Possible solution to the (+/-) "vendor review" issue.

[MOWOGO '72]

This thread deals specifically with the issue of feedback to positive or negative reviews of members experiences with vendors in the "Manufacturers and Services" portion of this forum.

For several years I've seen what started out as a tremendously positive site dedicated entirely to the promotion of a concept of great use to many outdoors enthusiasts begin to devolve. While I agree that both sides of vendor customer opinions need to be available to our members, I personally feel that any thread that digresses into an argument "for" or "against" is totally useless and extremely distracting from the purpose of this site.

My suggestion would be that the forum follow the lead that most if not all of the retail websites have adopted.
Adding a "reviews" category, by vendor, for all vendors who have gained acceptance into the "Manufacturers and Services" portion of this forum.

This category should allow anyone to express their (+/-) views on their individual experience while eliminating the supplementary argumentative feedback.

All initial (+/-) review posts should be relegated to the review categories without the possibility of replies by others.
If others have experiences that cause them to agree or disagree they should submit their own review without reference to any other review. No purpose is served by expressing personal opinions on the OP's intent.
However, vendor response to the OP should be allowed for all to see.

Keeping this forum positive is paramount to it's continued success. Negative vendor feedback can be a positive thing if properly managed. Make a place for it.

For those who would point out that this option already exists on vendor websites, I am personally apprehensive of the selectivity involved.
I definitely feel that these reviews can be a highly beneficial part of this site if managed properly.

Not looking for an argument or trying to persuade anyone... Just making a suggestion.

Also, I have no experience in the IT knowledge necessary to make this kind of thing work so go easy on me.

[humer91]

based on the available functionality of vBulleting this is doable and sounds like a good idea to me.

[Bubba]

Sounds like a reasonable suggestion.

[DanglingModifier]

How do you tell the difference between a review and just regular comments or questions about a specific product or vendor? It seems like there would be a lot of grey area leading to a lot of work for the mods. People would post stuff in the wrong place, others would respond, and mods would have to come clean it up and move it.

Many of the people sharing opinions are actively soliciting feedback. They want someone to agree with them that product X is awesome, and how they use product X. They want them to agree with them that they haven't gotten good service, or explain to them why they shouldn't be as upset at the service they received.

I agree that finger pointing angry threads, with their accompanying angry responses, can be a negative thing. Not all vendor-critical posts are like that though. Many are constructive in one or more ways.

Letting somebody say something bad, and only allowing (thereby almost forcing) the vendor to respond to defend themselves, puts a lot of pressure on the vendors to manage those threads.

If someone comes up with a solution that gets rid of the devolving thread issue without also affecting the good parts of that free exchange, I'll be all for it. This doesn't seem like one of those types of solutions to me.

[stevebo]

I like this idea---might even keep us on topic!

[sargevining]

Words mean things.

Nobody is complaining about reviews.

By definition, a review describes a completed purchase and resulting usage of the product in the manner and for the purpose for which it was designed and manufactured. While this suggestion does have merit for any actual review as described, it will do nothing at all regarding those comments made by customers who have yet to complete their purchase, most of whom want to recruit others in a quest to shame the vendor into performing up to, in most cases, expectations that are entirely unrealistic.

[XTrekker]

The review section we have already have works just fine.

[OneClick]

Well I can't help but think I started a huge poop storm yesterday with my vendor post. I tried to keep it simple, but apparently failed.

Failing that, I think this +/- is a good suggestion.

Or keep everything the same.

I don't care anymore.

Like I've said 100 times, I'm done buying new gear anyway

[DuctTape]

As a community we all have the power to respond or not to any thread. How we choose to respond to any topic should add value to the discussion. In a popular forum I frequent they have a phrase. "Seek a higher level". Rather apropos for here.