Product reviews can serve your audience, strengthen your reputation, build valuable relationships, and even create new opportunities for your podcast. But a good review must offer more than a repackaged product description.
Lately, I’ve been doing a lot more product reviews through the Amazon Vine program. I’ve now reviewed more than 200 products, and I’ve noticed several things that separate a genuinely useful review from the growing pile of shallow, generic, and sometimes AI-generated slop.
And when I say “product,” I mean that broadly. You could review a physical product, software, service, movie, book, restaurant, event, experience, or practically anything else relevant to your audience.
So here are 11 tips to help you create better product reviews in your podcast.
1. Actually use the product!
This is the most important principle: if you’re going to review something, actually use it.
A photo of an unopened box and a rewritten product description do not make a review. That’s dishonest, unhelpful, and a waste of everyone’s resources.
And don’t merely confirm that the product turns on. Use it the way someone in your audience would use it. Test it in realistic situations, connect it to relevant equipment, and pay attention to the experience beyond the basic features.
For example, when I tested microphones for Best Podcasting Microphones in 2023, I didn’t merely record a quick “check, check, check.” I used the microphones like a podcaster would. I tested their USB and XLR connections, monitored through their headphone outputs, compared their behavior with other microphones, and looked for anything that could affect a real podcasting workflow.
That’s how I discovered something unusual about the Audio-Technica ATR2100x-USB’s headphone behavior that I couldn’t find anyone else discussing. I would never have discovered that from the specifications alone.
Yes, deep expertise might sometimes let you evaluate parts of a product without personally using it. But even then, you’ll miss details that only hands-on experience can reveal.
2. Share your experiences and sincere opinions
People can usually find a product’s description and features without you. What they often need from you is experience and perspective.
Tell your audience what happened when you used the product. What worked well? What frustrated you? What surprised you? Who do you think would benefit from it, and who probably wouldn’t?
Your opinion doesn’t have to match theirs to be useful. You might dislike a feature that someone in your audience would love. That’s okay. If you explain your experience clearly and sincerely, your audience can make its own decision.
This is also where your particular niche becomes valuable. A filmmaker might review an audio recorder for film-making, while you could evaluate that same recorder specifically for podcasting. That audience-focused perspective might be exactly what someone is trying to find.
Don’t gush merely because you want the manufacturer to like you. And don’t manufacture negativity merely because outrage attracts attention. Be honest about what you like and what you don’t.
Your audience wants information, but it also wants your informed opinion.
3. Focus less on specs and features, more on benefits for your audience
Specifications and features can be helpful, but don’t let them dominate your review. Your audience can usually find those details on the product page.
Instead, explain why those details matter.
For example, saying that an audio interface provides 60 decibels of clean gain is a specification. Saying it provides enough gain to use a Shure SM7B without an additional preamp explains the benefit. That could save someone money, space, and complexity.
A simple phrase can help you make this shift:
“… so that …”
Whenever you mention a specification or feature, finish the thought with “so that.”
“This recorder supports multitrack recording so that you can edit each person separately.”
“This microphone includes direct headphone monitoring so that you can hear yourself without distracting latency.”
The same principle applies to less technical reviews. If you’re discussing a book, movie, meal, or experience, don’t merely list what it contains. Explain how it made you feel, why something worked, and what kind of experience your audience might expect.
Features tell people what something has. Benefits help them understand why they should care.
4. Read/watch the instructions
If the product requires any knowledge to use properly, read the instructions or watch the official tutorials.
When I created a course about using the Zoom H6 for podcasting, I thoroughly read its manual. That wasn’t so I could recite specifications. It was so I could understand how to use the recorder properly, discover capabilities I might otherwise miss, and explain the device more accurately.
Knowing the instructions also gives you more useful things to discuss. Are the instructions clear? Do they leave out something important? Is there a better way for your audience to use the product than the manufacturer recommends?
Your audience might never read the manual. But if you do, you can give them the most relevant information without turning your review into a dramatic reading of technical documentation. Everyone wins.
5. Consider others’ reviews and questions
Look at other reviews before finishing yours. Read articles, watch videos, listen to podcasts, and especially pay attention to audience comments and questions.
This can help you identify several things:
- What other reviewers consistently notice
- What they might be overlooking
- What potential buyers still want to know
- What uses or problems deserve additional testing
This isn’t about copying someone else’s review. It’s about understanding the existing conversation so you can contribute something more useful.
If multiple people are asking whether the product can handle a specific situation, test that situation if you can. If everyone repeats the same feature list but ignores a limitation you discovered, make sure you explain it.
Then your episode can become more than a review. It can become a valuable resource for people researching that product.
6. Highlight opportunities for improvement
Criticism is most helpful when it points toward a solution.
Instead of merely saying, “This is stupid” or “This feature is terrible,” explain what would make it better. Maybe the product needs a workflow change, an additional setting, clearer instructions, or a small design improvement.
This is how I approached my reviews of the Sound Devices MixPre series. I praised what worked, explained its potential for podcasters, and identified specific improvements I wanted to see. I even said I would buy one if those things were improved. Sound Devices later made those improvements, and I kept my word.
Suggestions make your review more useful to your audience and potentially more valuable to the product maker. They also show that you care about improvement, not merely getting attention through complaints.
You can still be blunt when something is bad. Just try to explain why it’s bad and what could make it better.
7. Use the product name frequently
Use the product’s name throughout your episode and the content around it.
That includes your episode title, spoken review, notes, chapters, and social posts.
You don’t have to repeat the full name in every sentence. That would sound spammy and possibly robotic. But mention it often enough that someone joining late, skipping through the episode, or encountering an isolated clip can still understand what you’re discussing.
Ask yourself this: if someone listened with their eyes closed and missed the first minute, would they know what product you were reviewing five minutes later?
Frequent, natural use of the product name also gives search engines, podcast apps, transcripts, and AI-powered discovery systems clearer context. And yes, that supports all kinds of E-I-E-I-O: SEO, AI optimization, accessibility, and whatever acronym arrives next week.
Clarity is the first goal. Discoverability is a helpful bonus.
8. Link to the product throughout your episode
Don’t mention the product repeatedly while making your audience hunt for the link.
Link to it in multiple relevant places in your episode notes, but not necessarily every time you write the product’s name. Include the link in your podcast chapters, too. If you use PodChapters, you can create a chapter with the product’s name, image, and link.
PodChapters also lets you save images and chapters to a reusable library. So if you frequently mention the same product, you can save its chapter once and quickly insert it into future episodes with the correct title, image, and link already included.
You should also give your audience a memorable, speakable URL during the episode, especially near the beginning and again after you’ve made your recommendation.
I use Pretty Links on WordPress to create short URLs I can easily say in a podcast. These links are also easier to update later. If a destination changes or an affiliate program becomes available, you can update the short link without changing every old episode, article, or social post where you shared it.
Use links to make the next step easy for your audience. Don’t make people search for the product you just convinced them to consider.
9. Disclose appropriately
You must disclose whenever you’re compensated or could benefit from your recommendation. I discussed this much more in You MUST Disclose Whenever You’re Compensated!.
Disclose when:
- The product was given or loaned to you for review
- You were paid to create the review
- You can earn through affiliate links
- The product maker had any editorial involvement
- You purchased the product with your own money
That last disclosure isn’t usually legally required, but it can still strengthen your audience’s understanding of your perspective.
If you shared the review with the manufacturer before publishing, explain whether the company could correct factual errors, whether it suggested changes, and whether it had any control over your final opinions.
Good disclosure doesn’t weaken your review. It can strengthen your reputation because it gives your audience the information it needs to evaluate your recommendation.
You might worry that people will distrust a review if you admit you were paid. Let them consider that. Then prove your sincerity through honesty, specificity, and a willingness to criticize when appropriate.
10. Build a relationship with the product-maker
Product reviews can create several forms of podcasting P.R.O.F.I.T.: popularity, relationships, opportunities, fun, income, and tangibles.
You might receive a product, earn a commission, or get early access to something new. But relationships can be the most valuable result.
Try to connect with someone at the company. Ask questions when you don’t understand something. Report problems clearly. Offer useful feedback. Let the company see that you care about accuracy and about making the product better.
You can also send your draft or outline before publishing and invite factual corrections or clarification. Maintain your editorial independence, of course. The company may help you correct a misunderstanding, reveal an upcoming fix, or ask you to respect an embargo. But it shouldn’t control your conclusions.
After publishing, send the final review to the company. If you already have a good relationship, you might also provide the embed code or a suggested social post that makes your review easy to share. Don’t demand promotion from a company that barely knows you. Build the relationship first.
I’ve seen the value of this with companies such as Sound Devices, RØDE, and Electro-Voice. Thoughtful reviews and useful feedback have led to product improvements, early information, ongoing industry friendships, and even products I could continue using.
This doesn’t require a large audience. A company may value you because you understand a particular niche, communicate clearly, give practical feedback, and act ethically.
11. Tag the product and product-maker whenever sharing your review
When you share your review on social media, tag both the product and its maker when appropriate.
This makes your review easier for the company to notice and reshare. A single reshare could expose your podcast, expertise, and recommendation to thousands of people who already care about that product.
Companies may even reshare posts containing disclosed affiliate links when the recommendation is sincere and useful. I’ve had this happen with TextExpander. I shared my honest excitement about an update, clearly disclosed my affiliate link, tagged the company, and TextExpander reshared the post with its audience.
Tagging isn’t about pestering a brand until it notices you. It’s simply about making the relevant people aware of your work and making it easy for them to share it.
Review products with relationships in mind
Better product reviews can give you opportunities, income, or tangible products. But don’t overlook the relationships.
Think about your relationship with your audience first. Review the product as if a friend or family member asked, “Do you think I should get this?” Give the honest, useful answer that person deserves.
Then consider your relationship with the product maker. Be principled, respectful, accurate, and constructive. A thoughtful review can demonstrate your expertise, help improve a product, and open doors to future reviews, consulting, early access, or other opportunities you might not have imagined.
So actually use the product. Share your sincere experience. Explain benefits instead of merely reciting specifications. Disclose appropriately. And remember that the greatest P.R.O.F.I.T. from a product review might not be the free thing, the affiliate commission, or the extra attention.
It might be the relationships you build along the way.
What products have you reviewed in your podcast, and what have those reviews helped you earn? Share this episode and send your feedback!
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Disclosure
This post may contain links to products or services with which I have an affiliate relationship. I may receive compensation from your actions through such links. However, I don't let that corrupt my perspective and I don't recommend only affiliates.
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