WELL THOUGHT OUT WORDS SPEAK VOLUMES. (How to write a good Speakers Corner review)

Name: thingywhatsit

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Product:	How to write a good Speakers Corner review
Date:	17/10/06 (197 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Can help the public with their search for information.

Disadvantages: Crap reviews help no one.

Before I had a good understanding of Speakers Corner, I compared it with the only other thing that I had experience of, i.e. Ciao's cafe, and this really was a blunder on my part. Little by little, I started to understand that Dooyoo was a more serious site, that people wanted to inform the public and that the categories being suggested for the Speakers Corner area of the site showed that others had misunderstood the concept as well as me.

Let's take a trip into Hyde Park. You come along to have your say in speakers corner, you have your soap box, and you stand up in front of a crowd and shout at the top of your voice “Smoking in public places is crappy behaviour”. People around you listen, then arguments happen because the public want to know what brings you to that conclusion. When they start to ask you why you think that smoking in public places is crappy behaviour, do you get off the soapbox and walk away with a wimpish expression on your face because you don't feel passionate enough to have any answers ? Another little man with a little voice stands on his soapbox and shouts “cannabis is great”, and everyone looks at him waiting for his justification and it doesn't come. He simply stands there, looking like a total prat, with no sense to his argument, except the spliff in his hand which speaks the volumes that he was not prepared to present to his public. People jeer. His opinion is ignored because he hasn't really stated why cannabis is great. What he does do is make people think that those that present such weak argument are the very fools of society that have no real fact based opinion at all.

Sounds like just the thing that people would avoid doing doesn't it ? But really when you go through the Speakers Corner area of Dooyoo, what you find is unfounded opinion, silly statements and half hearted attempts at gaining 3p a rating, no matter how badly the review is presented. It's a little unfair on other readers. Why ? Well, like the public, they read the review looking for enlightenment, and all they got was drivel. Not only that, but with the order of Dooyoo reviews being shown by date, as opposed to by best rated, inevitably those writers who wrote on the initial subject in the first place will have their review pushed to the bottom of a pile of crap, never to see the light of day again.

I am passionate about this area of Dooyoo. Potentially, it could be such a useful area to the site. The public looks for information and if you feel a passion on any subject and want to speak out, this area really does give the writer an opportunity to inform, to share opinion, backed by fact, logically argued and original in thought, and perhaps even give a member of the public a viewpoint that they can believe, and that can enlighten them. Imagine a parent seeking information on drugs, worried sick about their child. How helpful would it be to find a review that states “Smoking dope is cool and no worse than alcohol drinking” if the review itself doesn't give persuasive argument that will help them to understand and to open their mind a little to views formed in a review by someone who knew a little more than they did about the subject matter.

The area which is called Speakers Corner is a mess. There are unused categories all over the place, and what makes the area even less useful is the inclusion by members and acceptance by Dooyoo of inane categories. Who really wants to read Bushisms ? These can be found anywhere on the net by Google searches, unless of course yours are new and totally original. Perhaps you have the style of writing that can do a subject such as this justice, though many don't.

Writing in the Speakers Corner area.

If you see a subject that you think you can write about, ask yourself a few questions.

1)Can I say anything new on the subject that would help the public ?
2)Does my argument work and am I passionate enough to write a review that enhances the Speakers Corner area ?

If you can truly answer yes to those two questions, then you are going in the right direction.

Looking at Speakers Corner from the public point of view, how useful can your review be to the public ? Do you have things to say that may change someone's view ? Say them and don't ever shy away from personal conviction. Belief in what we are writing is essential. Have you experienced something, come through it, and want to share that experience and the conclusion with others ? I wrote a review on Hepititis C and the response I got told me that what I wrote was worth posting on an internet site because it helped someone. Maybe that is just my nature, and we cannot all expect to help someone with our writing, but to my mind a review in the Speakers Corner area of Dooyoo is a chance to have our say, and in doing so, achieve more than just the odd 3p awards from other members ratings.

Before writing this, I looked at a few subjects on the site. One was Domestic Violence and I noticed immediately that the public amount of readings far outweighed the membership reads. That's a good sign and one that shows that the public do read the reviews, and are looking perhaps for answers. The same situation occurs with the topic of legalisation of drugs, war on terrorism, teenage pregnancy, etc., and these are all areas where people are seeking information that you as a Dooyoo user can provide using your experience, and perhaps even a little pride in your presentation and the usefulness of it to help the public.

The internet is a huge source of information. Speakers corner is your chance to add to that information if dealt with in a serious manner. I never will understand the need that people seem to have for posting half-hearted reviews, when with more thought, what they could be producing is potentially so helpful to the public. Even if their view turns out to be questionable, if it is argued in a logical way, then it will get followed by comments to even up the argument and perhaps educate someone.

At the end of the day, we are just little people, and little that we do makes a difference. A Speakers Corner review, properly presented, giving argument backed up by statistics or factual detail can mean that your voice counted, that you managed to help someone looking for information, and to my mind that is the main purpose of an area such as Speakers Corner.

My soapbox in my hand, I now wander off knowing that at least I didn't sit on my laurels and not try and improve things. Perhaps I failed, but at least I tried to put over my idea of what Speakers Corner reviews should be about.

Write it with conviction, or don't bother !

Rachel

Summary: Help dooyoo's database become a source of information.