This guide was contributed by the fabulous Jen (gatorgirlie). Any and all suggestions/comments are welcomed!

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My advice to writers:

1. Check your grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. Minor spelling and grammatical errors don't bother me that much, but when your review is littered with mistakes I feel it sets a poor example for Epinions in general. Epinions has a valid spell-checker that should be used, or you can double-check the review in Word (using both their spelling and grammar check). I would definitely re-read through your review once posted, it will help you catch errors. Try to avoid typical errors like confusing "to/too/two" or "there/their/they're". Try to avoid using "it's" incorrectly -- "it's" is a contraction for "it is," it cannot be possessive. The same goes for "that's." Don't use internet slang like "wuz" or "becuz" because it makes you sound childish.

2. Formatting, Formatting, Formatting. I know some people are more generous in this area, but I'm not. If you have one huge paragraph and I lose you after the third sentence, you will get a Not Helpful. If your review is entirely in CAPS, you will get a Not Helpful. I honestly don't care how helpful your review is, your formatting is extremely hard to read. Remember, we ONLY want reviews that consumers will think highly of... I'm sorry, but if I came across one long paragraph ENTIRELY IN CAPS I would click the "Back" button and never return.

A few suggestions I would make (besides the no caps and the formation of paragraphs) are: a) sparingly use bold and italics and b) split your review up into sections to create visual interest. This is all about making your review "eye candy" for the reader. Sometimes I'm so bored when reading reviews I tune out. If my eye spots a bolded word or a new section, it brings me back to the present. If you overuse the bold/italic features, it can make your review look cluttered and insane. If you don't use it at all, it's akin to looking over a long stretch of barren desert. I tend to bold the name of the product, in addition to the section titles... and I'll throw italics in for emphasis. Sections also help to make things interesting by splitting your review up into easy-to-manage sections.

I'm sorry, but sometimes even well-written reviews can be boring as dry toast to read. Creating some visual interest in your review can only help in the long run.

3. Avoid plagarism. Duh. While cribbing a bit from the product's homepage (putting it in italics and naming your source, of course), if you do this enough... it's not really you writing the review. It's against the UA and certainly Not Helpful.

4. We really do need product information. I know that many newer people (including myself when I first joined) just join to give their opinion and let it go. Most of the times, that's Somewhat Helpful. Sometimes it hits the Helpful spot, but it will never get a Very Helpful. Remember, you are reaching not only people who KNOW a lot about the product... but also reaching people who may be interested in what you're reviewing without having a ton of knowledge about it. I can't remember the sheer amount of times I've read a review on a product and had absolutely no idea what the product was (or did) even after I finished with the review. To me, that review was worthless. It lost all credibility for me as a reader and consumer (not just as an Epinioner). While you did give your opinion, it didn't help me at all and thus shouldn't be seen by the casual reader or researcher. Here are things that I appreciate reading: places to buy, how much it cost (especially if you got it on sale, etc), what the toy is, what it does, pieces included, age range, batteries required, etc. This section should be facts about the product, not necessarily your opinion of it. This helps to give the reader a base of knowledge about the product -- what it does and who it's for. Every review needs this information, or I find it Somewhat Helpful at best. Make sure you put this information in your own words. Simply copying it from the manufacturer's website is plagiarism, no matter how you want to slice it.

5. But don't forget about personal experience... A review without any personal experience with the product is not a review, it's a copy of the manufacturer's website. A review without any sort of personal experience is Somewhat Helpful at best, but normally Not Helpful. What would I like to see? Ok... Here are some examples: ease of maintenance/installation/assembly, how good it is with batteries, how long your child/you have used it, what you/child like about it, what you/child don't like about it, how long it entertains said child, is it worth the cost, is it hard to find, do you find anything particularly dangerous or unsafe about the product, how is the quality, the durability, has it broken... etc... The list can go on and on. Seriously, it is personal experience. Write whatever you feel will help the reviewer make a decision... just make sure you write something.

6. This certainly doesn't impact my ratings of other reviews, but I like to include an overall summary at the end. It helps both myself, and my reader, to recap what I blathered on about in my review. It helps to give a short list of Pros/Cons that makes it easy for my reviewer to recheck if they need it later.

7. Have fun and feel passionate about what you're reviewing. I know how hard it is to feel passionate about a camera or printer (unless you're passionately ANGRY), but this is Kids and Family. We're supposed to feel passionately about our children, and that usually translates into having strong attachments towards certain brands or products. I have a tendency to write reviews on things I either really liked or REALLY hated, and those have a tendency to be my best reviews. The ones which I rate three stars are usually my more boring ones because I feel very "average" about them. In addition, inject humor into your review. People like to be entertained while reading (thus the penchant for visual eye candy in reviews) and that will most likely happen if you enjoy writing the review.

Other than that... advice to newer people in particular:

1. If you are struggling, email a Top Reviewer, Advisor or Category Lead and ask them for help. The ones in Kids and Family have always been willing to help and feel much better when they are contacted first. Obviously we've all dealt with flamers, so finding a reviewer who really wants to improve their writing is a breath of fresh air.

2. Don't get involved in the politics of this site. Are there rating circles? Do people just rubberstamp reviews with Very Helpfuls? Of course. There will always be "Those" kinds of people, and sometimes they'll even be in positions of power (ie: Advisors and CLs). I don't find that happens that often in Kids and Family, but then again I don't get involved in politics.

3. Read other reviews and rate often. Not only will this help you figure out WHAT a rater wants to read (especially in your category), but it will also get your name out there more. Add people who you enjoy reading to your "review alert" list and follow their reviews. If they see someone consistently reading their reviews, they'll be more likely to follow up by checking out yours. This increases your readership, and perhaps even your Web of Trust.

4. Check out the message boards. Again, this helps to increase exposure. Offer advice, involve yourself in conversations and give your opinion. You are writing reviews for people to read, right? By getting involved in the Epinions Community you are increasing your exposure, meaning more people will read your reviews.

5. Use your Web of Trust carefully. If you start out by trusting 1932 people, no one will take you seriously. But if you find a few writers who you admire and trust in their opinions, trust them. If you show yourself to be an exemplary member, you will probably grow your WOT quickly.

6. Do a word count on your review. If your review is 230 words, try to trim it down another 30 to get an Express Review. I have never found ONE 230 word review that I found Very Helpful... heck, I haven't found one that I found Helpful at all. You have more of a chance of it getting read if you make it a "Show" Express Review than a "SH" regular review.

First off, reviews with a Somewhat Helpful or Not Helpful tag will not be read by outside readers. Why waste your time writing something that won't be seen by anyone, ever. Even those reviews with a "Helpful" tag are pushed down towards the bottom, meaning there is a very good chance it won't be read anyway.

Secondly, your WOT matters in your "rating power." Rating power is the weight given to a specific person's rating -- a Category Lead's power is larger than an Advisors who is larger than a Top Reviewer who usually has more weight than Joe Schmo. My Top Reviewer power combined with my WOT has been able to override three Very Helpful ratings by normal members (my Somewhat Helpful gave the review an overall "Somewhat Helpful"). This does not mean that you should kiss up to those higher up because I sincerely do not believe that the majority of Advisors and CLs rate newer members lower. There is no conspiracy. No rating group who seeks to exclude newer members, at least not in Kids and Family. It is set up this way to prevent the random person who slaps a "Very Helpful" on any review with more than 2 words from being equal in power to someone who takes pride in this website.

Remember, this is a business. We want people to ONLY see the best reviews. If your review is riddled with errors, plagiarism, poor formatting, or is missing huge chunks of information, we do not want the casual reader to see it because it does reflect poorly on the Epinions site overall. If Epinions suffers in public perception, the consumers will look elsewhere and Epinions will eventually go out of business.
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