WRITING A SERVICE REVIEW FOR JOHN Q. CUSTOMER

John Q. Customer receives many inquiries and unsolicited reviews of service--especially complaints. JQC will consider for publication occassional submissions only if the following guidelines are adopted. Each review must be accompanied by the actual full name of the reviewer and valid email address (for followup). Most importantly, submissions must be reviews--this is not a gripe site. Effective reviews are based on solid reporting. Observation and analysis are the essence of an effective review. Reviews need to be analytical discussions--not off-the-top-of-the-head rants. For product reviews, go elsewhere such as Consumer Reports.

A review of service should fulfill several purposes and may fulfill others.

The review should present all information needed for experienceing the service. When in doubt, give excess information. At best, that is mere redundancy; but if there is an error somewhere along the line, seemingly redundant information can aid in eliminating the wrong "information."

The review should, furthermore, synopsize execution of the service. It usually cannot be an abstract of all information presented, but should be indicative. For example, a description of circumstances, place, and time may be enough. Or the review need point out only those facts that are relevant and why. It is essential, however, to state what made the service delivery effective or ineffective.

The review should, however, do more than fulfill those requirements that a skillful customer will more or less provide in a letter of complaint. The review should also tell the reader what is good and what is bad about the service, expecially in relation to personal details such as attitude, mannerisms, etc. The tone should be accessible and sophisticated without being pretentious or overbearing. Criticism should always be substantiated--you need to vividly and succinctly describe poor service and explain why it was not effective.

In addition, the review may be used to display the scholarship, opinions and style of the reviewer, making it a literary product in its own right. Some famous literati have become important critics of books, music, movies, fashion, art, drama, television, restaurants, society and more. But (and this is a big "but"), the reader should be thinking that he or she knows more about or has a better understanding of the customer service NOT how cute and clever the writer is. The review should be a critique, an assessment of the service that judges and discusses the services' qualities. Just because you don't like a particular service delivery does not make that service bad or unworthy. The reviewer should stay away from generalities.

The format of the review is optional. From the point of view of the editor, a certain uniformity of style is desirable. The following suggestions are made on the basis of experience, not because they necessarily constitute the best way to structure reviews.

The heading, if any, may be succinct paraphrase of the title. In any case, it should be indicative of the contents of the work.

The lead paragraph, often indented and set in a type different from the remainder of the review, should give the name of the business; industry (retail, hospitality, tech support); time and place of the service being reviewed; and type of service (face-to-face, telephone, online).

The next paragraph should introduce the subject and survey the service's accomplishments and failures as far as they are of interest to potential patrons for which the review is tailored. As with all stories, this initial narrative paragraph is essential to entice the reader to continue reading.

If warranted in the opinion of reviewer and editor, separate subsequent paragraphs may discuss details--what is new, what is doubtful, what is wrong, what is missing, what problems remain, etc. Assuming that the service falls within the reviewer's expertise (a desirable situation that cannot always be realized, however) and that the readership is sufficiently interested, this section can be expanded considerably to become a means for whetting the potential patrons' appetites or for suggesting imporvements for the business to consider.

Last, the review should consider technicalities such as quality and appropriateness of actions, attitudes, and promptness and other points already mentioned. Service warranties, privacy policies, return policies, and other technical data should be entered here if appropriate.

A review is a personal product that involves knowledge, opinon and taste. If done well, it is subjective in the best sense of the word. The review should be both honest and constructive, praising the good and suggesting what can be done to strengthen the weak and eliminate the bad points. The reviewer has a responsibility to those who labored to produce the service as well as to the potential patrons, but remember that the reviewer is only human. If a service encounter is in your field of interest, be sure to experience it yourself, if only to check up on the reviewer!

See the "Reviews" page for examples. These may be used as a sample of expected submissions. Submit your review.