Poll: How Can I Get You More Active In The RoadTest Program?

I get a better idea of the product when it comes in my hand!

Like when I look at my Azure Sphere I get better ideas to what possibilities it can be extended what things they should have added to make it more cool!

Those are some pretty good tips! Thanks!

The RoadTest is an excellent engaging activity -personally I have learned so much from it and tbh I started to be a regular in the community when I discovered about the RT program and found awesome reviews that I couldn't find anywhere else, I think is going in the right direction thanks to rscasny, his staff and of course the active members of the community.

With the above being said, I have not been that much active in the RT program mainly because I can't come up with a nice and original idea to test something, other times I really want to own and review something that I will be sure to use again in the future; if chances are it will go into the won't-be-used-again bin and I see 200+ applications then I won't apply because I believe other members may do a more proper review. My second biggest reason is that there is very little feedback once you apply for a RT; It would be awesome to know how good/bad you did (win or lose) this way you can bring more attention to what the manufacturing is looking for in the review and also can help improving your chances on you next application (I'm aware that this looks like a hard task given the number of applications that have to be reviewed but I wanted to bring that up because I understand the frustration of some).

Lastly well, there are other activities that interest me like Project14 and the Design Challenges where I've been trying my luck recently.

Luis

Good and true analyses Instructorman . I wish to add this. Try to make a story worth following. When you look at the product, try to visualise actual uses. Sometimes I see a product and think where did the manufacturer fail to miss an important usage. That may be the thing they need to see.

Clem

From the day I learned about the Road Test program I have been promoting it to everyone I know in the electronics technology community. I think it is the best community based evaluation program available for electronics technology.

I encouraged my engineering technology students to join the Road Test group for many years.  Only one followed through and signed up, as I recall.  That student applied a few times but was not selected for a Road Test, so interest waned and his participation declined.

Since joining the community in 2011 I have had a fairly poor 35% success rate (7 out of 20), however, I read the reviews posted by those who were selected over me and I learn something useful every time that I then fold back into my next application. Over the years and though the experience of writing 7 reviews I have developed a review style that is fairly consistent. I take care to draw attention to this in my applications.  If the vendor is not interested in having their product reviewed in the style I have established, they will know not to select me.  Best to be up front and forthcoming with your approach, even if you are a first time applicant,  so vendors have an idea of what you will be doing with their freely offered products..

I am on the site daily and have miss them. When I say miss them, they have been in the market place for a week and I haven't notice them. The current oscilloscope RoadTest is an example.

Sean

gecoz  wrote:

 

What limits my participation in the RT program is time. Unfortunately the very nature of my work will require sudden and intense spells of "full-immersion" work, which is often difficult to predict. Nevertheless, I try my best to make some time to apply and test some of the products I'm more interested in. Let me be clear, this limit has nothing to do with the time needed to complete the RoadTest: I don't think having more time to complete a RoadTest would have any impact on the decision to apply. This is for 2 reasons: first, in my experience there is nothing better than an hard deadline to improve someone's focus. And second, if needed, Randall has always been very open and flexible in accommodating extension requests, so if you find yourself in need of more time, all you need to do is ask (I have done it myself).

You actually bring up a good point I had forgotten to mention. Sometimes RoadTests can be a bit funny with regards to time - an influx of candidates can mean that judging is delayed, then there could be delays in shipment and ultimately, one may have applied on the expectation they would have a period of relatively low commitments, only to have the unit arrive during a peak busy period. Ensuring RoadTest start/end dates are more strictly adhered to would help participants better plan their time - I've ended up frantically trying to juggle commitments just to ensure I don't violate the 60 day rule. One can always ask for an extension, but ideally that shouldn't need to happen.

- Gough

neuromodulator  wrote:

Also related to the last point, I many times feel a bit lost on how to write a successful application. As there is no feedback, its very hard for me to know what went wrong in an application. What I've been doing is, taking my Keithley DMM6500 application as template or model to write new ones, but that hasn't worked for me even when I thought the applications were as good or better. On the other hand it appears that some members have completely figured it out and are pretty good at getting selected when applying to a product, so there must be something wrong with my applications but I still have to figure it out.

I'd have to say that on the whole, winning RoadTests is a bit of a multi-factorial game of luck and it's hard to get a feeling of your chances when there are so many things that go into selection.

For example -

• A well-thought out application which shows your knowledge of the product, the technology and stand-out features improves your chances dramatically.
• An application with a clear layout that communicates the test protocol, the review process and which promises a reasonable return for the review time is also important.
• Existing community participation which shows activity, engagement and perhaps a clear communication style would be a bonus.
• Perhaps an understanding of why a given product is on RoadTest - is it a follow-up on a similar product that was previously RoadTested? A new product in the category? A product that got a refresh? What might the manufacturer want to see out of their investment?
• The number of products on offer (more is better), but also the people you are competing against (e.g. if more of the experienced members have applied rather than passed on the opportunity).
• Whether the manufacturer takes an active role in selecting people - I suspect some products may want specific types of people (you can get a hint in some of the customised questions in the RoadTest form as a cue). Perhaps you're not in the preferred geographic region, don't have the level of industry experience desired.

The process is necessarily without feedback - I would think it would be too hard on rscasny to expect feedback especially on a free "giveaway" style system. Likewise, some of my RoadTest applications are longer than some of the reviews that are posted - so I understand that some people may feel a little bummed out about losing their time investment. But I think the key thing to remember is that sometimes, the sponsor may be looking for something and your offering may not be the most attractive to them. For example - speaking personally, I think I may have sabotaged my own chances with certain brands owing to the negative (but in my perspective, fair) feedback I have provided in the past. Perhaps I am too thorough with my reviews and they don't like that. Perhaps they don't want a review that focuses too much on competitors or comparison. Or perhaps they don't like "magazine style" reviews and wants someone to take it out in the field and beat it up. I'd call this "marketing strategy" and this is something many companies probably don't want to openly disclose and I've had the occasional unpleasantness of encountering in my own "freelance" reviewing outside of element14.

So don't feel lost or in despair - I've put in plenty of applications I thought were better than my last, but not been successful. It's a bit of a numbers game sometimes. But it can come down to luck. Take it as an opportunity to hone your application which can be partly reused for the next opportunity. If I compare my first application to my last - I'd be so ashamed of my early applications that I couldn't even consider showing them to anyone.

- Gough

i am new to the community, and i click into every road test and see if i can apply one.

there are several reasons for not applying. lack of knowledge is the main one. like nxp freeway board, i like the board, it seems i can do a lot of things with it. but i have zero knowledge on it, and when i search google, it is hard to get info about this board.

so i think better not to apply, and if get selected, i do not even know if i can get the review done.

items' usability is another one. it is best if i can use the item after reviewing it, not keeping it in store room.

Surely if you're on here once a week or more (like many of us are) then you won't miss a road test.