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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
I do a lot of reviewing on this site. Most people seem to appreciate the time I take to review products (And believe me, it takes a lot of time.) Since I review so often. I have devised a system I will use to rate effects from now on when I review.
Here's how it will break down: 9-10/10 - This is an effect I know I will use often. All of the work has already been done. Now I just have to perform it. 7-8/10 - I like the principles and may try it out. It has potential, but I would have to work out a few wrinkles I don't like. 5-6/10 - I feel something is missing making it difficult to perform for real people or it just doesn't fit my personal style. 3-4/10 - I will never use this effect. I can tell just by reading/watching that it won't work. Either the effect is not good, the method is not good, or a combination of both. If an effect is completely unoriginal, it can also receive one of these markings. 1-2/10 - No one should ever use this effect. It's not usable in any way, shape, or form and has no potential. Then there will be an overall average rating which is simply an average of all of the effect ratings. There will also be a production rating 1-10/10 based on how easy the teaching was to understand, how well it was written, etc. This will be the format I use. It keeps me extremely honest in the reviewing process and assures that I am not biased in anyway. Creators, I absolutely love reviewing products. If you have something new coming out, absolutely send it my way and I will take time to do a full review of the product. Heck, even if you have something that has been out for ages that you feel never received the claim to fame it deserved, feel free to send it my way also. But be warned, I will be honest in my review. If you don't think your product can handle the honesty, I suggest you not send it to me Or better yet, refine your product over and over until you think it reaches a point where it can get nothing but a perfect score Let me know if you guys have any suggestions of changes I should make or add to the rating system! Btw, I'm not really sure where this thread belongs... but this IS the latest and greatest reviewing method! |
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Martin Pulman Inner circle London 3399 Posts |
I think reviews carry more weight if the reviewer has actually paid for the product. Too many reviews on the Café these days are from friend of the creator or preview copy reviewers. Remarkably they are all almost always positive reviews.
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
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On Sep 24, 2014, Martin Pulman wrote: I really try to be honest with all of my reviews. No matter if I got a free review copy. It just so happens that I usually like most of the effects I receive to review. This system makes it very hard to only be positive though. It forces me to think about what and how I will use the products. I just this on the Rus Andrews release. You can read that thread and see how I was less than positive. |
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Joe Roberts Special user 860 Posts |
Maddy, I think the the what's missing from your review system is any sense of value.
For example, if you look at your review of Rus' ebook, there was an effect there that you gave a 10/10. By the logic of your review system now, his ebook would have been better if it contained only that one effect. It would have gotten a 10/10 rather than a 6.5/10. That's why I'm not sure a straight average is that meaningful. Similarly, I would rather buy an ebook with 10 effects that had two 10s and eight 4s, rather than ten 7s . Even though the latter would be the higher scoring of the two. I just don't have any need for more average effects. I'm not quite sure what the answer is because we all have different understandings of what we consider acceptable to pay for a good effect. For some people if they get one good idea from a $50 book, then it was worth it, others would expect 10 or 12 at that price. But I think I have an idea.. What you should add is something like this: 1. A straight average. So people get a general sense of the material (as you do now). 2. The number of effects that were exceptional in some way (say 8 or above) 3. The CPEE (Cost Per Exceptional Effect). In other words the cost of the product divided by the number of really good effects. For example a $30 ebook with one good effect and 4 crap ones might get an average of 3.5. And with a CPEE of $30 it might be considered a bad buy The same ebook at $5 would still have the same average of 3.5, but with a CPEE of $5 it might still be a good buy for many people. And it becomes just another piece of data that someone can use and factor into their own decision making (since there is no universally understood number on what constitutes a good value to pay for a good effect). Of course it's still subjective because you're the one determining what effects are "good" but it at least puts the review in a greater context. |
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
Good idea Joe.
So since the average doesn't mean anything to you, should it just be eliminated completely? I like the idea of dividing all of the good effects (8 and up) by the cost. That may be good information. Do you think the general rating system is good? Deciding which effects get which ratings based on the criteria mentioned? Does it seem like a fair way to do it? |
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Joe Roberts Special user 860 Posts |
I think the ranking you're using for individual tricks is pretty solid.
I'd probably get rid of the average for a couple reasons. First is that the story is incomplete. I think we'd both prefer an ebook with two tricks of a 1 and a 9, rather than two 5s. Even though the average would be the same. Second -- and more importantly -- mathematically a poor trick might bring down the rating of a product, but in the real world a bad trick doesn't necessarily bring down the rating of a book or DVD, because ultimately you can just ignore that effect. A magic book is not like a meal where you can maybe rank the appetizer, main course, and dessert and average them out to get a sense of the whole meal. With a magic book the bad effects don't usually detract, they just don't add. Which is why I think the "price per great effect" is a good metric. If you think of any of the books or DVDs you own, there are probably a handful that you'd consider perfect. But even in those "perfect" books, there's probably a third you love, a third you really like, and a third that aren't your cup of tea. So a perfect book would average a 7.5 maybe, which is ultimately not very logical. I do like the ranking of the individual effects, but I just wouldn't combine them to an overall ranking. Just my thoughts. |
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r99h Loyal user Southampton, UK 257 Posts |
I think the CPEE is a great idea. Very useful information.
I wouldn't bother with a straight average, but would take Martin's second point further by listing the number of exceptional, good, average, bad & poor effects. That would be helpful to me as a potential customer. By the way, Maddy, thank you for taking the time to write your reviews. I know I'm not the only one here who values and trusts your opinions. Rich |
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
Thank you Joe. I'll eliminate the average. Great points.
And thank you Rich for that suggestion! So maybe fleshing out a general idea of how many of each ranking? (High: 8-10 Medium: 5-7 Low:1-4) Could that work? And from that, I could get the "CPEE" based on the high count. |
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r99h Loyal user Southampton, UK 257 Posts |
Simplifying the summary sounds good to me, but I feel that splitting your 7-8 ("may try it out") category into "High: 8-10 Medium: 5-7" isn't logical.
I'd suggest: High = 9-10 (a worker); Medium = 5-8 (has (some) potential); Low = 1-4 (I will never use). Rich |
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1KJ Inner circle Warning: We will run out of new tricks in 4385 Posts |
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On Sep 24, 2014, Magic.Maddy wrote: Hi. I like that you actually have every product you review. That is a big plus. I also really like the idea of individual trick/effects/routines ratings. There is no use for an average score for multiple effects. Most magicians are more interested in quality over quantity. If I pay $50 for a magic DVD or book, and I get one really good idea from it, it was worth it. If there are 100 mediocre ideas, it was worth dog doodoo to me. I also like the idea of a rating of it's value given the price paid. I would say that in this case, the rating is based only on those effects that have a rating of 8-10. This becomes more subjective, but I think to most magicians, one really good effect is worth more than one hundred mediocre ones. I also really like that you have nothing to do with the sale of magic products (right?), so you don't have a vested interest in the rating. Many people rating who are tied into, even if is in some remote way, to the sale of magic seem to only have a smattering of negative reviews, just to give the appearance of being impartial. WPR, for example, while I like it, will only give a negative review to a very small number of products, and they never give bad reviews to anything that The World Magic Shop is directly involved with. Nice work, and thank you for what you do. KJ |
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
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On Sep 24, 2014, r99h wrote: Good point Rich. That makes more sense. Quote:
On Sep 24, 2014, 1KJ wrote: So another vote to get rid of average and to add CPEE! Looks like I'll do that from now on. And you are correct with your statements about me having no monetary gain from it or anything. All of the effects I review I make nothing off of in any way. Also, you mentioned that actually having what I review is good (haha.) That does bring up a good point though. I like to REALLY read through the book/watch the explanation and absorb the thoughts as much as possible before I review it rather than skimming it writing the review shortly after. |
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IAIN Eternal Order england 18807 Posts |
For me, if you're setting yourself up as a reviewer - I would want to know your background/experience...
do you perform for pay? how often? what kinds of gigs? how long do you play with an effect before you review it/test it out? how old are you and how long have you been performing/studying? what field of magic do you like best? that kind of thing... usually, when I read a review, I zip through the person's posts and see how I feel about how they express themselves...cos it could just be a matter of taste...
I've asked to be banned
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
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On Sep 24, 2014, IAIN wrote: Thank you, I'll do that now. My name is Madison Hagler. I'm 18 years old. I got into magic when I was 2 1/2 (no joke.) Magic has literally been my life. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I performed on a television show called "Kiddin' Around." Now, I perform both professionally for pay and in casual impromptu situations for friends. I have different gigs all the time. Mostly stage/stand up shows. I perform for schools anywhere from elementary to high schools. I perform for corporations, chamber of commerce, parties, community events, festivals, etc. I perform a lot of church gigs. Oddly enough, I don't do many birthday parties like most magicians. Most of my market is in other areas. Although at one time, I did quite a few parties. So my experience is quite widespread. I perform both magic shows (for the young kids) and mentalism shows (for the middle school ages and up.) I did my first paid gig when I was in 6th grade (12 years old,) and from there, my career "took off" so to speak. I was recently the front cover story of my local newspaper for my magic skills. Although I mainly perform stand up shows for my money, I perform a lot of casual impromptu magic. I have worked my close up in restaurants, corporate "picnics," school events, festivals, parties, etc. I LOVE close up because of the intimacy. I consider myself a card guy. I do perform coin stuff as well, but cards are definitely my expertise. I do a lot of impromptu magic and rarely use gimmicks on a day to day basis, however if a gimmick is worth it, I will test out the reactions it gets. For my stand up shows, I love performing the mentalism shows. I think they are such a blast. I try to do mentalism in a different way than most. My mentalism shows are all about having fun. There can be some serious moments, but its not a drab, dull show like so many mentalism shows are. I also do a lot of mentalism in close up scenarios as well. You just can't beat the amazement caused by a guy plucking your thoughts out of your head. I have invented a lot of magic effects. Most of them are unpublished and just notes on my phone, but I love them. Some other effects of mine have been or will be produced soon. My Tractor pdf (an extractor deck with an ordinary deck of cards) is on lybrary. http://www.lybrary.com/tractor-p-330911.html it was my first real publication. (Be on the lookout for something from Paul Harris with my name on it. ) As well as creating magic effects both gimmicked and nongimmicked, I have created many mentalism effects as well. I have also consulted with quite a few magicians/mentalists on their projects. Check for my name in the credits, sometimes you can find it Here's a full performance of my mentalism show for adults: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUeF2YJ7......GaqNNByw Here's a full mentalism show for middle schoolers (with terrible videoing, sorry.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wtaqMA7......GaqNNByw Here's a full performance of one of my older children shows: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d4FuroF......GaqNNByw Here's a small compilation of my magic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-zeYlyN......GaqNNByw And here's my website (still new.) http://madisonhagler.wix.com/magic-n-mentalism Hopefully that gives you a good idea of who I am as a performer and creator |
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Genie Gene New user 54 Posts |
Sounds great, I like your rating system. I'd trust a Magic Maddy review.
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
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On Sep 25, 2014, Genie Gene wrote: Thank you Genie |
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Casshan Loyal user 283 Posts |
Maddy is definitely the person to look for when it comes to a review! Glad to see what you're doing Maddy, keep it up
You can call me Cash!
Email: casshandw@gmail.com Facebook: Casshan Wallace Twitter: @Casshan_Wallace Instagram: @cash_magic |
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Magic.Maddy Inner circle 1861 Posts |
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On Sep 25, 2014, Casshan wrote: Thanks man! Long time no talk |
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J-Mac Inner circle Ridley Park, PA 5338 Posts |
I agree with Martin's point about reviewers having paid for any product they review. That was once a standard for reviewers of any product. No more it seems. I know many will disagree with me but it is human nature to give better marks to products one receives free. Else you may not receive many more! So reviews of products that are received for free, in my opinion, will always be more positive to a degree than they would otherwise deserve.
Jim |
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Rus ANDREWS Inner circle 1451 Posts |
Hi all,
Just reading this thread, I agree with what a lot of you are saying, although Madison has his right to review what ever he likes in a way that he likes, that's his choice. I've always been a firm believer in one mans s**t is another mans gold, so the ratings that are given on each effect is just his opinion. I've bought ebooks over the years that have had not the most amazing reviews yet I've found something within that ebook for me that's an absolute gem! Lucky we're all different eh otherwise the magic world would be a dull place. Good to see some familiar faces on here Best R |
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Rod Irroc Regular user The media swarmed over my last blindfold drive... I ran over 154 Posts |
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On Sep 25, 2014, Magic.Maddy wrote: Way to stick up for yourself young man! You have won my respect. I will make an effort to read the reviews you share. |
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