How To Win Surefire Crowns and and and Save the Ailing Whale and Dooyoo At The Same Time (How To Write A Good Banking & Finance Review)

Member Name: marandina

Product:	How To Write A Good Banking & Finance Review
Date:	24/10/02 (89 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: See op

Disadvantages: See op

Or...erm..maybe not. Oh well, I've decided to write this one in conjunction with my ouija board in an effort to contact the remaining Dooyoo readership. If anyone missed it (very likely with the guide pictures and roles being well out of date), I've been the guidester for banking & finance for a few weeks now. In that time I've recommended, on average, 1 opinion a week to be crowned. You could be forgiven for thinking that I'm a harsh guide (grrrrrrrr) but you'd be wrong. My main problem is the very low number of opinions posted so when you've only got, say, 5 to begin with then getting lots crowned is pretty difficult!

What to write about
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So how do you come by these elusive crowns (assuming folks still care)? Well, first things first and we all know that banking is one of the driest subjects on the planet. Generally, folks aren't that interested which is kind of ironic seeing as it's the most commonly cited reason for people breaking up and generally at the hub of most things. There are moves afoot (and in motion) to teach kids as part of the curriculum about financial basics which is a huge step in the right direction. Some of us get quite excited about personal finance (rubdowns with the Financial Times) but I wouldn't expect too many to feel the same way.

There is a whole vista of subjects you can write about. Most people will have an opinion on bank accounts; there is a whole world of big bad banks and building societies out there; everybody experiences service ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous (a phrase I always remember one of my teachers using) so, if you stop and think, there is something you can write about.

The better opinions will have all the basics in place. You know, clear structure i.e. a beginning, middle and end. You'll be looking for a suitable title (one suggestion seems to be to add the title at the end but I wouldn't necessaril
y agree as I sometimes think of something before I start writing). Of course, we could be veering off into how to write a good review in general so I'll be brief but don't forget to try and get a big opening and a big finish (as though you're doing a presentation) and include personal experiences as it makes your piece so much easier to read.

So what can you write about? Well, there are basic accounts. For example, yer basic bank account in which case talk about the features and benefits, what turns you on and what doesn't. What rate is it paying? What are the things thrown into the package? What do you think about the provider (i.e. the bank/building society etc)?

Hey, what about mortgages? Most folks will take out a mortgage at some point (unless you're a lotto winner or samfink) so it pays to shop around. A mortgage is the biggest commitment that most people ever take on so getting the right one can save thousands! Again ~ most normal sorts will hardly accept the first mortgage thrown in their general direction as they'll be considering such weighty matters as interest rate payable resulting in monthly payment, mortgage product i.e. is it a fixed/capped/discount rate etc? What sort of tie-ins are involved and are you likely to have to wait weeks from your mortgage provider because they offer the kind of service usually reserved for people making a claim on their *E111? (man...I've been waiting weeks already after forking out 35 Euros in France this year).

A lot of people will have experience of life policies of some description. I mean, there are soooo many. For instance, basic life policies paying out on death only, policies with an investment element, policies spanning the whole of your life. This particular market has never been more competitive with the online providers coming into their own so let's here all about them. Usual factors apply - cost, cover, terms and conditions and so on with the all-im
portant personal experience.

There are some general categories you can have some real fun with. General savings tips can encompass just about anything whilst you can post about general financial advice - from birth to death although I think that this has been moved to speakers corner now.

Financial Resources
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There is a mass of resources at most folks' fingertips that will help on the old personal finance front. Most newspapers carry some sort of financial section (think, Sun Money?), my personal favourite being The Times either on a Saturday or Sunday. However, there is a plethora of online sites (www.moneyxtra.com etc), both Ceefax and Teletext have financial sections (pages 200 and 490 onwards on BBC2 & Channel 4 respectively) whilst you'll always find someone only too willing to give you their view of the latest financial crisis even if it is usually biased and inaccurate. Don't forget the financial institution themselves, as that's what they are there for, after all.

Personal View
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I can't speak for all the guides but my personal preference is for folks to write with a bit of humour. Not that I'll discriminate against those that don't but life really is too short so it helps to have a bit of a laugh in the short span allotted to us. If you can include the odd funny story then by all means do so (audience's eyes glaze over at the thought of personal finance being funny).

OK ~ there are a few pointers and I hope a few more folks decide to have a dabble. I honestly hope things pick up anytime now on the site and, whilst going off at a tangent, then I've included an observation below that I'll probably get tied to a tree, covered in barbeque sauce and fed to Mr Chuckle's llama because of it but I'm including it anyway 'cos I live life on the edge, know what I mean?


If you are a current writer/r
eader on the site then the problem of read backs seems to be an annoying one. Whilst it's a subject matter in it's own right, the issue is exacerbated right now due to the flagging up of blank profiles when people wanna read back. I honestly hope that this can be fixed shortly and I've raised it with Dooyoo but for anyone interested I've included the steps below to allow you to call up a profile with a full set of opinions:

1. Select the user profile you want.

2. Have a look at the address bar of your browser. You should have a drop-down option to the right. Select and press return.

3. At the end of the URL there will be a bit like:

&usrID=68060&opt=S&offset=1

4.Take out the S, just delete it from the URL, then press enter.

5. You should now have a profile full of ops.

Sooooo...awwwww...go on, go on, go on, go on, go on and write in my category.... pleeeeeeeeease (sounding really needy now). You'll make an old banker very happy (or words to that effect).

Thanks for **Reading (it's a very nice place)

Marandina (still in the game?)


*E111 is the form that allows you to claim for basic medical care when you holiday in those countries that subscribe to the agreement e.g. most of the European Union.

**Just lurve that gag

Be a love and just give me a few minutes to edit the question marks out and all that :O).

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