[Suggestion] Reviews section for forum

johnn on 13/04/2014 - 03:31

I know there's already A LOT of sub-forums already, but I think it would be nice to have one dedicated solely for people to review things they have bought/received from OzBargain deals specifically.

I've noticed people occasionally returning to the original post to update how they're going, but quite often it takes some time for the item to be shipped, allowed sufficient time to test the item, see if any problems arise, etc. and by then nobody will notice or the deal will be lost in the vaults of obscurity ('out-dated deals').

Sure, OzBargain is mostly a bargain-oriented site and there's plenty of dedicated review sites out there, but I think there's quite a few random things that pop up here that would be hard to find reviews on, and something I think is quite useful is having a review based on the bargain price, as opposed to the RRP which most dedicated reviews are often based on. For example, a camera with a RRP of $500 might not have been originally seen as good value for money, but for $100 could be seen as a steal.

Of course, this would be somewhat dampened if it was a once-off deal only, but overwhelming positive reviews could lead to people searching for similar bargains, or even better, retailers seeing this and be willing to repeat/replicate said deals.

We've got a fairly substantial community here- about time we use some of that knowledge to expand the Oz-franchise even further: first OzBargain, then OzReview, and eventually.. OzGoogle! (and world domination) Hehehe

Site Discussion

Comments

  • itajac on 13/04/2014 - 08:02
    +5

    Sounds like a great idea to me! +1

  • coin saver on 13/04/2014 - 16:22

    maybe a two tier voting system vote as is now, and then a vote [and or comment} for deal when recieved?

    • johnn on 13/04/2014 - 21:13

      Thing with this is that older deals often get buried, and most people do not go back to them to check. Also, for items which are posted in multiple deals (e.g. Transformer T100 or Surface Pro), it would be confusing and get diluted since people looking for reviews would have to search through multiple deals to find reviews.

      Actually, the thing that instigated this idea for a reviews forum is actually the Eachine 4000 mAh power bank deal, whereby nosdan discovered that it was not actually 4000 mAh but 3470 mAh, and went back and posted in the original deal. Now eventually, banggood offered a full refund for everyone who purchased one (very well done I must commend).

      HOWEVER, the way I found out about all this happening was not by thinking to return to the originally posted deal, but by reading the comments on a newer Eachine deal by banggood. If I had not seen these comments, I would've never thought to check up on the original deal and would've never got a refund (and would've been really annoyed at not understanding why my power bank doesn't charge much!)

      I think if there was a consolidated reviews-forum, I would be much more likely to find out about these types of issues, and it would be much easier just to find out what people thought about their purchases in general. It would also make me feel much better if I missed out on a great deal and the product turned out to be utter crap ala this deal, which I actually did get to buy and tastes absolutely horrible! :(

  • scotty on 13/04/2014 - 20:27

    Why not just posting in the related forum titled "<Product Name> Review"?

    • johnn on 13/04/2014 - 20:59
      +2

      Problem is that I don't see much/any of this happening in the current forums- most of the related forums are filled with questions.

      I'm thinking if there were a dedicated forum not only would it be much easier to sort through what are just questions and what are legitimate reviews, but it could also encourage members to actually leave reviews. Another option down the line if the reviews-forum takes off is to have enticements/rewards for members who leave many good reviews, e.g. badges or 'best reviewer of the year' competition.

      Like I said, I know this is somewhat out of the scope of OzBargain currently, but I think it would be a rather natural progression for the site: given OzBargain is already focusing on the pre-purchase aspect of buying (finding the right prices, people asking information on items), having reviews would focus on the post-purchase aspect (reviewing the item, whether it met their expectations) and of course this could affect other potential buyers.

  • crazymofo on 13/04/2014 - 20:36
    +1

    Maybe have a review tab on the (Store / Product) page.
    "deals forum competitions reviews" ?

    • retiredfeline on 13/04/2014 - 21:18

      Yeah, something like that. Maybe each deal page has a associated page for a review of that deal. Only posts related to that deal would be allowed and every member would be allowed to submit feedback and 1-10 rating for that deal once.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join