of where the review needs to be moved to or send them to me and I will gladly do it for them pale

Number of posts : 637 Registration date : 2006-03-01

As little advice as possible initially. Showing an interest in the topic if you are interested is enough. On someones first reviews I believe you should let them learn by their own mistakes were you can and not tell them how they should act or write. Let them develop their own writing style and only offer advice if it is requested. I prefer to say to members, "feel free to ask me for assistance" than you "need to do the following..."

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: Same with off topic reviews. When the review is moved let me know, you need to get this moved and so on and so on.
Why not help by letting them know how to move the review and leave the e-mail address of where to send their request, leave the url of where the review needs to be moved to or send them to me and I will gladly do it for them

Never thought of that. Good thinking.

Quote :

Guest

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: Get friends/relatives to have a quick read before the next post

Not sure about this one. My husband would not be interested enough to read a paragraph let alone a review.

Number of posts : 10 Registration date : 2006-03-07

I always tell them what I would like to see in their review.... and then I go message them in their Guestbook with more advice....

Guest

Quote :: Not sure about this one. My husband would not be interested enough to read a paragraph let alone a review.

My wife reads mine. Though ususally after I've posted them.
So does my sister and her boyfriend.
They think I'm an excellent writer. Smile

.
Little do they know that I copy all my reviews.
Oopps I shouldn't have said that Smile

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: My wife reads mine. Though ususally after I've posted them.
So does my sister and her boyfriend.
They think I'm an excellent writer. .
Little do they know that I copy all my reviews.
Oopps I shouldn't have said that

Liar liar bums on fire. Twisted Evil

Number of posts : 220 Location : Sunny Sarfend! Registration date : 2006-03-04

Admin wrote:: ......what do you think is the best advice you can give them to try and help them ?

Run, for the sake of your sanity, run!

affraid

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: Run, for the sake of your sanity, run!

Damned fine advice Stu. Would not have expected anything other than that from a man of your calibre.

Number of posts : 62 Registration date : 2006-02-28

Read me advice for new members!!!

(only joking)

Best advice :

Don't get too sucked into the community side of things, write because you want to, not because the next dot is coming up.

Number of posts : 130 Registration date : 2006-02-28

Admin wrote:: When you read piles and piles of new members reviews, and they are all either SH or less, what do you think is the best advice you can give them to try and help them ?

Point them towards the advice in the member centre, there's plenty there to be going on with.

Number of posts : 5 Location : Somewhere in Essex Registration date : 2006-03-07

Message received last week:

Quote :: hey im confussed about this site, how can i make real money? u seem to be doing sumthing right!

ME ???????????

Number of posts : 67 Registration date : 2006-03-06

The advice being posted is good, but whatever you do, dont write "Needs more info"! bounce

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: ME ???????????

Well they were obviously impressed.

Quote :: Needs more info

Agree. As a comment it's a cop out because the person writing the comment has opted to write a nonchalent comment that helps no one. My friend had a ciao account and got that comment and came on the other forum and said 'what the heck else can I say about a hairdryer'. It's a question of knowing what a review is and how it should be presented, and here I feel the guidelines are okay, but that not enough people read them or know of their existance.

Number of posts : 152 Registration date : 2006-03-07

Thingywhatsit wrote:: When you read piles and piles of new members reviews, and they are all either SH or less, what do you think is the best advice you can give them to try and help them ?

There's nothing wrong with members writing SH reviews and some members may feel no inclination to improve their writing standards to live up to our 2000 word epic expectations. In this sense it may be kinda patronising to assume a member wants or requires a bucket load of help and advice when all they really want is to give their opinion and use the site in their own way.

As a newbie myself it did peeve me off when people gave me advice so I could improve my reviews to VH/E standard. I'm not a thickie but I felt like it on occasions. Yeah my reviews may have been quite crap at first but I was happy with the ratings I got and the thought of writing 1000 words on toothpaste sounded so sad and unfun. On my first day I actually found myself laughing my head off when I spotted a 10,000 word+ masterpiece with 50%+ exceptionals. I thought who in their right mind would want to whittle their lives away writing THAT much for fun? (I remember that review to this day and even now would only give it a H at best cos it took the wee-wee)

So my advice (when I can be assed to give it) is to use the site in your own way regardless of how everyone else thinks you should be using it. I've more or less stopped giving help in the comment section to newbies unless they specifically ask for it either in the review or their 'about me'. Call me selfish or lazy, it's no skin off my nose cos I know I am Very Happy

I had a conversation with a relative newbie a few weeks ago. He thanked me for leaving nice comments on his reviews (me of all people Shocked

) It turns out he'd nearly been driven away from Ciao due to everyone getting on his back about writing more serious and helpful reviews. His normal writing style was very humorous, sarcastic, kinda childish in a put-on way, and his reviews tended to be fairly short. To me they were a riot to read. I GOT his humour. Some people saw his lack of seriousness as some kind of abuse though. Anyway to appease the Ciao people he started to write more seriously and one of his first serious reviews got him a diamond. Just goes to show he had the knowledge all along but was content writing HIS way and not CIAOS way. I still think it's a shame he didn't carry on how he started cos he was an original, not a duplicate of each other like most of us.

Number of posts : 61 Location : Argyll, Scotland Registration date : 2006-03-19

Best advice - don't get lazy and copy another review from another site or from another Ciao member.

Admin Number of posts : 5842 Age : 72 Registration date : 2006-02-12

Quote :: Anyway to appease the Ciao people he started to write more seriously and one of his first serious reviews got him a diamond. Just goes to show he had the knowledge all along but was content writing HIS way and not CIAOS way. I still think it's a shame he didn't carry on how he started cos he was an original, not a duplicate of each other like most of us.

Well then at least he learned something about review writing. The balancing act is being able to write useful reviews AND keep your personality.

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