Assignment #2 - Consumer Product Reviews

Consumer Product reviews (a form of "community" at e-commerce sites)

1. I searched for a pair of shoes that would suit my tastes, style and need (I needed a nice pair of open-toed shoes that were not too casual, but not too fancy). While browsing, I narrowed down my search to “Women’s casual shoes, flat, medium width.” With that in mind, I found Steve Madden’s “Cutsie” ( SKU #7260878). After searching amongst the flats offered by the Steve Madden brand, that one caught my eye because of the beautiful image of the shoe in green leather.
2. From reading the reviews, I found that a 70-80% of those who bought the product gave good reviews. Although there were only 12 reviews, they gave positive feedback, and good recommendations in purchasing the shoe (to order it a half-size smaller because it runs a little big), which would make me feel more secure in dealing with sizes and making shoe purchases over the internet, as I have little experience with online shopping. There was one long negative review that I read, in which the claims that the dissatisfied customer made were totally different than the majority opinion.
3. Reading the reviews would make me more inclined to buy the shoe if I had originally been interested in the first place, and if it had good reviews. However, if it received mostly negative reviews that would certainly turn me off. It is easier to turn down buying a product on the internet because of the fact that you don’t get to see if up close, touch it, inspect it, etc… than it is at a store, in which you can actually try on the shoe and see if you like it or not.
4. There certainly is an advantage to consumers of reading the reviews at Zappos.com. People there usually give honest reviews, and would not lie because it does not pose as a benefit or threat to anyone but the maker. It would only be in the case that someone truly despises the brand, and wants them to do bad and not make a sale, that they would give negative reviews for the sole fact of harming their business. Therefore, I conclude that it would be safe to trust the reviews online, which are very helpful in deciding on making purchases in the online world. People are very skeptical and careful with online purchasing, as they are taking a risk (the internet is an insecure environment, information can be stolen) and would have to be truly sure that they want a product, especially if it is a big investment, to purchase online. Reviews help to ensure one’s decision to purchase a product online or not to.
5. The advantage of zappos.com of offering reviews, is that if people are truly satisfied with the service and information they received from the site, they hopefully will be happy enough to come back and use the site again. I don’t think that negative shoe reviews would hurt zappos.com, because it is the customer’s opinion for one thing, and another thing is that other consumers have a right to know the performance and quality of something they are buying on the internet. I think that advertising negative comments along with positive comments will give the consumer a better idea of shoe feedback, which is something the public can appreciate. They would associate the great service and commitment to honesty with zappos.com.
6. I would recommend that a site like kencole.com, which sells only its own brand of shoes NOT to offer recommendations. I feel that if it is one brand of shoe, negative comments CAN hurt that brand, if people choose to generalize performance of one model of shoe to the rest of the shoes offered by that brand. I notice that brands have similarities among their products. With zappos.com, it is okay to offer reviews because of the wide variety of shoes displayed on the website, and the design of the website is for function and not image quality. Looking at kencole.com, which is Kenneth Cole’s online store, putting up user reviews would ruin the clean and professional look of the website, taking away from it’s designer look and feel.
7. I certainly look at recommendations from other consumers at Internet sites before I make a purchase. I do so for textbooks, as it is very important for me to get quality textbooks, for cheaper than what they sell at the bookstore. The biggest reason I check reviews for people who sell new and used textbooks online is to see about quickness of shipping! If the seller got good reviews from people who received their purchase rapidly, I am more likely to buy my book from that seller. Timing is usually the biggest key in my buying textbooks for school, because I don’t want to be behind in my classes. I also check reviews for auction sites like ebay, to be aware of the type of person I am buying from- I like to know if they are trustworthy, and if they can deliver the product with quality and speed.
8. My general recommendation as to whether or not a site should include product reviews is if it is a warehouse-style site, like zappos.com, then they should definitely include reviews because of the high volume of people that visit the site, and because of the large variety of shoes offered. If the site is meant to be more functional than it is visually appealing, then I feel that putting up reviews would be somewhat tacky, and not look as professional.

Assignment #1 -- Why blog?

3) Based on reviewing the various articles given, I have formed my thoughts of blogging and business. I feel that blogging is a great way to get opinions across, leak new ideas or information, and create a buzz on a certain topic or product. There are many different reasons on why blogging would be great. However, I feel that although it can help a business, it may hinder it. A blog formed by a business to promote, discuss or inform of certain elements of their business would be, most of the time, a positive thing. There is also a bad side to blogging – posting negative or ill information, views, or false stories on the company by an outside source, angered worker, dissatisfied customer, etc. may give the business a bad image, and may influence minds of others who were not originally loyal to the business. Internet chatter travels very quickly, and “online word-of-mouth” is quick to damage or help a person or business.

A list of some possible uses for blogs are as follows:
-de facto news
-marketing blogs
-blogs as learning tools
-blogs for discussion
-helpful question-and answer blogs
-corporate blogs
-fictional blogs
-news / press release blogs
-entertainment blogs (for music/film production companies to create buzz)


Side note: Marketers of a business can use blogging to reach out to the general public and let them know of a new product or service being offered. It is a good way to create a buzz, and have it travel worldwide! I have actually used this method myself, to promote and advertise new music, when I worked for various entertainment companies.

4) Blogs should definitely not look or feel like traditional marketing and advertising. A lot of times, ads are unwanted, and disliked. The average person comes into contact with thousands of advertisements a day, unknowingly. For instance, if one were to hear a jingle on a radio and pay no attention to it, the next time that jingle comes on and that person is able to sing the words along in his or her head, he or she may become uneasy and frightened as to how they knew that jingle when they can’t admit to ever consciously hearing it. The same goes for print ads and commercials. We view countless ads that contain sexual themes, references to drug usage, etc. Many of us would rather not come across these things, like for instance, parents. Parents would not want their young children to be exposed to commercials advertising adult products.

Summed up, some advertisements and marketing are unwanted. That should not be one’s feelings toward a blog. Most of the time, a blog is like a journal entry, or article. Many times it is someone’s opinion. We involuntarily encounter many ads per day. It is unlikely that we would choose to go to a site just to view commercials, why would we check out a blog just to be exposed to advertising such as commercials or still ads?

5) I don’t feel that blogs are a fad, I feel that it is something fairly new, that is growing in popularity. Many major corporations have found that is a great way to communicate, and have received many benefits from blogging. I feel that they will continue to have an impact for marketing, if promoted and used correctly. If the general public accepts a company’s blog as interesting and not-threatening like unwanted advertisements, then that company can use it sparingly as a means of advertising products, while still giving consumers the information they would like on the company and whatever else they have interest in. Blogs should always be interesting and informative to keep people coming back to read them.

6) I would love to see the marketing department start a blog. It would be great to read about big things going on in the corporate world, as well as in local small businesses. Some other great things the blog could feature are listings of internships or jobs for marketing majors in the southern California area, or weekly tips on getting marketing jobs, or ways to market better. That would be very useful to students and alumni alike.