Why not say it explicitly? "Product recommendation questions aren't allowed here."

Question

Product recommendation questions are appearing everyday. They are downvoted but they're still there, making the list a bit messy.

I know, you know... But what about folks who come to this site via a Google search? They don't understand how SE works and think this site could help them to decide.

The current question form contains a few hints:

What's your photography question? Be specific.
Is your question about photography?
We prefer questions that can be answered, not just discussed.
Provide details. Share your research.
If your question is about this website, ask it on meta instead.

Shouldn't it also contain a higly visible warning: "Please don't ask here what product/brand to choose. Use XXX, YYY or ZZZ sites instead?"

Answer 1

You are correct in that these questions appear daily.

However, be aware that they tend to get flagged and later removed.

That being said, you can ask a good product/brand question. For example:

• What is good protection for outside timelapse? (During rain/thunderstorm)
• Is there any significant difference between Nikon and Canon?
• How do Cokin and Lee filter systems compare to each other?
• Of course a good search shows good ones

Also, take a look at a question that I raised not too long ago: Do we scare off new users? and mattdm as recommended starting a photo-shopping SE.

We aren't anti-brand, but we are anti-bad-research. Normally, product recommendations come in that are so vague and we don't know what a person really wants. In order to prevent giving a bad recommendation or start a flame war, we just close them.

Oh, and one more link: Q&A is Hard, Let's Go Shopping! This is normally posted with bad product recommendation questions. I think that will clear most things up.