Cleats Hub: every cleat, weighed on the evidence

It blends three sources: critic reviews (45%), owner feedback (35%) and manufacturer specs (20%). Each review is read for its stance, a verbatim quote and how sure the reading is, so every claim traces back to a real sentence. Weights follow each source’s authority, age and depth, and every score carries a confidence level: low, medium or high.

One score feeds many pages: reviews, best-of lists, head-to-head comparisons, brand pages and buyer’s guides. When new reviews land, the score runs again, and the pages that show it follow.

Traffic is up 200%, the highest it has been in two years. Today the site rates 95 products from 522 reviews, across 23 brands.

As a review site for ice hockey skates and American football cleats: reviews, comparisons and buying guides. We designed the site and the brand, and built a review plugin at its core.

Most used only expert opinion, or only user feedback. Buyers got half the picture, and found it hard to trust either.

With a custom plugin. It grades each product on support, fit, traction and materials, and combines expert scores with user feedback in one view. It also writes structured data, which helps search engines read the reviews.

Speed, precision and trust. Bright blue, a sharp chevron and clean type. The name is plain, and easy to come back to.

Through search. We researched what buyers look for, and wrote the reviews, comparisons and guides around it. Reviews from users kept people engaged and coming back.

The site gained steady traffic after launch. When Google’s Helpful Content Update cut it, a recovery plan won back 30% of the lost traffic. Social media was not a focus at first; the review format makes it easy to add later.

Build the brand from the start: a clear name and look earn trust and loyalty. Next time we would push user reviews harder, and set clearer goals early.