Commenting on reviews
Why I am writing on this topic -
We recently lost a very good member (not Tanmay) at MS just because of irresponsible commenting. This is the prime motivation for me to write this review. Do not ask me his ID because I will not disclose it. I had done my bit to get him back once before but faulty commenting proved too much for his patience.
Recent Uproar
Recently we came across a spate of reviews on ’’The worst reviewers’’ topic. Most reviews were not only written but also commented upon without any sense of responsibility. If someone does not like a popular MSian then be it. If he justifies his choices well, he has the right to have the most absurd of choices even if you do not agree with them whatsoever. Why make a big-thing out of it. It was a badly written review, with bad choices and probably written with a fake ID but then your choice is there! Do not read those reviewers again. End of story. No need to write abusive or derogatory comments which take you to the level of the reviewers himself.
Why comment
To let the writer know what he did well and what he didn’t. Tell him what you particularly liked about the review. You can give some suggestions about the review, its formatting and the like. It helps the reviewer to improve and sometimes add information which he might not have written.
There are MSians who regularly comment on my reviews without reading them well. It is pretty easy to recognize such comments as the commenter will hardly touch a point mentioned in the review since he hasn’t read it well enough. Also he will be apprehensive of asking or even mentioning anything by himself as he/she fears that it might already have been included in the review. So unless you want to make a fool out of yourself, do not comment on reviews which you haven’t read well. It will do you no more harm than a foolish and near senseless comment.
NU / SU ratings
Commenting on a review you have rated Not Useful or Somewhat Useful carries a good amount of responsibility no matter what the reputation of the writer or the utter ’disagreement’ from the review. Simply writing 10 senseless words might save you a lot of effort but it serves no purpose (except the mandatory length of the comment). It also forms a negative impression in the minds of the others in the comments section. So while commenting on such reviews, try to justify you rating well or else, do not rate it.
Personal gossips and talks are a strict no. Let comments be only comments on reviews/advice. Talking about how your day went and similar talks are meant for the M2Ms. ’Healthy’ discussions on points of disagreement are very good and actually enhance the review’s worth.
Replying to comments
Controversies aside, it’s a personal choice. I prefer replying via individual comments because of two reasons - It maintains courtesy and since the comment is there for all to see, so should the reply. Replying via M2M is a good option but since it involves checking of mail, I avoid it unless it carries a very important message. As for the reviews hogging the Hot Reviews chart due to individual replies, I do not think comments make any difference. What matters is member visits to your reviews. So you can leave that thought for good.
Do not comment on the reviewer. I hate reading comments meant for others in my reviews’ comments section so do not conversate with any other person other than the reviewer in the comments section. Also commenting about any product other than the concerned one unless it is really relevant is uncalled for.
So keep your thoughts clear, and comment with resposibility.