As we know, the basis of WOT’s reputation is user ratings. However, we sometimes face the misconception that rating websites with WOT is difficult. That is not true. Let us explain why.
First of all, we do understand that everyone is not a specialist in online safety. We all want to avoid online risks, of course, but you might not have in-depth knowledge about the issue or you might not even be that interested. You might feel insecure about rating and questions like “How do I know if a site carries malware?” or “What is considered impropriate content for children?” might cross your mind. However, that is not a reason not to rate.
Why? First, because in a community you do not have to know everything yourself and second, each experience is valuable.
Different kinds of raters are needed
The WOT community consists of close to 17 million individuals with different backgrounds, interests, and knowledge. For example, tracking malware is difficult and you might not be able to do it, but someone else in the community can. Then again, you might be really into the Native American hoop dance and always buy your hoops in this little web store, and you’ve never had any problems with your orders: Then you are the best person to rate that little website for vendor reliability. The Internet is a source of entertainment and information for different kinds of people for different kinds of purposes – therefore WOT needs different kinds of raters.
Your rating is valuable
Rating websites is about sharing your own experience. Let’s take for example rating sites for child safety. If you would not like your children to see the content of a website, it is enough reason to rate it red. Other raters might disagree with you, but that’s fine as everyone rates according to his or her own opinion. That’s what creates the “wisdom of the crowds”. If you don’t have opinions on all four rating components (trustworthiness, vendor reliability, privacy, and child safety), you can rate just the components that you want and leave others unrated.
Make rating websites a habit
Once you have formed your opinion, leaving a rating itself is very easy and only takes a few seconds. Start today to rate sites that you know and have visited and make it a habit!
P.S. Got interested in the Native American hoop dance? Find more information in Wikipedia.