Rating System- The Details

If you do include forum activity (I really hope you do because I can feel myself becoming addicted to this forum very quickly...), you could break it down into different point values for--starting a thread--replying to someone else's thread--someone else starring your name (this is especially useful because you guys already have it set up where people can star threads OR people)Yeah. I'll shut up now.

I agree with Bulma on the blog following and Sleeping Dreamer on the people voting their own up and others down.If the actual number of reviews is counted as 20 pts, I think that the activity should count for more than the popularity. Mostly because I fear people will start to down vote others. I know it hasn't been a problem, but I've seen worse on public sites.... Can't wait to see what you come up with!

Won't this give the people with large blog followings an even bigger advantage over other reviewers? If someone has 100 followers, and half of them come over here to read that persons review, and half of those people commented and rated it, that would be 25 votes for that review. That is a huge pull with a heavy rank boost. There are quite a few really excellent reviews that no one has voted for or commented on. To keep up, wouldn't the people who have no blog or following have to review WAY more toys that the people who do have a blog and following? I see this as a pretty large concern, because a lot of shoppers don't comment or rate the reviews. Before I joined the review program I rated reviews, but never commented on them. If a review is honestly an extremely useful review, why would shoppers ever comment on it? They are there to shop, not to chat. In that sense, wouldn't poorly written reviews become more popular because they would generate more questions?I have seen reviews get rated unfairly, so I know that it does happen. People who are looking for erotica are always disappointed in my reviews

You know, I am starting to feel like I am back in high school (not a good thing IMO) with a lot of this stuff... popularity contests and all that jazz.I think if you want a good demographic base reviewing things, having lots of activity and popularity in order to keep ones' ratings high is going to put some people off, especially those of us with demanding jobs. I got into reviewing because I enjoy writing from time to time and I like playing with toys, not because I wanted to spend hours on the site putting random comments into other reviewers reviews or in forums, and voting for myself just to get my rating up (which I have never done).I like to think that I write honest, quality reviews for this site and I feel that should be what counts the most.

You know, I am starting to feel like I am back in high school (not a good thing IMO) with a lot of this stuff... popularity contests and all that jazz.I think if you want a good demographic base reviewing things, having lots of activity and popularity in order to keep ones' ratings high is going to put some people off, especially those of us with demanding jobs. I got into reviewing because I enjoy writing from time to time and I like playing with toys, not because I wanted to spend hours on the site putting random comments into other reviewers reviews or in forums, and voting for myself just to get my rating up (which I have never done).I like to think that I write honest, quality reviews for this site and I feel that should be what counts the most.

I don't really agree with the rankings anyway, to be honest. I don't think they're fair.1. It seems to take ages for me to get my hands on any products to review in the first place, I haven't been sent anything for weeks, and yet, I've done everything I can on my side to make sure I do.2. Since they introduced comments to popularity, I have noticed comments on reviews which I probably wouldn't have had otherwise, so people are just leaving comments for the sake of it, which isn't really in the spirit of things.I think it would be better just to vote for the decency of the review, which is, after all, what we're here for. We want to know if other products are good, and worth buying. Just because someone is more 'popular' or has a higher ranking, doesn't mean that their opinion is any more valid than anyone else's. We're all equal, and so should our opinions be.

I think comments helping with rank are pretty important. Not because going around posting random, pointless, comments is a way to boost your rank. I also don't think that commenting boosts rank enough to make commenting that much worth it, but that's just me. Where I find the value in the comments is that a review with comments seems to draw comments and questions from shoppers more than a review with no comments on it. It's kind of like casual shoppers don't want to be the "first post." At least that's what I have noticed. I don't have a single review that the first comment on it is from a shopper, and I don't think I've ran across a review yet where that is the case. When my reviews get questions or comments from shoppers, it's when there is already a good number of comments there. A number of comments where the reviewer has responded to the comments, also goes to show shoppers that if they do ask a question they will be answered.This post is getting pretty long, but I wanted to point out one more thing about comments. I think the comments effecting rank does help spur people to post suggestions and helpful hints. Say if someone forgets to list that a toy is not safe for anal use because it lacks a flared base, another reviewer could add that safety tip in the comments section. That was how I learned what additional things I should include in a review, and I found it very helpful. Would so many people have posted on my reviews if they were not getting a benefit from it? I can see the comments dying off if there is no reward for people to comment on them. I think the comments and suggestions from other reviewers are very important, and I honestly look forward to what people will have to say about my review or the toy I reviewed. I actually wish people would comment more. When someone rates my reviews as "not useful at all" or "worth reading, but not useful" I would really appreciated it if they would leave a comment telling my why my review wasn't useful. At least then I could try to answer their questions, or write a follow up to include the information that people are looking for if not found in the body of my original review.For the people who don't have the time to be on the site everyday, and who don't want there to even be a ranking system, why does it matter? If I wasn't interested...well, I wouldn't be interested period! If you don't want to be a part of it, then don't. Nobody is forcing anybody else to post comments or to compete in a "popularity" contest. I view my rank as a small reward for writing my reviews. I love to write the reviews, and it is a great hobby that brings a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction. The rank is the icing on the cake showing that I really did write all those reviews and that people are enjoying my work. My daughter is proud when she does a good job at preschool, but the stamp on her hand is her proof that she can show me when she gets home. I have been proud of my rank no matter what it has been at. I started out at the bottom like everyone else. I felt pretty good when I got up to 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 and up. I wasn't getting "better" than anyone else, in fact I never judged myself against others. I view each new rank as an accomplishment that I had worked for. I don't care what "place" I am in. I want to eventually get up to rank 10 if it's possible. I don't care if there are 5 or 500 people in front of me. I care about my rank, not who is in front or behind me. I am trying to lose weight, but I don't go to a public place to count who is "fatter" or "thinner" than I am. A smaller size of pants feels great to me, not when I get thinner than someone else. It's petty in that context, isn't it petty in the context of review rankings as well?Once again, I apologize for my insanely long post

The rating system currently rests on two variables: activity and popularity.Activity is calculated using points allotted for four inputs: reviews (20 pts.), follow up reviews (10), comment you post on other reviews (1), comment you post in response to other comments/questions on your own reviews (2).Popularity is based on three factors: voting on reviews (this is the ‘how useful’ vote), editorial vote (which happens when we read your reviews), and feedback- how many comments your review generated.These are calculated daily, and in comparison to other reviewers (which is why your rating might change even if you haven’t done anything).As it stands, activity counts for 40% and popularity for 60% of rank. The new suggested ratio is that activity is 30% and popularity 70%, calculated in the same ways.With all that laid out there:What would you change about this? What do you like?

I'm not sure that giving popularity more weight than solid work/activity is a good idea. It's true that just because a reviewer writes a lot of reviews or comments a lot on other reviews, it doesn't mean that s/he is necessarily a GOOD reviewer. All the same, I would prefer the current percentage weights stay the same or possibly shifting in favor of activity.

I agree with this wholeheartedly. This emphasis on popularity seems to draw attention away from what the reviewers are supposed to do -- review toys. While being an active member of the site is nice, it more important that the reviewers know about the toys themselves and can write about them well. Someone can post hundreds of comments and have as many comments posted on their reviews, but if they don't know the difference between Ben Wa balls and anal beads, or they can't construct a proper, coherent sentence, they most certainly should not be rewarded (with popularity) for this.