There are many ways to get started making an income online, boosting the income that you already make. One way is to write reviews for tangible products. Some marketers avoid it because they don’t know how it works compared to a digital product review.
Many niches have profit potential for digital and tangible products, such as weight loss, survival, parenting, and more. Avoiding the physical product half of the equation can result in many lost opportunities to earn much more.
Can You Write About Things You Don’t Own?
One of the first questions you must consider is whether you can write a review about things you don’t own. The answer is yes, you absolutely can. Of course, you would need to know about the product to be able to write about it accurately, but here are many ways you can do this.
The first place to start is by researching online for the information that you need to know. Usually, there will be online stores selling the product. You can look up what all the customers are saying about the item in the reviews.
Usually, what happens is that you’ll see a lot of similar comments among customers. For example, you might see a lot of talk about how to use the settings and which settings work best on the product.
You might see suggestions on the size or amount of the product to order. You’ll find information about the dimensions, perks of owning the item, and drawbacks. You can jot down these common themes to determine which points are best to address in your review.
Sometimes, when you look at the online store where the item is selling, there might not be enough information to review it correctly. That doesn’t mean that you should skip over reviewing that product.
If you keep digging, you will find the information that you need. You can search for the product plus the owner’s manual or “instructions for use,” and you’ll find the actual owner’s manual available online.
If your search doesn’t turn this result up, you can go directly to the manufacturer’s page for the product; these manuals will sometimes be there. You’d want to skim the manual to find out what about the product is most relevant to your review or audience.
If you need more information or can’t find that manual, you would search for top reviews of the item. You can also look on video sites like YouTube for tutorials on how to use the product and find a lot of information about it.
You can also search tutorials and will also find information in text format. Sometimes, the product might be more challenging to write about in detail. For example, you might write reviews on books you’ve never read.
Search for reviews for the book, or look up the book by its title and the word summary. That will usually bring up some condensed information on the book. You can also use the “sneak-peek” or “look inside” feature that some online stores allow.
Look at the table of contents for the book, and it’ll give you a guideline about the information it contains. You can flesh out your review using that, paired with the other information you find.
Relate to the Customers’ Needs Throughout Your Content
What you don’t want to forget when you’re writing your reviews is who you should focus on while creating the review. Your purpose is to tell other people about the product.
But the goal of a review is to sell that product. To do that, you have to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. What you write needs to contain information that the customer is looking for.
Otherwise, the potential customer will move on. The information that your review should contain starts with focusing on a solution. It holds the answer to the customer’s question.
What’s the question? The solution to the problem that the customer has. For example, if you’re writing about sheet suspenders, you would first want to make the audience understand how this item solves a problem for buyers.
You would do that by pointing out that even though fitted sheets might state they’re a specific size, such as single or queen, the pocket size of the sheets may not line up with your mattress because their thickness can vary.
A queen mattress can vary by as much as 8 inches in thickness or more. Because of that, it can cause a fitted sheet to slide right off. When that happens, the sheet gets tangled up, and it can cause restlessness during sleep.
Or, you end up with fitted sheets that wrinkle and disturb sleep. So you would first present the problem about the sheets sliding off, equaling the sleep getting disturbed.
Then, you would offer the solution, which is the sheet suspenders. Sometimes, an audience doesn’t even realize that they have a problem – which is why you want to point that out first.
If you can appeal to their needs first, it creates the desire for them to have that product. It answers the “why should I buy this” question. The answer is that the product can help them find comfort – such as clothing, shelter, health, and more.
It frees up their time, such as using a one-dish pot to eliminate how long it takes to cook a meal. Or, it can offer protection such as safety gear, home security, etc. It can also be pleasurable and provide happiness or freedom from something that’s causing them pain.
An example would be a review for comfort brand shoes for people who have heel spurs.
The review addresses the “you’re in pain” and “you want to be happier” or “more comfortable” or whatever issues.
Then the customer connects between wanting that experience or feeling and gaining it by buying that product. If the pain point is severe or annoying enough, the sale will be more likely because the customer wants to avoid suffering.
Cover the Specs and Go Above and Beyond the Listing
Something you need to be aware of when writing reviews is that you will need to know the product – even if you never physically touch the product. Many online sellers are great at listing information about the items.
But some aren’t. You may run into a situation where the listing will show all the product specifications, but it’s pretty bare-bone information, and customers may not be able to get a good feel for the product.
The customer can’t make an informed decision without enough information about the product’s specifications. Because many shoppers are on the fence about buying a new product unless they strongly need it, they will walk away and may turn to other products if there aren’t enough specs in the information they find.
You want to improve on the description of the product. Go in-depth about the details. The great thing about the internet is that you don’t have to have the item in front of you.
You can get everything you need to know by just searching. When you see the specifications in a listing, know that while usually, those are correct, sometimes they’re not.
Always double-check with the actual manufacturer for all the details to correct what you’re saying. Accuracy prevents a lot of negative customer feedback. For example, a listing might say that a high-end kitchen appliance comes with extra accessories when it doesn’t.
Those have to be purchased separately. You want to mention that, and you might note how these accessories enhance the product. Some products will be on display at trade shows.
Many of these shows are filmed and put online. You can search for these videos and watch demonstrations of the product. This knowledge helps you learn more about how it works.
You can then write about the product in your review using this knowledge. If there are no trade show videos showcasing the product, you can search for unboxing videos featuring the item.
These videos often cover details that aren’t available in the product listing. You’ll see the product as it’s opened, and, in many cases, the unboxing videos will also show the product in use.
If there’s going to be a learning curve to using the product, make sure you mention that. Sometimes, listings will say something is easy to use when it’s not easy for beginners.
What Are the Reviews Telling You?
The odds are that you’ve used similar products you may write about – like dishes, pots, pans, clothing, etc. Reading the reviews, even when familiar with a type of product, can still give you new insight.
But sometimes, when it comes to writing product reviews, it might be something that’s way outside your area of expertise. For example, suppose you’re someone who struggles to understand the specifics and language used with gaming products. In that case, you might have difficulty because you won’t understand the difference or benefits between a regular laptop and a gaming laptop.
That’s why you don’t want to list the information you find in the specs listing. You want to find out why the product is popular and why it’s something that your audience is going to enjoy.
By doing some research, you’ll be able to answer that. No one knows a product as well as the people with firsthand experience with it. But to get your customers to that experience, you have first to get them to see that they need the product you’re reviewing.
To do that, search the reviews where people are already talking about the item. You’ll see numerous people mentioning exactly why they brought the product. For example, with gaming headsets, you might find that some people bought them because they created more immersive gameplay.
They were able to tune out noises that distracted their gameplay. Or you might find some people bought the headsets because the earpads have to cushion. Those are the needs that point to why the customer would benefit by purchasing that product.
You’ll find several different needs met when you look through the reviews. In these reviews, you’ll see a variety of opinions. People are quick to talk about products they love.
While talking about why they love the product, you’ll inevitably find the same answer. It’s because it answered a need. For example, buying a gaming headset with comfortable ear padding could make the other pair hurt the buyer’s ears.
Or it could have been that the covering was too quick to crack or peel on the other brand. As you keep looking through the reviews, you’ll find that the customers share the issues they’ve had.
They’ll tell you exactly what led them to buy the product. Then, the buyer will explain how the product fixed the problem or issue in the review. They’ll often say what it was about the purchase that gave them a better experience.
Often, this information may be things that aren’t on the list of specifications. So you gain more knowledge to use to help you understand the product by reading the reviews.
Don’t Sugar Coat the Drawbacks – Give Workarounds
A lot of product reviews never talk about the downside of a product. They gloss over any issues because they want to focus on selling the product and making money.
You don’t want to engage in this type of review writing. Consumers want you to be honest with them. The quickest way to sever a reader relationship is if they feel manipulated. Once that happens, you’ll lose the trust.
Not only that, but an unhappy reader also usually tells others about their experience. You don’t want to develop a reputation as someone whose reviews can’t be trusted. So always be honest with what you say, even if it casts a shadow on the product.
Developing reader loyalty is more important than making the money you’d get from sugarcoating a product’s flaws. Every single item made is going to have drawbacks. To some readers, these drawbacks will be dealbreakers – but not to others.
For example, an inexpensive blender might be too bulky to be used efficiently in small apartment kitchens. Or it could be that the blender’s lid tends to fly off, even with the safety latch in place.
But that same blender might only do that if on high for too long. Instead of writing the product off completely, you could still recommend it to those looking for a cheaper blender.
What you would do is talk about the problem that occurs, why it happens and whether or not it’s still worth buying. Sometimes a product will have an issue that the manufacturer is aware of, and they offer a replacement part.
That would make the product a good option, but you’d want to explain that the reader would like to reach out for the replacement part before using it. That way, by telling the truth, you make readers feel like you’re not going to let them get taken advantage of just for a buck.
Always discuss the product’s issue and how it will impact the reader’s life. Tell them that if you know that an item is a good deal and can meet a customer’s needs, it might not last as long as other products in the same line.
If you discover something annoying about a product, like some kids’ toys have no off button, an annoying song, or sound, it will have to run until the cycle ends. Talk about that.
Some readers will think it’s funny and that annoying toys are part of raising kids. Others will be thankful you shared that information and won’t get the toy – but they will look to see what other toy you recommend instead.
It’s better to say what’s troubling about a product or annoying or what the reader might not enjoy than to act like there’s nothing wrong. When you’re open about the drawbacks, readers learn who their go-to person is for getting an honest review.
Writing about tangible products gets easier as you do more of them. You’ll want to cover things like who the product suits. Think of all the demographic elements such as age, gender, health issues, space, spending availability, etc.
Cover all details and specifications, such as measurements, features, and more. Discuss benefits and drawbacks and then go into tips and strategies on how they can make this product work best for them. Always offer an alternative option at the end of your reviews. An alternative will ensure everyone walks away either feeling like they’ve found the correct item or moving on to consider something that might work better for them.