What would make you write more reviews? What would help?

Dear users, dear authors,
what could help motivate you to write more reviews?
Reviews are important as feedback for authors and as a guide for users and other buyers.
What would be helpful?
https://www.crazypatterns.net/de/todo/itemsrate

It’s great that you’re putting in so much effort and giving this so much thought. I think that’s wonderful. Thank you for that.
You know that the authors here provide help with the patterns whenever necessary, right?

Well, I feel exactly the same way as Veronika-t15. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to get through everything. But when I do finish something, I’ll be sure to leave a review. 

I feel the same way. I only leave a review once I’ve finished crocheting something. But right now, I just can’t seem to finish anything.

It’s great that both of you also leave reviews as soon as you’ve finished the project. Thanks for that.

@everyone:
I’d like to know how many patterns you still have that are waiting to be completed or reviewed. Would you like to comment on that?

I’m blushing bright red… As I gradually discovered all the great patterns here, I went on a shopping spree. So by the time I’m 99 years old, I should have worked through them all…
But I’m sure I’ll add 3 or 4 reviews next week.

It’s great that you’re having so much fun in the shop. :-)

Should we start a forum campaign on writing reviews, where we all motivate each other, or is that not really your thing?

To be honest, I have to admit that I feel the anonymity is a bit lacking when it comes to negative reviews.
  Especially as an author, deducting stars could give the wrong impression.

For that reason, I actually only leave a review when I’m really satisfied. If I’m only somewhat satisfied or not at all, I usually skip it...

Yes—anonymity isn’t always great either, because the more anonymous it gets, the “meaner” many people become... But that’s exactly what makes ME hesitate sometimes.

And then there’s just my laziness sometimes… Sometimes I’m really satisfied… And I keep thinking: Oh, I should really write a review for that! But then I never do it because I’m somehow too lazy and would rather spend the time reading the forum, crocheting, sewing… :)
  In that case, a reminder would sometimes help... A message somewhere saying: “Have you made pattern XY yet? Author YX would surely appreciate your review!”
Then my guilty conscience would get the better of me and I’d leave a review :)
(But the reminder should be right on the page, because then the hurdle is lower for review-lazy people like me :))

Well, I went ahead and wrote reviews for a few things right away ;-) 

***To be honest, I have to admit that I feel the lack of anonymity when it comes to negative reviews.
Especially as an author, deducting stars could give the wrong impression.***

Why is there a lack of anonymity? Why would anyone deduct stars?
I don’t give a negative review just to put someone down, but if I actually find a flaw, then I can stand by that. That actually helps future buyers of the pattern—and even the author—since a pattern can always be revised.

I’m definitely against anonymous reviews. That would drastically increase the workload for the support team.
If you want to leave a negative review but don’t want to post it under your own name, I’d recommend contacting the author directly via PM or email.
If you’d rather not do that, then in cases of serious errors in the pattern or difficulties with the pattern, I’d recommend sending a PM or email to support.

Dear Tina, as you may have noticed, I regularly bump several threads on the topic of reviewing patterns once a week to keep it fresh in people’s minds. You’re active on the forum regularly, after all. You’ll surely read this again at some point, and then it might be a good time to leave a review. :-)

I also only leave a review once I’m done. It doesn’t make sense to do it before then. And so it can sometimes take a while. And yes, I forget to leave one sometimes, too. 

I can only review something that I’ve actually completed. Unless we only review the purchased pattern first and then provide an update plus a photo once the project is finished.

In my case, there are many patterns that I’ve bought and then either didn’t make after all or haven’t made yet. Quite a few of them probably won’t be completed at all for various reasons.

So you just need more time.

How are you feeling about reviews right now?

I’ll have something else ready tomorrow. But you’re right—there are just a few minor details left, so I’ll go ahead and leave a review now; I’ll add the photo tomorrow.

Great :-)
Thanks

@ Tina,
I actually think it's a good thing when other authors also leave reviews. Since they create patterns themselves, they know what matters and can often review better than "regular customers." So I'm absolutely against anonymity. 

I don't want people to give me 5 stars across the board if they aren't completely satisfied. I want honest opinions, because that's the only way I can improve. Of course we always like to get 5 stars, but the real benefit is that someone holds up a "mirror" to us and reviews the work properly. Even if it hurts sometimes.....
@ everyone:
I think it's great that you only leave a review once you've really made the item from the pattern. Because that's the only way to truly review fairly. Sentences like: "Haven't made it yet" or "doesn't look nice in that color", "I can't manage with the yarn", always really annoy me personally, because they say nothing at all about the quality of the pattern. 

Important points for reviewing are:
- Pattern well structured/ understandable?
- Crochet charts included - computer-generated or handwritten?
- Measurement charts included?
- Is everything well illustrated?
- Are material requirements given?
- Stitch explanations included?
- Can it be made in all/ several sizes?
- Service - did I get prompt help with questions?
- What does the finished result look like?
- Value for money?

Maybe these points will help some of you when writing reviews. Have a lovely evening, everyone
Best wishes - Claudia 

Nice post, Claudia.
Tomorrow, a thread on the topic of CAL, etc., will go live. Maybe you’d like to participate?

Here’s the thread for CALs, KALs, etc.
CALs, KALs, and other group projects: how are things going for you with them at the moment? Are you enjoying them?

I often start threads on the topic of “please write more reviews.” Do you think it makes sense to keep doing this? Is this a helpful reminder, or just another thread among the many on the forum?

Hi Josefa,
I don’t think it hurts 😉—even I’ve forgotten to leave a review once in a while.
I usually do it all at once—photos plus review—but since I’m often working on multiple projects at the same time (see UFOs), it can happen that I think, “I’ll just finish this up first and then…”

So it’s just a reminder, but maybe you should point out again that you only write a review once you’ve actually done it (even if you’re running behind)—I find pointless reviews like “sounds good, but haven’t done it yet” 🙄 are totally ridiculous—I can actually understand it more when someone writes “not for me—too complicated for ME” 🤔.

Keep up the good work 😘

How are you feeling about reviews right now?

I always leave a review when I’ve finished a project and added a gallery photo.
I can understand where Tina is coming from. As an author myself, I’ve given a low but fair review to another author’s pattern, only to promptly receive a nonsensical, unfair retaliatory review in return. I always try to be objective and would even change my review if the issues I pointed out were addressed.

When I first joined CP, I was thrilled by the many great patterns and bought quite a few right away. I’ve already made quite a few of them and written reviews for them as well.
I only write a review once I’ve made the pattern. When I see in my account how many I haven’t reviewed yet, I feel guilty.
Plus, new patterns are occasionally added because I want to make something as a gift.
For example, I recently searched for patterns for socks (with cable patterns, openwork patterns, textured patterns, etc.). Since I really liked three of the patterns, I ended up buying all three. Because I’m very busy right now, both at work and in my personal life, it takes longer to make them, and unfortunately, the older patterns end up sitting around even longer. 
I also always feel bad when I see that a pattern that’s already a few years old has sold, say, 200 copies but has only 5 reviews. Or it’s been given just one star because the project hasn’t been made yet, or the pattern was bought for a friend and therefore can’t be reviewed. I have absolutely no understanding for that. In that case, it’s better not to leave a review at all.

In any case, I’ve learned from this and now only buy patterns when I actually need them. Hopefully, I’ll get around to making the older patterns
in between.
So I don’t need a reminder, though I wouldn’t mind one either.
Best regards 
Marina 

Hi everyone,

I also wait until I’ve finished the model before I leave a review.

In general, I’ve noticed the following: When there’s a general call to leave reviews, the ones that come in are usually not very helpful. For example: “Haven’t started yet,” with 2 stars.

@Josefa
Maybe you could gently point out in your call to action what the purpose of the reviews is? That it’s not about the number of reviews someone leaves, but about their substance. Would that be possible? I think some crafters would feel less pressured that way.

Thank you very much and best regards!
Brigitte

Brigitte, the promotions already point out that the most helpful reviews win. But many people just read “Rate…blah blah blah…win.” They don’t actually read anything.
Unfortunately, some people are really resistant to this and keep doing exactly what you described.

I’ve downloaded a few patterns for free, but I won’t be trying them out. It was more about getting to know the site. I’m sure every newcomer does that.

What I did was reviewed. I’m currently working on a pattern. I like to post constructive suggestions in advance as comments so they aren’t forgotten in the end. The review is more of a summary; I don’t see it as a way to pressure the author to act on my feedback.

If the patterns have been revised, I’d be very interested to know, since I contributed to them as well.

And I’d love to read the best reviews and comments—it would be great if I could sort them.

At first, I also bought a lot of patterns, read them, and rated them right away.
It wasn’t until later that I got around to trying them out and realized I couldn’t figure them out.
But then I didn’t go back and leave another review.
That’s why I now do the craft project first and only then leave a review.
Unfortunately, I also don’t have the time to try out everything I’d like to and have bought.

But when I do leave a review, I’m honest—otherwise, it doesn’t help the author at all.

I’m just like many of you here:
There are so many great patterns, and there’s always one or two I just have to have.
But then real life gets in the way and throws a wrench in my plans.
Or my thumb is acting up, which slows me down considerably.
Or another project is on my mind that I need to work on first so I can refocus on everything else.

From time to time, I go through my downloads to see what I’ve finished and give reviews of the patterns. I usually have a photo to go with them, too.

I review all the patterns I’ve worked through once I’ve finished them. Since you can see in your download folder which patterns you haven’t reviewed yet, you’re regularly reminded to do so. I always do this all at once and review several at a time that I’ve tested in practice.

I’ve recently started adding a photo to the gallery as well. I know this helps the designer and can serve as inspiration for viewers. But until recently, I didn’t even know the gallery existed. I suspect many other users don’t make use of it. After all, it involves extra steps you’d have to take. Really, everyone just wants to make beautiful crafts; the rest often gets pushed to the back burner.

In my experience, people who follow my patterns tend to send me a personal email and want to discuss it with me. They don’t want to post it anonymously here. Some don’t know how to do it, and it takes effort. Plus, you don’t get personal feedback from the designer. This often leads to small, private connections that enrich both sides. We discuss specific details about Project XY.

If I’m feeling brave, I ask the person who sent the email if they’d be so kind as to write a review. Some do, some don’t. It’s not mandatory, after all. But through this personal contact, users come to better understand why a review is helpful for the designer or potential new customers.

Best regards, Ina

Hello,
Personally, I just think it’s a shame when a photo is posted in the gallery without a link to the pattern.
Sometimes I point this out (even though it doesn’t directly affect me, since I’m not a designer),
but I think it’s a real shame that great photos, on the one hand, “get lost” in the gallery because they weren’t linked, and on the other hand, it’s a shame for the designer.
I myself like to look at the photos in the pattern and am always disappointed that, even though there are many purchases or reviews in the pattern, no one takes the trouble to post a photo as well.
I’m always happy to do this myself—I think it’s a great way to proudly showcase your work 😇
Of course, I do it like Ina does: I post a few “all at once”—doing it for every pattern and photo would be too much of a hassle for me 😉