Fed up of yacht review quality!

[Shrew]

Just 13 posts for someone to cry "fake news!!" criticize the media in its entirety, and bring politics into the discussion. Good Grief!!

[DEAN2140]

I found Yachting World's reviews are the most critical (and therefore honest) of the mags. They have a professional reviewer, Toby Hodges, who seems to know his stuff and has, IMO, the best job in the world. The U.S. mags just recycle the same trite and banal stories.

[TrentePieds]

A word to the wise: Although there is lots to say about "the press" in general, this is not the place to say it :-) Let's confine the discussion to the boating press. If you'll do that, then by all means have at it :-)!

TP

[Sailshabby]

Let’s also not forget the reviewers don’t get to spend a month aboard, going from Point A to wherever. Maybe a day sail in whatever conditions happen to be.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Benz

The magazines make money when builders advertise. If the reviewers gave poor reviews, the builders would pull their ads and find a magazine that was willing to say what they want. It's just business. Surely by now buyers are canny enough to know that advertising isn't true.
Advertising isn't true.
Advertising isn't true.

^ This. Most yacht reviews are garbage...at most the reviewer has maybe been aboard for a short day sail.

Negative reviews dont sell advertising from the builders!

[bstreep]

We had a "Boat of the Year" for a charter boat a year and a half ago. It was nearly new. What a POS. I mean, from one end to the other. I have to wonder if the voting is simple dollar bills in advertising.

[billgewater]

Let's suppose boat reviews were comparative eg boats X, Y and Z. If a list of parameters/features were drawn up and compared e.g. "ease of anchor gear use", "off wind sailing polar diagrams", "cockpit ergonomics" etc. (probably a good dozen or more features here); then the reviewer would be in a safer position plus would probably have to refer to specialists when assessing or rating the features.
Would this be more appreciated than the usual gushing rubbish seen in magazine articles? I think so.
Also it would send a message to builders that there is an informed market place assessment that appreciates and measures better quality and standards.

Boats are not just glamour stuff as they must function well and are loaded with technology to achieve practical outcomes. Would you buy an 18 wheeler transport truck based on a glossy report? Hope not.

However, marketing is a canny business. The sellers read it well and know what to say and what they can get away with. Maximising profit does not necessarily mean making a better product. A long lasting product may also be bad news for the manufacturer. Avoiding negative or accurate assessment may be very bad for business. Caveat emptor.
Plus they know that there is a large component of day dreamers and size envy out there. Just look at some of the high rise tupperware that sits in the marinas. Condominium catamarans. The builders know this market well. It's why some folk have a V8 engined monster, atmosphere polluting, SUV just to go shopping. Selling aimed at the ego.
Maybe there is a market place for a competent unbiased reviewer of boats. I think that there may be legal issues when some builder gets a bad review or criticism of a boat's features, but with qualified assessors and comparative tables mentioned above, there should be a better outcome for all.
Measured features tend to be non judgemental or subjective. i.e. more meaningful and less contentious.

And, may I add, those boat ads. that show a bevy of near naked, buxom lasses lounging all over the boat has been - for me at least, extremely distant from reality. It's more like a few know all old farts holding beer cans and mad politics. I want my money back. Fat chance I suspect.

[Cheechako]

Review = Promotion
Many companies today are fraudulent one way or another.

[Joh.Ghurt]

Originally Posted by LittleWing77

That's Admiral to you, Joh!

Littlewing, I was just being polite. As everyone knows, an Admiral is a commander of a fleet with many vessels and has multiple captains to choose from. I didn't want to imply said lady is hopping from captain to captain depending on the mood of the day. This wouldn't be considered honourable in all places.

[captmikem]

Many years ago, I and two other fairly well known sailors were asked at the Ft Lauderdale boat show to sail three boats and give our opinion which would be written up in a well-known sailing magazine.

We spent a day doing this, aboard each boat was a “journalist” who took our comments in a note pad.

A month or so later the article came out. Nothing of what I said was written, however I was quoted saying things that I would never say. A few friends asked me about it because they knew I would never say such a thing.

I think they probably work for CNN now..

M

[Sailshabby]

Originally Posted by captmikem

Many years ago, I and two other fairly well known sailors were asked at the Ft Lauderdale boat show to sail three boats and give our opinion which would be written up in a well-known sailing magazine.

We spent a day doing this, aboard each boat was a “journalist” who took our comments in a note pad.

A month or so later the article came out. Nothing of what I said was written, however I was quoted saying things that I would never say. A few friends asked me about it because they knew I would never say such a thing.

I think they probably work for CNN now..

M

Why just CNN?

[redneckrob]

Originally Posted by captmikem

I think they probably work for CNN now..

M

What part of the moderator saying just a few posts ago "Although there is lots to say about "the press" in general, this is not the place to say it :-)" did you not understand? Good grief, is it that hard to keep one's personal politics out of a cruiser discussion when nicely asked?

[BillKny]

I am going to draw a bit of an analogy. On my blog pages I occasionally review and recommend products. I post affiliate links to products I review--if I have them--to help with the cruising kitty. In a lot of ways it is the sailing magazine business model in miniature.

I have (almost) never posted a bad review. It makes no sense. It generates no income. It pisses people off. The only people who really enjoy reading hostile reviews do so out of a sense of schadenfreude rather than real knowledge gathering. Many products (including boats!) I consider terrible have a lot of customers with significant brand loyalty. If I attack "their" brand, they go other places to read because they are now convinced I am (at best) an idiot.

It's really not just about advertisers. A mass circulation sailing magazine can't pan the latest boat from Groupe Beneteau without making a bunch of bendy-toy fanboys mad. People mad at you don't read your magazine.

I never fudge a review, I am honest in my opinions. I just only review products I like. Does that make me a worthless industry shill? I don't think so, but your opinion may differ.

[C420sailor]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RLwhU5s86sU

I always appreciate a good honest, negative review.

[LostBiker]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

^ This. Most yacht reviews are garbage...at most the reviewer has maybe been aboard for a short day sail.

Negative reviews dont sell advertising from the builders!

TA-DA! And we have a winner! Advertisers will never call something "crap". Not if they want to stay in business.



But I've also seen people buy junk just because it looked good. My wife still brings that up even after 35 years