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Writing product reviews for money when all else fails. Be warned that Google updates could make your review obsolete unless you change ways

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

Why write product reviews any way

This has traditionally been a great source of income for well-meaning writers.
Pick a product, grab an affiliate link and follow a set formula to success.

We all gravitate to a review when considering a product purchase that we know little about.

These have been the flavor of the month for many years and worked well.

These are rated quite well in a google search and a good page position could be obtained with a bit of research.

Google had a change of heart about reviews

Google often has a change of heart and when it does it tends to hurt many of us. This is one of those times.

Their thought is that content matters more than ever and what is provided in a standard review can be gotten from the company website. Therefore it provides no real value to the reader.
However, doing a comparison of several similar products with appropriate recommendations can cut the mustard.

This is known in marketing as bait and switch. Write up on a product and switch to another superior one for payment.

Google now recommends;

• Provide evidence such as visuals, audio, or other links of your own experience with the product, to support your expertise and reinforce the authenticity of your review.
• Include links to multiple sellers to give the reader the option to purchase from their merchant of choice.”

This is a whole new playground that means a lot of extra effort.

Informational articles are better than reviews

This is where we storytell and compare using as many additions to our page as possible.

A YouTube Video is always necessary or at least helpful and even audio can cut it.

Images help and a bit of colour with the correct heading placement.

You are then writing about a niche product and looking at all if not several alternatives.

You don't get Authority overnight

It is now true that Google loves authority sites far above a newcomer to the space.
Therefore a single review will never quite cut it.

Many bloggers fail to understand that volume helps authority because you become recognised as having an understanding of the product.

If you are writing in the health industry and trying to compete with Doctors, surgeons, and other experts you need to establish your authority.

This can be done over time by staying close to the original piece and mounting your growing evidence to a conclusion.

Free traffic, a dream, or a nightmare

Answering questions in a review

Many search terms are questions. How, When, Why type statements that seek a simple answer.

These can be turned into an article that both answers the question and takes the reader on a tour.
A simple example

Question;
How many headache tablets ( maybe a brand) can I take in a day?

Answer;
While the answer is two every six hours complications may arise and you need to understand the alternatives. Head massages do the same job and cost no money however it takes a bit of training to get it right. Then off on a storytelling series about headaches.

You will notice that the answer is given early. This way those that are purely skimming can go on their merry way and the real targets read on. You can never get everyone but you only want buyers anyway.

Affiliate income or Advertising to create wealth

You won't get a good advertising package without traffic, so let the cart come before the horse.

We would always suggest at least one affiliate link somewhere in an article. However, you should never overstuff the article or have your links close together.

Those reading on a Mobile will have your links all jumbled up when they are close thus losing one-third of your market.

Certainly, if it is product orientated you can give reasons to go to more than one affiliate site.

The Best headache tablets are with (Major Pharmacy outlet) However the non-branded tablets that do the same thing at half the price are from (cheap place)
I use the El Cheapo and save my money.

Having a Banner on the site

All sites allow widgets on any side of the page. Top of the page, Bottom, left, and right side
You will probably see a couple on this post over to the right.

Yes, they are clickable links taking you off to affiliate sites and not being included in your Google post.

How drew went to a million visitors

Drop boxes to show adds

There are many ways you can do this. Pop-ups, slide-in, and exit pops are all done with a simple App. These do work because they are attention grabbers. After all, we love movement. It is a distraction and may contain important offers so we simply have to read them.

Without a doubt, they will annoy some people however we all move on accepting they are part of the journey.

Writing product reviews for money with external advertising

External advertising pops

This is the killer income when they pay to advertise on your site, You get paid for these in a variety of ways that best suit you.

One small issue is that you need the traffic to the site to justify them using you. This means quite a bit of work before you get to the big income.

Where to get extra information on this

At Wealthy Affiliate, they provide a full training package for free that can be accessed by anyone.

Writing good reviews takes a bit of time however the results can be really good.

One review is not a world-beater.
You need to establish your authority in this world by repeated articles that answer questions and solve issues.

Conclusion and wrap

Review sites were traditionally great money-spinners however Google has moved the goalposts. You now need to write informational reviews that tell more than just a basic product guide.

Expanding on the product, offering alternatives providing further information and suggestions will take the cake.

Remember Change is not always bad, you just need to adjust your thinking to that of a machine called Google.

Content has always been King so deliver what they want.

Writing product reviews for money by Peter Hanley

Some legal bits

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• How to earn money from blogs
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• Review of the best tool for keyword research
• How to fail at marketing without trying