First day back in Ciao, and already met someone not so polite
By daydreamer20
@daydreamer20 (1688)
Malaysia
January 19, 2009 3:35am CST
It's been a while since I last wrote a review in Ciao US. I've earned quite a lot from there in the past but was kind of put off by their recent policy change. However, some of my Ciao friends urged me to return to Ciao especially after one of my reviews received the Premium Fund for December 2008. And today is my first day back to Ciao after 3 weeks of absence. Guess what, I found a user who commented on my review and said that I should be careful with my grammar.Honestly speaking, I don't deny that my grammar is not perfect. However, when I went to her review, I suggested to her that maybe she can use some formatting (as suggested by Ciao) and also use some simple English so that everyone can understand her review better. After all, the site might actually be used by non-English speaking visitors. And here's her reply:
Thanks for taking the time to write such a careful comment. Unfortunately, I have to disagree with you on both points. I prefer not to use formatting, since I think my reviews don't need topic headings or bullets to make them understandable. It is a matter of taste, and there is no rule that people MUST use their formatting. As for "Reviews should be using simple English since not all readers are well-versed in English." With all due respect, this is an American site, and there's not one word or phrase in any of my reviews that couldn't be understood by any American with a 7th grade reading ability. If my reviews are in too difficult English for you to understand, then - with all due respect - perhaps this site isn't right for you, and maybe you could find one in your own language.
I really wonder how can someone becomes so stuck up? And her reply does seem to contain racism issue. What's your opinion? Have you met someone like this before? It's my first time after spending so much time in Ciao.
1 person likes this
7 responses
@mariefe18 (663)
• Philippines
19 Jan 09
That's really too bad 
. I am a member of Ciao too but and I do admit that I also have a little problem with the grammar. I have never encountered anything like this and I hope I'll never will. I accept constructive criticisms but if its already discriminatory then that's not really what I want.
Just take it as a challenge from her and continue writing (although I too didn't write anything yet after they removed the earnings from writing lol 
)
Have a nice ay and keep your chin up. 
. I am a member of Ciao too but and I do admit that I also have a little problem with the grammar. I have never encountered anything like this and I hope I'll never will. I accept constructive criticisms but if its already discriminatory then that's not really what I want.
Just take it as a challenge from her and continue writing (although I too didn't write anything yet after they removed the earnings from writing lol )
Have a nice ay and keep your chin up. @daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
19 Jan 09
Constructive comments are always good but there are people who tend to give destructive comments without looking at the mirror. :D
@daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
19 Jan 09
Hmm, not really. What we can do is to ignore those destructive comments. I believe we can do that if we're strong.
@nigenh (167)
• India
19 Jan 09
I have faced even more worst reviews than this, not in ciao surveys though but in other online forums where people eventhough they don't have good knowledge about things but still think that they are the geniuses in the field. I don't bother about their comment as far as my comments have helped others & have not misguided anyone. I give a tincan to people of this sort who think they are the king in all the things. We show a kind heart of rectifying their mistakes & they take it negative most of the time. They are gonna be the loosers at a later stage & not us though if they dint correct their mistakes.
@daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
20 Jan 09
Actually this is not the worst I've encountered. A friend of mine recently was attacked by another blogger for expressing her opinions on certain things. My friend was using her real name while this 'attacker' was not. And the remarks made were quite unreasonable and rude.
@daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
20 Jan 09
LOL, I think they have some serious problems in their head :P Ah well, we'll just have to ignore them.
@echomonster (2225)
• Greenwood, Mississippi
19 Jan 09
Well, any site that allows for rating and commenting will attract some "brutally honest" types who will let you know just what they think of your work. I don't see a problem with that really -- as a reviewer, I try to write to the best of my ability and give a good picture of the product to the reader, but I don't aim for perfection. If someone has some criticism to make of my reviews, they're absolutely welcome to criticize, but I won't necessarily take any notice of what they have to say if I'm satisfied with my work! Sometimes I feel I'm a little harsh myself when rating, but I just want to be a honest reviewer and rater. I think your mistake was noticing this person's comment and reacting in kind -- it does you no good to enter into an online war with this type of person. You've already experienced her venom firsthand...did you not think she had more where that came from?! Just keep doing the best job that you can on your reviewers (and if you think your grammar skills are weak, you should endeavor to improve them) and don't let yourself be upset by the overcritical naysayers.
@thebeaddoodler (4262)
• Lubbock, Texas
20 Jan 09
Does she not realize that she's not writing reviews for other Ciao members? Reviews should be written for the customers, and truthfully customers with money to spend don't always have a good education even if they are Americans! The review should be SIMPLE English! You are right on! Somebody stick a pin in that ego and deflate it a little.
@daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
20 Jan 09
Agreed. Ciao US might have visitors who are not that good with bombastic English. Even the newspapers are not encouraged to use bombastic English. Guess she's just not a good writer.
@maroseqf (3657)
• Philippines
19 Jan 09
She is so rude! 
That is really offensive my friend! I think you should get back at her and tell her to suggest the admin to limit their members to Americans only. She is so narrow minded and I hate the way she criticized you. She is so arrogant!
Well, lucky for me that I have never encountered those kind of people in ciao. My friend, I suggest that you just continue with what you are doing in ciao and just do not mind her. She seems to be just needing some attention.
That is really offensive my friend! I think you should get back at her and tell her to suggest the admin to limit their members to Americans only. She is so narrow minded and I hate the way she criticized you. She is so arrogant!
Well, lucky for me that I have never encountered those kind of people in ciao. My friend, I suggest that you just continue with what you are doing in ciao and just do not mind her. She seems to be just needing some attention. @daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
19 Jan 09
It's funny how she labeled Ciao US and being US only. Ciao stated that it is open to everyone, thus the usage of PayPal. And inside the FAQ, it is stated the reviews should be in proper English, not bombastic English. She even said I'm worse than a 7-grader. :(
Ah well, I think she's making a lot of enemies going around penalizing people's reviews because of their grammar (not content).
I'll still continue writing reviews in Ciao, though not that often. It's just not worth it anymore.
@Autumnrose2008 (1478)
• United States
20 Jan 09
That is messed up. However not every one is that ignorant I for one am not. I hope that one persons ignorance does not turn you away. Ciao needs honest writers. Congrats for the premium fund for December by the way.
@daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
20 Jan 09
Thanks. I won't be that active in Ciao since it's not that easy to earn there anymore and each month there will only be 5 premium fund winners. :)
@owelm0408 (1011)
• Philippines
19 Jan 09
hahaha!you can call that misunderstanding. Its good to suggest but its given that their are some people who just can't seem to dig deeper on what you really meant. Just don't bother.you can delete that friend if you don't want another encounter with her again. By the way, I have seen and rated your reviews and i can tell that you really are good at writing. Your contributions at ciao deserves to be recognized. Looking forward for more from you.
@daydreamer20 (1688)
• Malaysia
19 Jan 09
Ah, no wonder your nickname looks pretty familiar. You're one of the nice people who rated my reviews. Thanks ya. Anyway, the person is not in my friend list. She just happened to rate one of my reviews. She started by saying I need to be careful with my grammar. So I went to her review and noticed she did not use any formatting (which is pretty normal by Ciao's standard) and some of the words she used are pretty bombastic. Thus, I suggested maybe she can use simpler English. She actually sent another reply to me saying that she will not "dumb down" her English just because someone could not understand her words. And I thought the usage of simple English is one of the best practices in any form of writing including product reviews since there are some international visitors. It's really quite silly to say that Ciao US is only used by US citizens. *Sighs*. Ah well, it just shows how interesting this world is. :)
