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Useful tips and news from

No Cowboys

In reviews – 1st December ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Not all heroes wear capes Each week I send hours looking for appropriate stories to review and I have to admit, it...

In reviews – 22nd November ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Rules are rules, but sometimes clemency is the right move If you've ever watched the Kiwi version of Border Patrol,...

In reviews – 14th October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Coalition talks drag on and on and on It's a month ago that we went to the polls and cast our votes in the general...
In reviews – 22nd November ’23

In reviews – 22nd November ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Rules are rules, but sometimes clemency is the right move If you've ever watched the Kiwi version of Border Patrol,...

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In reviews – 14th October ’23

In reviews – 14th October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Coalition talks drag on and on and on It's a month ago that we went to the polls and cast our votes in the general...

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In reviews – 7th October ’23

In reviews – 7th October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing.  Band that no longer exists releases new single Music and pop culture icons from the 1960s utilise cutting edge...

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In reviews – 31st October ’23

In reviews – 31st October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. The Garden City I've lived in Auckland for 18 years and a few weeks ago I took mock offence when someone called me a...

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In reviews – 24th October ’23

In reviews – 24th October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead - to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. All Blacks can set new record How strange it is that in a few days the All Blacks will be competing against one of...

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In reviews – 17 October ’23

In reviews – 17 October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead - to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Protecting our vulnerable I've talked about his before but I have recently been reminded that changing technologies...

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In reviews – 10th October ’23

In reviews – 10th October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead - to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Moronic vandals in UK try to kill famous tree Sometimes you read things online that just stop you in your tracks...

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In reviews – 3rd October ’23

In reviews – 3rd October ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead - to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing.  Spring - a real beaut! I love Spring. It is by far my favourite season and after a challenging winter that felt as...

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In reviews – 12th September ’23

In reviews – 12th September ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead - to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Google needs to play fair Last week I said we would look at overseas companies doing all they can to avoid paying...

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In reviews – 29th August ’23

In reviews – 29th August ’23

Looking back over the past week and to the weeks ahead - to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Rugby World Cup 2023 and it's wide open Next weekend the Rugby World Cup kicks off in France with the first game...

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In reviews – 12th August ’23

In reviews – 12th August ’23

Looking back over the past weeks and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing.  Tradies Each week I sift through the online news looking for inspiring stories to lift the gloom. Truth be told,...

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In reviews 5th August ’23

In reviews 5th August ’23

Looking back over the past weeks and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Not all heroes wear capes Seems we all need a reminder about social etiquette and respect every now and again and...

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In reviews 28 July ’23

In reviews 28 July ’23

Looking back over the past weeks and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. In reviews 28 July '23 The health benefits of coffee Don't tell anybody but one of my last thoughts at night is how...

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In reviews 13 July ’23

In reviews 13 July ’23

Looking back over the past weeks and to the weeks ahead – to rate the noteworthy, the cringeworthy, the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly amazing. Joe Bennett hailing the plumbing trade Joe Bennett has a way with words and is one of the more learned and lucid...

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Paperless travel leaves some of us behind

Paperless travel leaves some of us behind

For the past few weeks I've been travelling in Europe, accompanying my father, on what may well be his last trip. He's a few weeks shy of 80 and the advancing years have slowed him down, without diminishing the joy he experiences from new adventures and encountering...

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We want to be heard!

We want to be heard!

So why leave a review? Recently I was re-reading an article from a few years ago focused on the reasons consumers leave reviews and one part of it perfectly expressed an element that is isn't given the attention that it deserves - that we leave feedback because we...

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Why your feedback counts

Why your feedback counts

If you're reading this then it's likely that you have left feedback for a tradie or business on NoCowboys before. You may have done it because you were asked or you may have done it unsolicited because you were delighted with the work done, or perhaps unhappy. Either...

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Not all reviews are the same

Not all reviews are the same

We've written before about the importance of knowing which online reviews have more voracity than others and treating reviews on a business' own website with a good degree of suspicion. Again a New Zealand company is in the news for allegedly creating a false sense of...

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What to look for in online reviews

What to look for in online reviews

Every now and again we will get enquiries from Kiwis using our site or seeing NoCowboys reviews online. I thought it would be useful to point out a few important factors about online reviews and ours, in particular, to make the process of reading them easier. How are...

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Growing your own food – win win!

Growing your own food – win win!

I grew up in a New Zealand where practically every home had a garden that supplied a healthy and consistent crop of fruit and vegetables. Gardening was not a hobby but an accepted necessity and now as we find ourselves subject to the financial squeeze brought on by...

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Retail vs online shopping

Retail vs online shopping

I'm old enough to remember those crazy, carefree days before the internet where shopping was a physical pursuit and an adventure. Obviously a lot has changed since then and sometimes I have to check myself about my own consumer behaviours, especially over the past two...

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How to find tradies/businesses on NoCowboys

How to find tradies/businesses on NoCowboys

NoCowboys isn't a directory in the traditional sense, it is a platform where Kiwis can contact businesses after reading reviews. Our verified reviews are a point of difference to other sites, such as job boards, and they are the best metric to guiding your choices -...

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Finding the sweet spot

Finding the sweet spot

It’s always heartening talking with business owners who are passionate about their craft, their staff, and their customers. I spent some time with Darcy Wills, owner of Hibiscus Tiling to discuss the history of his business, the craft of tiling, trading through Covid,...

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NC Web

NC Web

[vc_row css=".vc_custom_1636598365151"][vc_column width="1/2"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1636598381671{border-radius: 25px !important;}"] NC Web offers high quality websites, with secure high speed hosting and SEO solutions at competitive pricing, to enable...

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All for one and one for all

All for one and one for all

When I was a kid I loved the Three Musketeers - the sword fighting, the adventure, the wit, the overcoming of evil and adversity. More than that though, I was utterly sold on their rallying cry of 'all for one and one for all'. It made beautiful sense and it was so...

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Websites for all seasons

Websites for all seasons

At NoCowboys we have been marketing the reputations of Kiwi businesses for over 15 years. We know reviews, we know reviews work and we have witnessed the rise and success of thousands of businesses who use our services and our platform. Over the years, however, we...

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How to leave a great review

How to leave a great review

When you're leaving feedback for a business there a few things to keep in mind to ensure those who read it get the real benefit of your opinion. After all, that's what feedback is, your experience of the service you paid for or a product that you bought and...

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Too little, too late?

Too little, too late?

Since last Wednesday when the US held elections for president, congress and half of the senate, as well as a myriad of other public positions, the world has focused on the results as they came in, in fits and starts, until at the presidential level, Joe Biden had won...

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All good things take time

All good things take time

I've come to realise one very important difference between businesses that value their reputation and those that don't. In essence it boils down to one very critical factor, that if managed correctly, garners significant returns, while if done incorrectly can be...

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NoCowboys reviews – FAQs

NoCowboys reviews – FAQs

Since 2006, NoCowboys has been New Zealand's leader in authenticated consumer reviews. With a robust and thorough feedback verification system, consumers can trust that the feedback they rely so heavily on is genuine and authenticated. For registered businesses,...

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Forewarned is forearmed

Forewarned is forearmed

The rise and ubiquity of online reviews has also created a burgeoning industry in fake reviews. These reviews may achieve short term results but are worth less than nothing. Inflating or manipulating an online reputation is not only a huge example of bad faith, it is...

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Creating space around the home

Creating space around the home

Now that Daylight Savings is here and we have an extra hour of evening light up our sleeves, it’s a great time to think about making sure that our homes are ready for all of the glories of long, balmy summer days. Think about pruning what you don’t need Just like with...

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Google it . . .

Google it . . .

Not so long ago there were a number of search engines competing for consumers’ attention. Today that’s not the case and one search engine holds a solid monopoly – so much so that its name is now the popular terminology for online searching. Want to know the time in...

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Forging a new reputation

Forging a new reputation

A renowned writer once famously wrote that there's no such thing as a second act in American lives - meaning that it's not possible to change, to reinvent, to forge a new path. F Scott Fitzgerald's epigram isn't a truism and wasn't intended to be. Reinvention is part...

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How to spot fake consumer reviews

How to spot fake consumer reviews

In life and business, indeed in everything we do, trust is a valued and desired commodity. Now that reviews are part and parcel of consumer choice online, it's worth knowing that not all reviews are the same and that some sites do not monitor or remove suspect and...

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Keeping the cowboys in the corral

Keeping the cowboys in the corral

Do you check recent reviews on businesses before you use them? A recent story in the Kiwi press highlights again just how valuable reviews are... These days it's critical to spend a bit of time choosing the right tradie or service provider online before you pick up...

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A brave new world

A brave new world

My dad didn’t listen to what other people thought about tradespeople they'd employed. Instead, word of mouth to him was listening to what his friends said about the things we wanted to make our lives easier and telling us they were all death traps. Microwave? Nah....

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Keeping the home fires burning

Keeping the home fires burning

It’s hard to beat a roaring fire in winter but ensuring that your fire delivers the performance it should and is safe as possible means you need to be vigilant in keeping your chimney clean and regularly inspected for any possible repairs. Though the idea of needing a...

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