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Getting bags under my eyes, writing my own Amazon reviews

by ochaim
18 replies
I've spent the last 2 weeks writing for a new Amazon review blog. Mostly writing at night after the family has gone to sleep, typically spending 45-60 mins per review.

It's taking that long because I'm putting a lot of research into the articles in a niche I'm very involved in, so I can make sense of the research and translate product features to benefits and pick out cons to make it a well rounded review.

The problem now is, I just looked in the mirror and I feel like I'm falling apart, constantly tired from getting 4-5 hrs sleep, bags under my eyes all of a sudden. This is the only way I can do anything with this Amazon review site. I'm going to burn out before I see any return from this project.

So I decided tonight, I gotta bite the bullet and outsource some of this writing. I go to the warriors for hire section, check out what's on offer and to be honest, the amazon reviews, even the $9/500 word ones, are just not even close to how I would approach writing the review. They are very stale, no translation of feature to benefit, some of the wording is even kinda awkward.

If the $9/500 word articles aren't even meeting my needs, do I really need to go to something like a $25/500 word service (does that exist???) to get my reviews outsourced? Am I setting my standards too high? Can I trust these Amazon review "templates" to convert despite them not being how I would write it?

I don't want to base my decision solely on the samples I've seen. So I've requested a couple of review copies to see how they would write reviews in my niche with very specific instructions. I hope I can find a service that can help me sleep more.

In the mean time, I'm going to cut some cucumber slices for my eyes...
#amazon #bags #eyes #reviews #writing
  • Profile picture of the author PotPieGirl
    I hear ya honey, it's hard. I'm very proud of you for burning the midnight oil and sticking to it!

    Here's the thing - you are starting a new business and YOU are your first employee - meaning you work for free. It sucks right now, but hang in there.

    If you want to outsource, be 110% positive of what you want that outsourcer to do. Once you know that, you can tell that outsourcer what you want and how to do it. You can't expect anyone to read your mind.

    Outsourcing is a process. My girl has been with me for YEARS and I can tell you that it takes time to find the right balance. Thing is, it comes down to YOU explaining and training that person to do what you want done.

    Many make it sound as if outsourcing is the way to go, but as I said, it's still a process.

    If you're burnt out, take a break. It'll be the best thing for you, I promise.

    Jennifer
    ~PotPieGirl
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  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    Outsource outsource outsource.

    When you outsource something you need to keep in mind that 9 times out of 10 you are not going to get the end result you would have if you had done it yourself. But what's important here is moving forward and making money. Is the difference in the quality of the reviews worth the extra time you spend each night? Is it going to make that much of a difference on the money that is made from those reviews?

    If you spend 50 minutes on a review that could be outsourced for $15 - $20, then that's exactly what you are valuing your time at. Do you think you are only worth $15 an hour? I sure hope not.

    Outsourcing is about getting things done fast and making a lot more progress than you could if you were to keep at it by yourself. From the sound of things you can't keep up what you are doing much longer anyway. I understand outsourcing costs money but if done properly it will also lead you to money much faster.

    Besides, you don't want to sit there and write 20 reviews and find you can't get any traffic to them. Start off with a small number and start getting them posted and on the web. You should be building out your site gradually and naturally anyway so get them online as you do them. High quality reviews are great but not if they make you no money.

    Another thing I find that helps a lot with outsourcers is being able to show them an exact sample of what you are looking for. So show them one or two of the reviews you have done and ask them if they are capable of doing it. Be prepared to pay a little extra for quality though.
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  • Profile picture of the author ochaim
    Jennifer, I'm realizing that I'm obviously not going to find the reviews I want from just looking at samples. I'm going to have to try some services and give my specific instructions and see who can do the job. And you're right, I ended up eating those cucumbers.. well, you know, the ones I didn't put on my eyes.

    Will, you are absolutely right. That's the exact feeling I'm getting. Is all this intense writing I'm putting myself through, worth just a remote CHANCE of making money. I definitely have a budget for the outsourcing, and now that I have lots of my own samples for the writers to refer to, I'm in a good position to hopefully find the right people for the job.

    Really great advice, Warriors! Thanks so much!
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    • Profile picture of the author aduttonater
      Take it from a young business owner. I've always had to be there to ensure that business was conducted right. I could never trust any of my reps. Doing it yourself is much better, unless you need other people. I hire people just cuz I need a truck, nothing wrong with that. But I still make sure business is conducted RIGHT. It's just part of my job as a manager of my own business. (Cuz that's what ya gotta do right)
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  • Profile picture of the author John Romaine
    If you're going to kill yourself, you may as well do it writing for yourself - not Amazon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rbtmarshall
    I agree with what you're thinking of doing. Make your current review process into an outline, and have the person you are hiring follow it.
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    • Profile picture of the author JonPL
      I had exactly the same problems as you and I would spend an hour or so getting each review how I wanted it. I got worn out by this but solved it by developing 2 templates. These follow the lines of detailing the problems that are solved by the product e.g. saving time, money etc, detailing a solution i.e. the product, then the benefits e.g. the features, and then a call to action. The templates I use go into a bit more detail and I also have a list of standard phrases that I weave into each review in order to save time.

      I also use a nice wide screen so that I can have my review on one side and the Amazon page on the other side. It's easy then to get ideas from customer reviews and re-write them. It now takes 20 to 25 mins to do each one.
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  • Profile picture of the author aizaku
    I agree you should outsource but I think its also good to experience some trial and tribulation in the beginning to test your will and determination.
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    • Profile picture of the author Marx Vergel Melencio
      Study the Amazon niche product reviews you wrote so far. You're bound to see a pattern. Develop a template. Develop a comprehensive guide in integrating your template into custom Amazon niche product reviews. Post a job ad for a small batch, say 3 to 5 custom Amazon niche product reviews. Use your template samples and guide to help out your prospect writers. I'm saying this 'cause:

      You said you have your own way of researching and writing those reviews. You said you already have a lot of reviews. You said you looked at some Amazon product review templates. You said those templates don't match how you want it done, with "how you want it done" read "how those reviews you wrote look like". Well, those templates don't match your reviews because you have your own way of researching and writing Amazon product reviews in your niche, as you said, so develop your own template from the reviews you wrote, then an instruction guide that dissects in detail the processes you go through to write a product review that strictly incorporates your template. After all:

      Duplicating what you can do to achieve success, especially if you've already achieved success from doing what you can do, is almost always a sound business investment for potentially growing and expanding your success...
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  • Profile picture of the author WeavingThoughts
    Even if a writer charges $x for a basic review, to get exactly what you want (if it is time consuming or hard or both) you will need to train the team/writer and will end up paying $2-4 X x for the premium service. I know that I work that way. And most good writers will also charge you more if you want perfection with beyond normal expectations. But honestly $25 per 500 words is worth it if you get what you want and can make money with CPA etc.
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  • Profile picture of the author ochaim
    I do have a template and way of researching which can be easily outlined as instructions for writers. Just a matter of finding who can do with the least amount of editing on my part.

    I don't think I'm terribly demanding in terms of the research/writing, I'm just basing my template on some Amazon preselling WSO's, taking the parts that apply and makes sense for my niche. I hope it won't cost $25 per article for the level of research/writing I'm looking for but if it is, then I'll have to manage with that..

    Thanks again for the great advice, guys!
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    • Profile picture of the author Hamida Harland
      It's difficult getting really good Amazon reviews unless you pay well for them. If you want a writer to put in time and effort researching the product as you would, you'll probably have to pay up to $25.

      I have a writer who occasionally writes me Amazon reviews and he charges $50 per 1000 words. I know those reviews will yield a return that will make it worth the investment. I wouldn't have paid that much when starting out in marketing though - if I had I probably would have gone broke. There's more to Amazon marketing than just having a high quality review. You need to be sure you can get the article ranked in the search engines so that potential customers will actually see it.
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      • Profile picture of the author ochaim
        Great point, Hamida.

        I'm realizing that getting Amazon commissions is more than the reviews. I am finding some traffic already for the articles I've done, usually long tail related. May have to do with the natural way I'm writing.

        I have a feeling I'll have to lower my standards a bit. I'm not sure I'd find a writer with my technical background in the niche. There would be quite a bit of research for someone totally new in the niche to be able to read a product description and translate that into a thoughtful, helpful review.

        Then again, that's assuming the reviews I'm writing myself are even thoughtful and helpful. And I'm not just having illusions of grandeur. LOL!.
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  • Profile picture of the author bellabell
    Went to a FAST Implementation Boot Camp and these 3 Things have stuck that I live by and I am passing them on to you here:

    1. Trade Money for Time - Money Buys Speed! So you buy articles that are not up to your standards - big deal. Those articles give you a jump start. You can cut your time down 30-40-50-60% or more just by taking an article and doing an edit and rewrite. I buy lots of PLR and this has given me both the idea and the extra time I need to make money.

    2. Make It Happen NOW - you are spending all this time writing to your standard but that extra time you are using to create that standard is not creating the additional stuff you need to get online NOW. Spend less time on "our standards" to give you more time to devote to more stuff to make it happen NOW.

    3. Time = Money - there are only 24 hours in a day. You simply can not change that. BUT you can change what and how. The more time it takes to get your stuff into the public hands the less stuff you get out there and that equals lost opportunity that can equal to lost money.

    Hope these help you as they have helped me...
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    • Profile picture of the author ochaim
      Absolutely, Bella!

      I'm probably making too big a deal about my self imposed "standards" for the reviews I want.

      I may even be able to cut down on my own writing by not getting too involved with the review. Just for a few articles, so I have a point of reference for any prospective writers.

      Maybe spending 15-20- minutes tops for a few reviews and I'll probably have an easier time finding a writer to reproduce that quality. Again, just to start and keep things moving forward rather than getting stuck too long on the content.

      Thanks for the advice, Bella.

      Originally Posted by bellabell View Post

      Went to a FAST Implementation Boot Camp and these 3 Things have stuck that I live by and I am passing them on to you here:

      1. Trade Money for Time - Money Buys Speed! So you buy articles that are not up to your standards - big deal. Those articles give you a jump start. You can cut your time down 30-40-50-60% or more just by taking an article and doing an edit and rewrite. I buy lots of PLR and this has given me both the idea and the extra time I need to make money.

      2. Make It Happen NOW - you are spending all this time writing to your standard but that extra time you are using to create that standard is not creating the additional stuff you need to get online NOW. Spend less time on "our standards" to give you more time to devote to more stuff to make it happen NOW.

      3. Time = Money - there are only 24 hours in a day. You simply can not change that. BUT you can change what and how. The more time it takes to get your stuff into the public hands the less stuff you get out there and that equals lost opportunity that can equal to lost money.

      Hope these help you as they have helped me...
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  • Profile picture of the author sleblanc
    Have you considered doing freelance writing / reviews for other people?

    Obviously it's taking you a bit of time to get through them but if you're charging money yourself for the articles you write - then it may seem more lucrative than writing them for your website and trying to attract sales.

    If you advertise in the "Warriors for Hire" section you could possibly earn enough from writing reviews for others, to spend on getting targeted traffic/leads, etc. for your own review sites rather than spending money on it.

    Just a thought!
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  • Profile picture of the author kencalhn
    i do everything myself and never outsource, running 65 sites for 13 years fulltime. lots of 16 hour days but that's ok, not even close to burning out, I love being a hardworking guy in my niche; my customers respect that, and see it.
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeHumphreys
      Originally Posted by kencalhn View Post

      i do everything myself and never outsource, running 65 sites for 13 years fulltime. lots of 16 hour days but that's ok, not even close to burning out, I love being a hardworking guy in my niche; my customers respect that, and see it.
      My thoughts exactly. If it's got my name on it, then it was created by me because that's what my buyers are buying: My expertise and the quality of product that I've demonstrated over the last 8 years.

      Just grab a fresh cup of coffee and then it's back to work. Countless days where I work my butt off for my copywriting clients or working on my latest info-product project... but I'm loving every minute of it while I'm doing it too.

      To the OP... Brian Tracy says it best: Most people work 40 hours per week to make a living. People are extremely succcessful work more than 40 hours per week to create a different lifestyle.

      Best of luck,

      Mike
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