by Gordon Hamilton

Created on: July 21, 2010

The key to writing any form of review is in focusing upon and covering only the aspects of the subject nature which readers are likely to find of interest. This means that reviews have to be carefully planned in order that they are extremely focused and relevant at all times. It is important also that one be seen to be totally impartial and qualify any and all conclusions - good or bad - with some form of substantiary evidence.

When one is considering how to review a website, it is important that one first of all become intimately familiar with the particular site. One should visit the site and take in the first instance a cursory look around in order to determine what the perceived objectives are of the site. One should ask oneself whether the purpose of the site is to provide information, provide entertainment, provide quality products at bargain prices, all in the name of determining precisely what the Webmaster is attempting to achieve with their site. Only by performing this initial exercise can one then proceed to determine how well those objectives have been achieved, or otherwise.

The objectives of the website established - and preferably written down - one should then proceed to explore the site in more detail and utilise any tools which may be provided for the convenience or entertainment of visitors. One should refer regularly to one’s initial notes and determine objectively how well each goal has been achieved. It is also important to consider how user friendly the site is in terms of navigation and identify precisely where any difficulties are encountered in this respect. Notes should be taken at regular intervals regarding one’s findings as this review preparatory work progresses.

If one performs one’s perusal and evaluation of the website effectively and remembers to take relevant notes at all times, one should conclude this exercise to find that one’s notes do in fact represent the skeletal form of the main body of the website review. One will have fully assessed the objectives of the site and experienced for oneself to what extent each has been fulfilled and have one’s findings annotated in sequential and logical form.

The introduction paragraph to the website review should simply be made to include an oversight of the website, the company which produced it - if applicable - and its stipulated objectives in general terms. One should thereafter take a paragraph to examine each objective in more detail and its level of success, remembering to state one’s findings impartially and expand upon precisely which factors of the website caused one to form one’s opinion in each instance. A short concluding paragraph can be made to summarise one’s findings and whether one genuinely believes - based on the evidence thus presented - the website is worth a visit by those interested in its subject, products or services.

When one has concluded writing one’s website review, carefully self-editing the review is as important as it is with any article, in order to correct typos or perhaps grammatical errors. What one should also endeavour to do at this stage, however, is to impartially try to determine whether one’s website review does indeed accurately reflect the overall impression one developed of the website and only when this has been established should one proceed to publish one’s website review.

Learn more about this author, Gordon Hamilton.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.