What facts online

1. CONSUMER REPORTS
What Facts Online
By Ariana Haze

2. CONSUMER REPORTS

Web. 21 Oct 2013.
<http://www.consumerrepo
rts.org/cro/index.htm>.

3. WHAT IS CONSUMER REPORTS?


An online compilation of
unbiased product and
service ratings and
recommendations as well
as selections from the
latest issue of Consumer
Reports.
Expert, independent,
nonprofit organization
whose mission is to work
for a fair, just, and safe
marketplace for all
consumers and to
empower consumers to
protect themselves.

4. WHAT QUESTIONS CAN BE
ANSWERED?

What Facts
A
list of items with reviews so someone can be “in the
know” when choosing to buy a new product.

What is the best microwave, fridge, cell phone,
tablet, car, etc, to buy?

5. AUDIENCE AND ACCESIBILITY
Consumer Reports is an online source for the
general public. You need a subscription in order
to get full access to the site, but most public
libraries subscribe to it.
 Anyone can look up buying advice on
consumerreports.org, even without having a
library card, but it does have features that only
subscribers can access such as:

 Product
reviews and ratings
 A mobile app
 An ad-free shopping feature
 A build & buy tool for creating a car and then getting
dealership prices without having to commit to buy.

6. USABILITY
The site is easy to use.
 To find a product,
type in your product
of choice in the box
that says “find
ratings” or browse
their A-Z index.


7. NEED TO KNOW

The person using Consumer Reports needs to
know what product they are looking for or what
kind of brand. They need to have some kind of
starting point or former knowledge in order to
find ratings for the item they want. This starting
point can be as basic as “what refrigerator will
last me the longest without making me spend a
ton of money?” They would then look at
Consumer Reports' appliances or type
“refrigerator” into the find ratings box.

8. RATING SYSTEM
One would also need to have some understanding
of their rating system.
 They supply a key for how to read it though, so it
should not be too hard to figure out.


9. HOW DO I USE CONSUMER
REPORTS?


As an example, I'm going to look up the answer for “What
is the highest rated cell phone?”
To access the full site, I am signing in through my public
library's proxy server.

10. HOW DO I USE CONSUMER
REPORTS?

As soon as I started typing “cell phones” in the
search box, a screen saying cell phones appeared.
Click on it.

11. HOW DO I USE CONSUMER
REPORTS?

On the left side of the page, click on “smart
phones”.

12. HOW DO I USE CONSUMER
REPORTS?

The page is set up so that the cellphone with the
highest overall rating is at the top of the page. As
you scroll down the page, the ratings decrease.

13. HOW DO I USE CONSUMER
REPORTS?

The smart phones are separated by cell phone
providers. Mine is AT&T, so I am looking at the
phones under that category.

14. HOW DO I USE CONSUMER
REPORTS?

Based on the overall rating, the best phone to get
would be the Samsung Galaxy S4

15. CAN THEY BE TRUSTED?
All of Consumer Report's work is informed by the
more than 1 million readers who respond to their
Annual Ballot & Questionnaire, among the
largest and most comprehensive consumer
studies in the world.
 They employ lobbyists, grassroots organizers,
and outreach specialists who work with online
activists to change legislation and the
marketplace in favor of the consumer interest.
 YES!


16. QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS
Please feel free to contact me with any questions
or concerns.
 You may reach me by email at
arianahaze@gmail.com
