I’ve seen this discussion once or twice, and wanted to get my thoughts out on it.
Does using stars in reviews lessen the overall meaning behind it? Or does it simplify it in a way that people can understand your thoughts behind your reasoning better?
I thought the best way to do this post was using pros vs cons. I also thought it was worth mentioning that, if you’ve followed my blog at all, that I use stars in all of my reviews, except short stories. So I may be a little biased.
YAY STARS!!
Pros:
- Gives a simple, well recognized opinions
- Most people have connotations for separate ratings
- i.e. : one star – it sucks, two star – it wasn’t good, three star – it was okay, etc.
- You’re explaining your rating (and connotations) for the review instead of rambling about everything that comes to mind.
Cons:
- People often skip reviews to see the “final rating”; don’t actually read the review
- It doesn’t give specifics
- i.e. : don’t know if it’s problematic or not
- You could have rated a book three stars, but the reader doesn’t know why unless they read the entire thing.
NAY STARS??
Pros:
- More in-depth reviews
- People can’t skip the review down to the rating
- The review is more based on explaining the thoughts of the reviewer rather than explaining the rating
Cons:
- People might skip/click out of the review without seeing a rating
- i.e. : the review might be too long, they get bored, can’t skim it for the information
- You may or may not end up rambling
- Big blocks of text tends to scare off readers
Although it’s a personal decision, I use stars in my reviews because, even though people might skip the review because of the rating, I still think it does give an accurate idea as to what I liked and disliked.