How Do You Get Started as Product Reviewer?

Jeane Level 1

September 26, 2018, 6:04 am

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How Do You Get Started as Product Reviewer?

There are a number of sites which offer book reviewers free books for each review written. You read the book, write a review and as payment, you get a copy of the book.

A while back there were a number of product review scams. The scammers would supposedly send you a gadget in exchange for a review of the product.

I don’t know if such legit opportunities exist for anything other than digital products. My question: if one wants to start a product review blog,should you focus solely on products which you are promoting or should you try to find anyone who’d be interested in having their products reviewed on your
site or social media pages?

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DenisP

DenisP

I don’t have any experience in this field, so the advice I recommend is solely based on conjecture and from how I’ve seen others make a name for themselves in the industry.

You mentioned social media, and it reminds me how I’ve seen a lot of good reviewers get their start on YouTube. A lot have gotten their foot in the door by starting YouTube channels dedicated to niche reviews, such as reviewing video games of certain genres or reviewing gadgets such as phones or laptops.

I think an important factor is finding a certain niche, because the “jack of all trades, master of none” factor becomes really apparent if you try to be a reviewer of everything. Sticking to one type of genre helps make you seem like an authority in a field, while being all over the place seems amateurish.

In short, my advice is to get on a social media platform like YouTube and create videos about niche reviews. You can offer to review products for companies, but ultimately if you gain enough popularity then you should actually start receiving offers and sponsorships.

6 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

This is good advice - I've seen people try and do the broad range of reviews and it just doesn't feel genuine at all...honestly, it ends up seeming like they're just in it as an avenue to get a bunch of free stuff and they don't really care about what they're reviewing. Go into a niche that you're actually interested in, and I feel like there's a much higher chance of success.

6 years ago

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DenisP

DenisP

Yup. A huge part of at least looking like you know what you’re talking about is actually being passionate about something. If you’re just judging some based-on aesthetics and not really going into any sort of details, then you’re going to seem extremely amateurish. A professional knows all the ins and outs of the product they’re reviewing, the pros and cons, and even someone with no experience in the field can see that this person knows their business.

People who are just in it for the money often sound confused, like they’re trying to look for the right words.

6 years ago

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Youngshark

Youngshark

Passion has always contributed a huge part of the modern jobs such as those done in freelancing. I mean it is not like in the early ages when you had to stufy something to be an expert but with sufficient passion you can become an expatriate who people then come to for advice. I think it also fits this context aplropriately.

6 years ago

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edencaga

edencaga

True. You must stick to one as this shows that you are more familiar and you have that passion to help those authors or owner of the products you are reviewing. You are helping them not because of the money but your helping them because you have the ability to correct them with a right advice since that's your passion and you truly know the genre you are reviewing. This was a good advise tho.

6 years ago

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rlpzbeermoney

rlpzbeermoney

I think it would be harder to find anyone who'd be interested in having their products reviewed on your site. I believe only the really famous influencers get to have this opportunity where it's the product maker who's hunting for them.
I'd just review products you are promoting. The people who are interested will find ways into your blog that way.

6 years ago

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anchoreztin

anchoreztin

I don't think that to be a reviewer is limited to high profile influencers only. I am not a high profile influencer but I work as a book reviewer for budding writers. They usually look for avid bookreaders not to be famous or "earn traffic" on their site but they would like to have people to give them advice on how to improve their works. Our work is not limited to proof reading and editing but more one improving their writing styles.

6 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

I've seen quite a few people online (on Instagram) reviewing stuff without being significantly famous - everything from cleaning products to food items and clothing. Sometimes I think maybe they just approach companies directly themselves and ask for samples rather than waiting to be approached.

6 years ago

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overcast

overcast

I think the best approach is starting a blog. And jotting down your positive and negative opinion. And then push those reviews on the social media. That way one can easily manage the product reviews and the comments properly. I have seen many influencers have tried that. I have followed that approach on some of the blogs and it worked out. Some of the time it does not though but it depends on how you choose a niche.

6 years ago

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ajahcuizon

ajahcuizon

I agree. Some people rely on the reviews of other people if they'll consider to read it or not. Buying a book should not be a waste of money neither just be a display in your cabinet, it should be read by the owner. I, personally, reads reviews first before buying a book to know if it is worth the read.
I also think that giving reviews about a certain book could also be a profitable way to earn money. It's a win-win thing for me since you got a chance to have that book, then they got an honest review from you to help them promote their published book.

6 years ago

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overcast

overcast

Yes most of the e commerce websites survive on the reviews of other people. Otherwise they have to create fake reviews. So considering that part. I think it'd be reasonable to understand that product reviews are not that easy but something we have to write even with or without affiliate links. As it may surely help other people and may bring some traffic to our website.

6 years ago

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ajahcuizon

ajahcuizon

Truly giving a product review is not an easy thing to do because you have to be careful with your words. You have to be honest and sincere with what you are currently reviewing. Because it may affect the business itself. Although the earnings will not be that big, still, you're able to earn some money.

6 years ago

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overcast

overcast

Amazon seems to be rewarding some people for their video reviews there. And also they offer paid product reviews too. But for that they get genuine reviews in that case. I'd say that product reviews often have some disclaimer to think about as well. Not a lot of people understand that part.

6 years ago

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ajahcuizon

ajahcuizon

Not all people have the same preferences. Other reviews might be different from tge perspective of the reviewer. That's why influencers should really be convincing and it is not an easy job to do. You have to exert effort for your viewers to be convinced to buy that product. I believe that they are worth the price for reviewing because it really needs extra effort for that especially when doing it in a video.

6 years ago

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overcast

overcast

I agree the influencer job is a bit hard. Because getting people to believe you and then making the sales. That is something not easy.And many people have tried to do that for product reviews. It works out though it's just that we have to understand how and where to manage those things in that case.

6 years ago

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HappyLady

HappyLady

I didn't know Amazon paid for reviews. I make a pont of reviewing what I buy there. I quite like reviewing things so I am off to investigate this. Thank you for the heads up!

6 years ago

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Youngshark

Youngshark

Wait if yiu read the whole book and later on review it then it means that you know all about it. Which then meams that getting a copy is only good for it to go up on your shelf as a collection rather than a book you will add to your read list. Do they offer any monetary reward.

6 years ago

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Jeane

Jeane

Nope.

They don't offer any monetary reward. All you get is the book.

I suppose if you are able to review many books, you could sell the books they send you. If the books costs about $10 each and you review $10 books a month you not only get new books to read, you could also make some cash off of them if you can find people who are willing to buy them.

6 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

That's true, in my country there's quite a big market for secondhand books, too. Sure, you won't make much off each one, but if you're getting the books for free anyway it's a little extra income and some new reading material too!

6 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

That's a very good idea. It would be beneficial if you'd sell the books. Only, if you don't want them as your collection, by the way.

6 years ago

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vinaya

vinaya

I have worked as a reviewer online and offline. I have published a lot of reviews on newspapers. For these reviews I not only received a free book from the writer/publisher but also cash rewards. Additionally, the newspaper also paid me for my review. I have published reviews online. I found review work through the site called upwork. You can find a lot of reviewer jobs on upwork.

6 years ago

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Barida

Barida

I have not done any review for so long now all because of the fear for those scams that may give you work to review and ends up not paying you at the end of everything. So, I am looking at getting started and earning some nice commission and free books from that. Would you recommend any review site that you know?

6 years ago

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vinaya

vinaya

If you work with an individual contractor, it is very likely that you will be scammed. This has happened to me. Someone hired me to do a couple of book reviews. I was paid for the review. Then the client gave me a lot of review work. Sadly, he did not pay me second time. I lost just about $140. Therefore, you should look into the site like Fiverr or upwork for review work.

6 years ago

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Jeane

Jeane

I think the best way for anyone who wants to make some money from reviews is by creating a blog.

It will take a while to attain popularity in your niche but if you work hard you'll get there. When you do, in addition to the content you post, start reviewing and recommending books you think your audience should read. Though you may not earn much directly from the reviews, you'd make a lot of money as an amazon associate.

6 years ago

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mdayrit

mdayrit

I am guilty of relying on video product reviews whenever I plan to buy anything, not just gadgets. So I guess if you are planning to set up a product review blog, you should not only focus on digital products or items you are promoting. There are a lot of items that people are looking for and honest opinions are a great help in their buying decision.

I have heard of reviewers (might be newbies who doesn't have sponsors yet) who are sending messages to various sellers if they are open for a collaboration. The sellers will send them an item that they want the reviewers to promote and give their opinion. This item will also serve as the payment already to the reviewers.

6 years ago

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vinaya

vinaya

If you are a popular vlogger, you can contact the manufacturer or seller and offer to do a review for products and services. This is a good way to make money as a sponsored reviewer. I watch a lot of sponsored reviews on youtube.

6 years ago

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Kakashi2020

Kakashi2020

Well if one of your passions is reading books then you can sign up on one of the many sites which offers members free e-books for book reviews. I signed up in one site years ago and the way it works is you get to pick an e-book to review and the copy of that e-book would be your token or payment. The problem was the list being provided contains shitty books which I really don't like reading so I stopped doing book reviews.

6 years ago

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stbrians

stbrians

Mostly one chooses a product that they themselves use. You may contact the owners of the product as you are going to do them a service.

Write about the advantages of the product. Forget not to write about its flaws too. Give your own opinion on the product. It should be a fsvpurable opinion. Accompany it with an eye-catching image. You are sold.

6 years ago

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Kakashi2020

Kakashi2020

There are a lot of review sites some for books, some for technology, some for movies, and a lot more. The best way of becoming a reviewer is to sign up on review sites.

6 years ago

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Martinsx1

Martinsx1

I would like to know if it's possible to become a product reviewer without actually having used the products? If it's possible just like you mentioned about joining or signing up on review sites, it would be nice but I don't think that information about the reviews done wouldn't be 100% accurate without using the products. Suggest some of these review sites one can sign up in?

6 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

I agree with you. All they have to do is search those sites up on the browser. There are a lot of sites that I just checked.

6 years ago

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anchoreztin

anchoreztin

I am currently working as a part time job as book reviewer. The difference with us book reviewer than online review sites is that the writer and the reviewer have a one on one communication with each other and work together in the improvement of the book. The reviewer's task is not just limited to proofreading but also the improvement of the writing style or the story itself without manipulating the story line or the work itself. This is a good job for someone who loves to read and help writers to improve.

6 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

That is one great job. I think it's fulfilling to read something, while helping the writer, and earning money as well. It's a job that can make you say that I've been productive throughout the day. My question is, does that job pay you enough or more than enough?

6 years ago

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romyter013

romyter013

Yes I heard about this as well. I think it's great that you have the chance to read and review the book if its really a good one to released on the market. Usually they will get your comments about it and asked you on how you define the book you just read. And its a plus that you get as well the book - can be a gift or a reward for helping them to review their book on so people who curious and would love to buy it will get the idea about it.

6 years ago

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mitan143

mitan143

I haven't experienced being a product reviewer yet, but you're given a product you're reviewing as payment? That sounds interesting. I like that especially if it is about gadgets. You will get a free of it in exchange of a genuine review! Cool. It is somehow reminded me the trend lately and they call it 'unboxing a product'. That's for gadgets like mobile phones.

6 years ago

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Barida

Barida

There are a few companies that are going to offer you their products for free all because of a review. The only thing that I think that is feasible is for the person to be able to handle a thing or two and getting a commission at the end of the day.

6 years ago

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coolavender

coolavender

If you intend to set up a product review blog, you can start by writing and publishing reviews about different products, including those that you want to promote. You have to build your reputation as a reviewer before you can offer your services to interested parties. Most reviews nowadays include videos of product unboxing and demonstration. They are not limited to gadgets or digital products. Reviews can benefit products like toys, bags, insurance plans, and kitchen appliances. It's quite common to read sponsored review posts in lifestyle blogs and finance blogs.

6 years ago

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mitan143

mitan143

I see, and I'd like to agree with you on the part that you have to build your reputation first as a reviewer. Yes, that's very true and a must because people usually don't trust someone with no good established reputation so they might not believe to what you're saying or explaining about the product. And we have to be very genuine to our review for a certain product for the benefit of both ourselves and our viewers.

6 years ago

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deejaycee

deejaycee

If you want to be an expert in terms of reviewing books, you have to be a bookworm. It is really essential that your passion for reading books comes first. It would be an easy job for you to make reviews if it is aligned with your skills and hobbies. But if you're not, you could have a hard time doing product reviews for books. But I think it is something that we can start learning. So cheers to the challenges in life. They make us better individuals.

6 years ago

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EfficientNinja

EfficientNinja

I also don't have any experience on how to become a product reviewer. But most of the YouTubers that I see that are doing product reviews started out as a non-paid review channel. Maybe you could try building a blog or a YouTube channel from scratch that is devoted to reviewing these types of products. Once your blog or channel gets known, the companies may send you free products for review.

6 years ago

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jaymish

jaymish

I'm not very clear about this question. The best way I know that is successful in product reviews is reviewing products on your blog and then putting the link to both products on your blog. The sucess of growing an audience depends on how much your audience agree with your review after using the product themselves. In my opinion product reviews are a good way to start a blog online because people depend on them for purchasing decisions. The links to products can be your affiliate links or a link to your E-commerce site.

6 years ago

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Kakashi2020

Kakashi2020

To become a product reviewer you could start by making a blogsite and reviewing things for free. Eventually send your review pitches to companies and sites and try to make a deal to get something in return. This would jumpstart your career as a reviewer.

6 years ago

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HappyLady

HappyLady

I got to write product reviews on Zemandi fairly often but they seem to be restructuring and have left all their writers in the lurch. There was no guarantee of getting review work there, however and pay was abysmal.

There is a difference between testing, where you get an article to test at home and then report back on and reviewing a product online. I would google something like "write reviews for money" and see what comes up. I just read you can do reviews on Swagbucks, but cannot for the life of me see how or where.

One thing you could do is start to review the things you have and let the company associated know. Do it on your own blog and be sure they have the link. (I am talking off the top of my head here, and others may have better advice.)

6 years ago

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anwebservices

anwebservices

If you looking to get paid for book or ebook reviews i wouldn't go any further then Seoclerks. Set up your own services and i believe you would get some income after some promotions. Setting up service for sale here is free so you have nothing to lose

6 years ago

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Martinsx1

Martinsx1

You are definitely going to make use of the products you want to review in order to have a real opinion and evaluation on its positive and negative make up.

It's a sad thing that we have lots of paid reviews where information are just paid for in order to convince users to buy when the product is of low quality.

6 years ago

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stbrians

stbrians

The first Things first. Start s website. Contact companies with an option of reviewing their products for sale. With good traffic you will sell products and get some profits coming your way. Ebay and amazon products are fine if you list them too.

6 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

Well, one effective way that I know is not through writing, but through video blogging or Youtube. I follow many accounts that started from just uploading reviews of cosmetic brands, and they ended up being a recipients of the gifts/tokens from the brands' featured products. Anyway, I am not an expert in this field. I am just stating what I've seen.

6 years ago

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NerdIndeed

NerdIndeed

All I know is a site named "tryandreview" wherein you get to try products for free and share your opinions with the community. I'm just not sure if you get monetary rewards after reviewing their products though.

6 years ago

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jetselle

jetselle

I tried a product review a long time ago. For me having low subscriber, its pretty tough however not impossible. I have bought many gadgets from online shop & reviewing them has caught the eye of multiple small businesses.

6 years ago

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focusedwriter10

focusedwriter10

You should consider starting an affiliate website. I am still writing product reviews, and I have done it for some popular blogs. My plan is to start my own product review site come next year.

6 years ago

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jpk0007

jpk0007

Well, I have never heard of product review sites but I would love to do such a job in the future. whenever I like any product or service I have a habit of writing a good review of my experience and post it as my appreciation. I would definitely like to work on it if any such site does offer such work. Also would be very interested about the sites which offer free books for reading and reviewing them which you have mentioned here in your post

6 years ago

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knnon

knnon

I think it would be wise to be a product reviewer for something that interests you. Like for example if you know a lot about make-up and beauty products it would be best to review those since you already know the basics about them, you know how your skin would respond to certain ingredients, you know how to use them. If anyone is into techie stuff then that's what they should be reviewing.

6 years ago

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