Pet Product Review Tips Begin at Fido's Freebie Friday

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

We've begun to do a little Spring cleaning here at Fido's Freebie Friday. It's always nice to have a fresh look, some fresh material, and a refresher course on what things are all about. 


Today, I'll start with this list backwards. And very soon you'll be seeing a brand new button. Tanner is retiring as our Fido's Freebie Friday mascot in order to allow us to bring you a 125 pixel button that will fit on any blog sidebar. That's our biggest Spring spruce up, and will be fun to unveil in the coming weeks.


I've been getting questions from other bloggers about the art of reviewing products. There's no magic formula, and many different approaches. I don't want to make any decisions like that for other bogs, but I would like to help with tips. 


I'll start at the beginning--getting started. Each week's Product Review Pointer will be shared in my Fido's Freebie Friday post, as a simple, actionable way to move forward with adding product reviews to your blog. That is, of course, if you're a blogger. Non bloggers may prefer to head South to the giveaways↓ to start shopping.


Product Review Pointer #1: Establishing Review Product Criteria


Create a list of criteria for products you DO and DO NOT want to review, based on your site's niche and goals. For example, All Things Dog Blog seeks to review DIY, all-natural, green and sustainable products that have some sort of problem-solving angle or are useful in owner and dog bonding, healthcare and training. This is my criteria for selection. Yours may be very different, and that's fine. This is how we differentiate ourselves for our readers. 


I'll be including a tip each week, working my way through the process of selecting, acquiring, preparing, writing, photographing and publishing a product review. Sounds like a lot of work, huh? It is; but it's also a bunch of fun and I learn a ton each week.


*** More Info for Bloggers ***

Since day one when we opened, Fido's Freebie Friday has had a Help Page to offer assistance to newer bloggers who wish to participate. This page remains active and includes information and links to FTC guidelines, Facebook regulations regarding contests and giveaways, photo tips, and help with linking up to our blog hop.

Our Schedule: As in the past, each week's new version of Fido's Freebie Friday will continue to open at 4 PM ET on Thursdays. The only change is that linkups now remain OPEN through 3:59 PM ET the following Thursday, giving you 24/7 access to your giveaway posts on All Things Dog Blog and our partner, Doggies and Stuff.



Our Ridiculously Easy Rules:

• Fido's Freebie Friday Blog Hop is open to posts about giveaways, contests, drawings, prizes, and freebies for pet products or services only, including pet-related or pet-themed items for owners. Feel free to link up multiple items if you have more than one giveaway going on.
• One additional detail to note: Please make it easy on our shoppers by linking to your specific giveaway post url. Linking to your blog domain only makes it harder for a reader to find your giveaway. 
• Very soon we'll reveal our new badge that you can place in your sidebar or post. You may also link to this post in your Fido's Freebie Friday blog post and invite your readers to tell us that you sent them. Your hosts are All Things Dog Blog and Doggies and Stuff. 

Welcome and happy shopping!

Individual rules of entry and guidelines for winning may apply to each listing. All Things Dog Blog and Doggies and Stuff take no responsibility for the legality of the rules governing the listings on other sites and giveaways that are posted here. We simply provide this forum as a gathering place for pet product giveaways to be offered. Please consult All Things Dog Blog's Giveaway and Contest Rules for more detail.