Five Stars: The Importance of Writing Reviews

Not everyone is a professionally trained writer, but that doesn’t mean you can’t learn to write an effective review. Today in the Park Station Blog we are sharing tips that will help you create a sound, helpful review — whether you are reviewing our Gaithersburg, MD apartment community, a recently purchased product, service, or venue.

Importance of Reviews

Anyone who has been on the apartment hunt knows how valuable reviews can be in giving them a clear picture for what to expect of a new home. Your expert opinion can help others decide if this is the right place for them because it gives them real-life insights into all aspects of a community.

What to Include in a Review for Apartments

When it comes to apartment reviews, we think this article in Renter’s Voice sums it up nicely, ““Be sure to keep your review factually based and fair. People want to know the truth, not an exaggeration, because they are making important choices about their future and need to know what they can really expect.”

Being objective about the location, buildings, amenities, neighbors and other factors never hurt for a review. Most people will appreciate the information.  In fact, it could give a nice balance to the enthusiasm of your cheerleader neighbor down the hall, who thinks everything is “So great! So nice! I love it here!!”

For Any Online Review

• Be balanced in your review. Granted there may be some issues you are bringing up, but also offer the positives in the situation.

• Not everyone has the same experience, and this is a good thing to indicate in your review with phrases like, “in my experience” or “this was my experience” to indicate this. Also, keep in mind that what is a top priority for you may not be a top priority for someone else.  

• Check your spelling and grammar — use complete sentences and only single exclamation points — poor mechanics devalue what you are saying. (The reader may think: This person can’t even take time to write correctly, how can I trust his or her opinion.)

• Even when — especially when — you’ve had a bad experience, make your case coherently, intelligently, and honestly. Polite articulation is far more likely to get results for a positive outcome than bombastic name calling.

• For additional tips, Lifehacker has some detailed advice for writing Genuinely Useful Reviews.