#Announcement - Changes to the Review Program pt.01 (Ideas for the future direction)

There was an assigned video program where you received a free product in exchange for a text and video review. On top of the free item, you also received 2500 points. I believe Carrie Ann was saying that they're doing away with the assigned video program, and are just sticking with the regular video reviews done on items you receive on your own or as buyout assignments, etc. less

Alright, please read carefully. We are NOT going to be eliminating the Review Program. I repeat, we are NOT going to be eliminating the Review Program. (For those of you who get panicky) However at this point the program does need a major overhaul. The Review Program, as it is at this moment, how it has been, is no longer sustainable. What that means is that so many things have changed since the design of this program, that the current model has run its course.Due to the massive growth of the community and the Review Program, most of the products that are eligible for reviews have reach their maximum number to assign. A little over two years ago we changed this number from (2) to (3) along with expanding our catalog and instituting our Sponsored Review Program. Now that we are beginning to change our direction to specialize in more proven products, while expanding into other areas, the amount of product available for the Review Program has reached its limit. A simple solution would be to raise the limit of product that can be requested, but that is only a band-aid remedy. In a short period of time we will only find ourselves in the same situation we are in now; where it is becoming increasingly difficult to find available items.So... What we have been discussing is refocusing the Review Program by drastically increasing the amount of points that you will receive for each published review that is submitted, along with increasing the discount percentages on Buyout assignments. Buyouts would then replace our current model of the 'free assignment'.Yes I know this sounds terrible at first. But please take a minute to consider the current state of the program, then take a minute to consider how these new ideas can actually offer you more freedom to review anything that you want. You will no longer be limited by availability, or the price range of your rank. It is a little give and take, but it seems like a pretty logical and fair trade off to me...What do you think?(Thank you all in advance for your feedback!) less

I've been reading the comments and thinking. I knew that at some point, the free assignments would become too expensive for Eden, so I understand the buy out option. So, I have been thinking about what everyone has said and here are my two cents:

I do not think that rank should be the only thing considered in the level of discount. Many people have voiced their concerns that people can pad their rank quite quickly. Instead, why don't we use length of time at Eden as a review writer to help curb the problem of rank padding? I know many people have been here for years (myself included) and have proven themselves loyal to Eden in that fashion. I also haven't seen many of those people comment, so I thought I'd chime in.

I have seen a lot of changes with Eden since I have been here. It has been over 5 years at least, so the review program has grown a lot since then. If the buy out option discount is given some sort of seniority level, I would recommend that time spent at Eden (if that is easily tracked in your system) be given a high level of consideration. Nothing shows dedication to the company more than loyalty for a number of years.

Because I had not seen that suggestion thrown into the conversation I offer it now. less

It will be up soon.

Here's another direction to think about for rank:
Instead of #.# ranks, what if it were like a three or four level jello mold with different flavors? Each layer has a different flavor (flavor = buy-out discount level).

Just something to have a ponder on less

This may be a stupid question, so pardon me if I sound ignorant (and slightly off topic). Does EF generate much revenue from advertising? (or avoid it?). I was always wondering if part of the reason the points for activity/forum participation etc. was so generous, involved keeping viewers active on the website, in order to generate higher ad revenue (which we know keeps many sites online and in business).

I, like others here, am on EF a good part of the day. I pretty much have a tab or two open at all times in my browser on EF. I figured maybe the google analytics or whatever stat site measured the time users spend on the site and thus determined their eyeballs were worth more $$, because of the amount spent on the site (ie HOURS/everyday vs. a few clicks and gone). This would be attractive to advertisers too, assuring that their ads got seen often by visitors (whether that be companies like Lelo or whatever...probably the penis enlaregment pill companies..haha).

Maybe you can't answer that too specifically in a public forum, but was that ever a consideration (present or future)? I love the look of the site being clean and all, but it seems like a potentially lucrative opportunity. Then again, I don't know quantitatively how much that would generate.

Sorry for the long post, but I sometimes wondered how the review system was sustainable myself, with so many users involved and maybe there was another angle altogether. less

I like these ideas and think that they're all really good.

One thing I would like to see added though is free shipping for buyout assignments. Shipping can really push up the cost of an order, especially if you're an international customer. I always liked that free assignments came with free shipping, and often I'd take advantage of that fact and buy a few items that I wanted at the same time as I got an assignment.

The fact that buyout assignments had an associated shipping cost always lessened their appeal somewhat, so if that could be eliminated then I think it would be a fantastic result. less

I'm all for the new direction proposed, I've never asked for free assignments, and only use the buyout discount anyway.

I have one question:
Is there any way to determine whether a person is or is not writing a fake review? Occasionally I'll come across a brief review that screams "Fake", it shows Eden's disclaimer at the bottom, so it's definitely not a free assignment, or a buyout assignment. Can Eden figure out a way to verify that the person really owns the item, before his/her review gets published? less

I totally love this idea so much!

I do have one concern though. Would the buyout assignments be limited to 1 a month like our free assignment now? I really love being able to get more than one buyout a month now and would love it to stay that way. Personally I know I'd be spending a lot less money here if I could only do one a month.

Also, would we still be able to do them on any product? Like right now I have a buyout for the MiMi which has 73 reviews. Would we only be able to do them on products with a small amount of reviews? I feel that would also greatly limit the products available to review. less

So far I am optimistic about such changes. I know that I would appreciate the review program even more if it could reward based on the usefulness of a review. In hindsight I wish I had spent more time thinking before posting in the last update thread. less

You said the milestone reward will still be in effect. In another thread--it was stated that you guys may consider awarding points or making changes for those of us over 200+ reviews (example: 300,400,500...). Is this still a consideration or are the rewards going to stop at 200th review still? less