Viewpoints Review

Way back around December 06 I got an e-mail telling me about a new writing site that would be launching. I was, of course leery, that not being the first time I've been approached. Soon I was talking with Jolie Fleming the VP of Content & Community of the site which was eventually named Viewpoints. I then found myself talking with Matt Moog, founder and CEO. They were both interested in hearing what I had to say and listened. Perhaps what I liked the best at first was the openness about who this company was. There were no secrets. Do you want to find out where they went to school? You don't have to wonder. Do you want to know the money behind the site; the Board of Directors, etc.? It's not hidden from anyone. I was impressed with not only Jolie's and Matt's experiences and resume but the people behind them as well. They have some very heavy hitters in their ballpark.

Sure I felt some loyalty to another site and was concerned about that but after months (I mean weeks/day - just kidding) of therapy I bit the bullet and joined the Publishers Circle. For those of you who think we are a secret clan we are not. We were just the beginning stage of this terrific site. We signed a limited time frame contract which may or may not be renewed. We weren't just asked to write reviews but to bring in people; to give Viewpoints ideas and to be part of the site not just a participant. I was to find out that this stance is what Viewpoints prides itself most on: community. This isn't just a word to Viewpoints. They take it seriously. There may seem to be a hierarchy but we are all treated the same and Jolie and now Meredith want to hear all points of view (pun intended).

The Site

A couple of very appealing aspects were part of the site. We could write about anything; we could hit submit without fear of judgment and we could add pictures! We could share as much about ourselves as we wanted or nothing at all. Like any site there were kinks and there still are but these are being fixed constantly. Viewpoints has people who know what they are doing. I have complete faith in Leon, Kyle, Vytas, Kevin, Andy and Jason and will miss Tim with whom I spoke on the phone as well.

The site has people coming from all over. Some of us who have written for a long time look askance at one or two sentence reviews but for the record it can be helpful to know that "This restaurant had great service. The food was superb. I got the lobster and it was cooked perfectly. Our waitress was very attentive and the prices were right." Sure it's not how many of us write but there are no bad reviews at Viewpoints. There may be inappropriate ones which we should pass on to Jolie or Meridith.

The Launch

If you've ever had work done on a house you know the 3 months will turn into 6 and that was true at Viewpoints but it was worth the wait. After beta testing and taking out major kinks they were ready to roll. Viewpoints has gotten some great press. I think we have Matt to thank for that. Do a search on him sometime. I'll think you'll be quite impressed.

Writers start at 1 and work there way up. Once they hit 400 reviews (which isn't hard since the reviews can be at the most 1,000 words) they join the Publisher's Circle. I about to submit my Seattle review. When I went to save it I was told there were too many words. How cool is that for those of us used to 2,000+ word reviews? I wondered how I would cut it down but I found all sorts of non-essential material.

Viewpoints now

We are still struggling a bit to get more readers and writers at least that's what I'm feeling. I wonder why everyone doesn't join the community - it's so welcoming and friendly. It really is still in its infancy in the world of websites I believe and will grow and become even better with time. We shouted that we wanted to be able to edit comments and it happened. It didn't take 6 months to do so either.

I want to write about everything. That's my downfall - getting overwhelmed. I try to keep some products in a bin but other items that don't fit (like my bedroom set) I have to write down. I have pictures of products from the summer that are still begging me to review them. Knowing it's the holiday season I try to mix in gift items, stocking stuffers (If that's the holiday you celebrate.) or the little items that we put together to give our kids each night during Hanukkah. So that's my focus. It could be a food item that I know my husband or daughters or my latest attempt at losing weight.

Jolie and Matt are real as are the guys who were in a conference room - no suits allowed! My husband and I had the opportunity this summer while driving home to stay in a campground outside Chicago and drive to Viewpoints. They have a nice office space; it's simple - nothing opulent about it. Matt and Jolie took us to lunch at Matt's gym. Hmmm, wonder why he thought of that! Oprah goes there so believe me we weren't eating at the juice bar! They were great to talk with and I got to learn more about their families.

Viewpoints is a terrific opportunity for those of us not new to writing and a super opportunity for those who are new because it's just not a scary place. So jump in.

If you've written a few reviews and you are here to stay please feel free to join our forum: http://groups.msn.com/ViewpointsCommunityChat