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This page is for a list of '''consumer resources'''. It is ''not'' an endorsement of any of these services.
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This page is for a list of '''consumer resources'''. It is ''not'' an endorsement of any of these services. These are resources that provide information and/or reviews that can assist consumers -- primarily with purchasing decisions. In some cases they also have safety and care instructions or pointers to more information. The reviews may be from consumers, reporters, industry boards, government, commercial or academic experts.
   
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==Biases==
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Keep in mind that some companies now hire people or other companies to post positive reviews of their products, to respond to negative comments and in general to manage their online reputations. Some companies that may appear as independent reviewers are actually "endorsement factories"; they are paid by the companies they review or have other conflicts of interest. There are also disgruntled people who complain about almost anything, Internet trolls who take pleasure in vandalizing sites or competitors who may try to harm their competition in unethical ways, such as lying about them online. And not everyone is going to have the same experience... even if a furniture maker is generally of extremely high quality, you may experience a problem... perhaps one that's not even furniture maker's fault. Things can be damaged during shipping for example. But, part of the experience with a consumer company is not only how they do things to begin with, but also how they handle the situation when things go wrong. Despite all these potential problems, many consumer resources do an excellent job of collecting information from multiple sources, testing it or fact checking, and presenting it to potential consumers in a fair way.
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==Links to resources==
 
* [http://www.consumerworld.org/ Consumer World]
 
* [http://www.consumerworld.org/ Consumer World]
 
* [http://www.consumerreports.org/ Consumer Reports .org]
 
* [http://www.consumerreports.org/ Consumer Reports .org]
 
* [http://www.consumersearch.com/ Consumer Search] (.com)
 
* [http://www.consumersearch.com/ Consumer Search] (.com)
 
* [http://www.consumer.gov/ Consumer.gov (USA)]
 
* [http://www.consumer.gov/ Consumer.gov (USA)]
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* [http://www.apartmentratings.com/ Apartment Ratings] (.com)
 
* [http://www.craigslist.org/ craigslist]
 
* [http://www.craigslist.org/ craigslist]
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* [http://www.angieslist.com/ Angie's List] (pay for access)
 
* a set of [http://scc.pinehurst.net/misc.html#products shopping or product related] links on scc.pinehurst.net, "Internet Resources". It includes a couple of comparison shopping sites as well as some complaint collection sites
 
* a set of [http://scc.pinehurst.net/misc.html#products shopping or product related] links on scc.pinehurst.net, "Internet Resources". It includes a couple of comparison shopping sites as well as some complaint collection sites
   
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==Related==
{{stub}}
 
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* [[shopping]]
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* [[catalog]]
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[[Category:Purchasing]]

Latest revision as of 13:22, 18 March 2012

This page is for a list of consumer resources. It is not an endorsement of any of these services. These are resources that provide information and/or reviews that can assist consumers -- primarily with purchasing decisions. In some cases they also have safety and care instructions or pointers to more information. The reviews may be from consumers, reporters, industry boards, government, commercial or academic experts.

Biases

Keep in mind that some companies now hire people or other companies to post positive reviews of their products, to respond to negative comments and in general to manage their online reputations. Some companies that may appear as independent reviewers are actually "endorsement factories"; they are paid by the companies they review or have other conflicts of interest. There are also disgruntled people who complain about almost anything, Internet trolls who take pleasure in vandalizing sites or competitors who may try to harm their competition in unethical ways, such as lying about them online. And not everyone is going to have the same experience... even if a furniture maker is generally of extremely high quality, you may experience a problem... perhaps one that's not even furniture maker's fault. Things can be damaged during shipping for example. But, part of the experience with a consumer company is not only how they do things to begin with, but also how they handle the situation when things go wrong. Despite all these potential problems, many consumer resources do an excellent job of collecting information from multiple sources, testing it or fact checking, and presenting it to potential consumers in a fair way.

Links to resources

Related