Methodology version 1.1
Trust is a
data structure.
Every useful conclusion starts with a source, survives review and keeps its sample size visible.
Source hierarchy
Fact, observation and opinion never share a label.
Manufacturer evidence
Official product pages, specifications, brochures, manuals and first-party media establish identity and published configuration facts. They do not establish reliability or owner satisfaction.
Market evidence
Dealer inventory, quote-backed prices, verified transactions, auction results and rental rates establish observed market conditions. Each observation keeps date, geography and configuration context.
Field evidence
Owner forums, long-form operating videos, technician discussions, fleet reports and direct submissions may establish experience. Repeated hearsay and generic opinions do not count as owners.
Editorial analysis
Equipment Insider conclusions combine eligible evidence under the rules below. Editorial analysis is always labeled and can change when the evidence changes.
Two separate public signals
A comment is not a star review.
Owner Score and Market Sentiment answer different questions and never masquerade as each other. A reviewed observation publishes immediately; confidence grows with the sample.
Explicit ratings submitted by owners, operators, renters, mechanics, and fleet managers. We show review count, verified count, confidence, dimensions, and buy-again percentage.
Qualified public owner/operator evidence analyzed by theme and polarity. We show signal count, source diversity, freshness, and confidence—not stars.
A single reviewed observation publishes with a single-source warning.
The number is useful, but individual reports can move it sharply.
Direct Owner Score reaches moderate confidence as independent ratings accumulate.
Market confidence also considers community and source-type diversity.
Large, diverse samples remain the target—not a gate that hides early evidence.
Owner Score and rankings
Six dimensions. Bayesian-adjusted rankings.
A tiny perfect sample cannot outrank a mature excellent sample. No ranking publishes with fewer than five eligible comparable products. Peer groups use equipment type, objective size/capacity band, generation, power or hydraulic class, status, and relevant use case.
Every score and ranking stores the methodology version, inputs, evidence counts, confidence, and historical snapshot used at publication.
Pricing intelligence
The number manufacturers hide needs context.
Price types stay separate
MSRP, dealer asking price, quote-backed price, transaction price, used asking price, auction result, rental rate and editorial estimate are distinct evidence types.
Configuration comes first
Cab, high flow, tracks, buckets, attachments, freight, setup, rebates and warranties can materially change the number. Unknown inclusions lower confidence.
One price still counts
A single reviewed listing publishes as one dated observation. It is useful evidence, but not mislabeled as a national market average.
Ranges need support
A range publishes only when comparable observations support it. Every price keeps its source type, date, condition and known inclusions.
Media policy
Discovery is not permission.
Published product images must be first-party manufacturer media, licensed press assets, permitted embeds or owner-submitted media with tracked permission. The current Bobcat catalog uses Bobcat-hosted product media for editorial identification with attribution. Gallery assets remain unpublished until reviewed.
AI and editorial disclosure
Automation collects. Review publishes.
Software and AI may discover pages, normalize specifications, identify possible duplicate owners, extract candidate price context and surface issue themes. Machine-generated work enters a review state. It cannot publish a score, recurring issue or market-price conclusion by itself.
Corrections
The record is allowed to improve.
Source pages are content-hashed and observed over time. Material changes create a change event instead of silently rewriting history. To report a factual error, email editor@equipmentinsiderhq.com with the product URL, disputed field and supporting source. Requests are reviewed, not automatically accepted or published.