Makeup Moodle: Trust issues with Bloggers and Reviews
Hello Everyone,
Today’s post is going to be very different from what I regularly post and I am sure not all of you would agree with me which is Okk.. It is not a sponsored post and is not about attacking someone or calling names. It is just about the things that are going on in my mind and share with you my views on it. I am venting out my opinion here but would love to have a sort of discussion with you people about the same.
Where to start from.. There are some perks of being a blogger like you get free products/samples from the brands to promote on your blog and also get invites to the events where they distribute goodies as a token of thanks and appreciation. Some brands also pay for reviewing their products on the blog which is perfectly fine with me. I am not against sponsored post or reviews and I myself have been associated with many brands in the past but do the bloggers actually mention it to their readers that they have been paid for that particular review or the product was sent by brand.
Many of them do but there are those who don’t and would love to get away with it without sharing the truth with their readers. I feel that’s ethically wrong and no matter what, blogger should mention it in the blog post itself about certain product been sent by brand or bought with her own money..
Now, the most important part of the story… Do they tell you the truth?? Do bloggers actually liked the product so much that they are giving it a high rating or it is just because they don’t want to spoil their relationship with the brands/PR. I am not naming any of the bloggers here ( because that will be too controversial and is actually not the purposeย of this post) but I have myself experienced it.
There are so many products that I bought on blogger’s recommendation and reviews but they just failed to deliver on me.. and I am not talking about skin care here because that’s obvious that if one thing is working for some it wont work for other. I am talking only about makeup be it highlighters, eye shadows, liners, lipsticks ( chubby sticks), foundations and much more.
I hate it when I spend my hard earned money on some product based on review of a so call “Big Blogger” and it just refused to work on me. It is still fine that it is not working on me.. but why is it only me and nobody else in the whole blogging community that had a similar experience… literally no one!! Sayyy whatttt ๐
It is so hard to find a negative review on products especially if they are sent by brands.. I have been a victim of all those positive reviews so many times that I felt this issue needs to be addressed. Whether you are big blogger with huge following or just a beginner, it is your responsibility to not misguide others for your personal benefit.
The whole reason of us “Beauty bloggers” starting blogging was to share our experience with the products and not to work for some brands/ PR companies. We should be honest about what we are saying about the product whether or not it is sent by PR or are being paid for it.. always speak the truth because the readers trust ourย reviews and spend their hard earned money on the products weย recommend..!!
Think again are you doing it the right way! Don’t be afraid of sharing your opinion even if it is not what others have to say. If you don’t like any product.. say itt!! It is okay if one product is not working for you the way it is on other but you shouldn’t be posting all the positive things about it just because nobody else is saying so or you fear that your relationship will be ruined with the brand and they will not send any more free products to you!
PS: If you want I can share the list of products that just didnt worked for me while the whole blogging community was going head over heels and recommending them.
Do share your thoughts in comments below and let me know what you guys think about this issue! ๐
I do not claim the ownership of the images used in this post!
UPDATE: So, As most of you wanted me to list out the products that I disliked completely while reading good reviews on most of the blogs.. Not that I bought all of them but I did get to experience them.
- The Body Shop BB Cream:
- Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm- Audacious : Gives super patchy and flaky application
- Revlon Shadow Link Eye Shadows: They are hard as rock with poor pigmentation
- L’Oreal True Match Foundation : Doesn’t work for my dry skin at all gets all patchy and refuses to blend
- Lakme Gloss Addict Lipsticks: Applies patchy on lips
- MAC Potent Lip Polish: They were sticky like lip glosses.
- L’Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow Cosmic Black: It falls out like crazy and fades away quick on blending
- Maybelline Colossal Kohl (6hr) – It didn’t showed up on my waterline at all.
- MAC Alluring Aquatic Eye Shadow – Lorelei: Doesnt show up on my lids ๐
There must be more such products but right now I can remember only these.. If you have experienced the same do share the products that were raved about but didn’t work for you!
Couldn’t agree more with you Poonam. It’s necessary that the reviews are honest and unbiased be it products that you buy or those that are sent by brands. Voicing our honest opinion whether you love, like or dislike a product is based on the personal experience. If a product doesn’t work for us it’s not a target on a brand, it’s constructive criticism.
I love Vishakha’s reviews (Reviewwali), simply because they are genuine and honest.
You read my mind ๐ No I have been a victim too, so many hyped products dint work at all. That is one of the reasons why I started blogging. I honestly feel some start blogs only for fame, every single damn thing works for them -_-. Beauty blogs are there to share the experience and opinion, not to promote brands ๐
Totally agree with you Poo on the part that bloggers always give a positive review to a product sent by the brand (I agree that there are even bloggers that don’t mention in the post that product is a PR sample but there are very few and I can make out who all they are) be it a dud but they have to give it a rating of 4 and above. Trust me whenever I see a review on a certain blog and it is mentioned in the post that it is a PR sample and the rating is 4.5 or higher, I just clearly make out that it’s a fake review just to impress that brand and I seriously don’t trust that review unless I see a genuine review from those bloggers who didn’t get that product as a PR sample. I know you’d be getting a lot of comments here from the bloggers who actually does this preventing themselves by giving their views on this topic. I once got a very expensive product from the brand “Epique” and it seriously didn’t work for me, not even a bit and gave me pimples so I gave it a very bad review and a rating of 1 or so and I sent the mail to the PR saying sorry that your product didn’t work for me so i could not give it a good review(to which of course she did not reply) but that’s what is the logic of blogging, it’s not about misguiding your readers with a review just coz you got the product as a PR sample and you want more free products from that brand! I’d like to add one more thing, I’ve also seen bloggers who get a PR sample today and they review it tomorrow or just after two days (I’m like mindblowing, badi achi test power hai) they are kinda like desperate to review those products as soon as they get it be it that they haven’t even realized what the product actually does. I’m saying this coz I have so many PR samples lying in my stash that I haven’t reviewed and I got them somewhere in Jan or Feb and I didn’t use or didn’t want to use that certain product at the moment so I waited for it”s turn to come like a certain brand’s D-pigmentation cream, my face was pretty clear when I received it and of course, I couldn’t review it just testing it on my full face where I don’thv any marks, pigmentation and all, that would be weird na if I’d review it without even knowing its purpose! Brand do ping me whether or not I hv reviewed their prods but I revert them back saying, I need atleast a month time to review a skin care product to actually see its results.
Sorry for this big comment but I had to pour my thoughts out! And yeah, I’d love to know the products that didn’t work for you while everyone else was praising it, lollz ๐
Liking this post a lot…You spoke my heart out….I have experienced it myself… When I posted that as a status, I got replies like Everyone have different skin..Different products react differently on different skin types, hair types blah blah blah….I always give honest feed backs on the products that I review on my blog…be it raved by all of the bloggers around…If something shows bad reactions on my skin/ didn’t work as claimed etc..I make it a point to include it always…and I always mention if its a PR pdt or not.. I feel its extremely important to declare a pdt as PR sample….As a result of this, I always get hate comments etc on my posts…An Indian makeup brand and a famous Indian luxury skincare brand stopped working with me when I passed my reviews about the pdt not working or having caused bad reaction etc…I was once told by a fellow blogger(not naming the person.)..A particular makeup pdt that was a PR sample was not declared as a PR sample on her blog..During a blog sale by her..I found that its a PR sample…When asked, She said…its a way of making money for her…by not marking them as samples and later selling them off in blog sales…I can’t agree more to this post…Beauty/skincare blogs are to share honest feed backs and not to promote brands in any way…Also, I have seen some people reviewing a skincare products in a week’s time…I cannot understand Why they are in a hurry to finish the product review….
You are right Poonam , I totally agree with you.
We read beauty blogs to get the real information about a product , not the made up ones , other wise the whole purpose of Beauty blogging will fail , Bloggers should tell the truth about products in their blog.
Totally agree Poonam..I am not someone to use make-up on daily basis, so I like to invest my money wisely!! But thanks to some bloggers for not guiding the audience ethically, I have wasted a lot of money. Agree some products will and others won’t for everyone, but it can’t happen with so many products.. Sometimes, I keep wondering, why God why u made me so different from others that things that are super awesome on others fail miserably on me!!
An kudos to you girl to say that out loudly!!
Not everyone has the courage to do that!!
Hey Amisha, true that dear!! Whether a makeup addict or not .. everyone wants their money to be spent on good products and not trash. And when that happens after reading reviews, its disgusting!!
Well, you are not so different dear nor anybody else.. its just about the reviewers who decided to stay loyal to brands than readers.. ๐
Thanks for your kind words dear.. <3
Hello Poonam! Superb post!! I’d like honest reviews because I spend so much time on reviews before making up my mind on buying a product..and when, after going to all that trouble, the product still backfires its an unexplainable disappointment I feel.
Please, please, pleeeeeeeeeeeease do add the list of products that didn’t work for you.. You’d be doing us a great favour and I could also see if I feel the same on those.
Love you and your posts! Keep going gal!!!
Thanks Tresa.. yeah i have experience the same so can understand your situation!!
Sure dear.. updating the post with the list ๐
I completely agree with you Poonam. It’s especially difficult for people like me who are new to makeup and skin care that we rely many times on blogger’s reviews. And there are so many blogs who are cheating their readers for their own benefits! It’s shame on them. I realized this only when I became ardent reader of many beauty blogs and read the different reviews and opinions. I also noticed how the product sent by brands are always GREAT and rated high. Despite that there are still good blogs which I believe do honest reviews and I am grateful to them. And yes it will be great if you can share the list of products that didn’t worked for you. ๐
Hey Madhur.. I can totally feel your pain here.. being a newbie to makeup you search for reviews before buying stuff and when even after all that effort the product doesnt work as expected .. it hurts!!
Sure.. will update the post with the product list!!
Poonam i can so relate to this post, even i have wasted so much money on products which get high ratings on other blogs and have completely failed on me.
It really makes me furious and now i hardly trust any reviews and just buy products by testing them at makeup counters ๐
oh btw, i just notice our pic on your facebook page (in the side column) , reminded me of that fun day ๐ Hope to meet you soon.
Hey Deeptima, we both are sailing in the same boat! As a blogger I feel really bad that I cant trust other bloggers just because they are not telling the truth especially in case of PR products.
Heheheh.. Yeah it was awesome meeting you in person.. would love to see you soon again! <3
I can’t talk about others but for me anything that is not liked specially the goodies sent by companies are not reviewed. Like the Za products…. I reviewed only those which I liked and told the pr that I’m not going to try more . I don’t mind writing about the stuff I tried and liked … recently I also took to social media about a website which wanted to write good stuff but had terrible attitude towards bloggers. There’s no harm in doing sponsered post. But it’s also wise to give honest opinions and say what’s right.
Poonam thanks for sharing your views. :*
I also want to point out so many new beauty blogs coming up were you can see only paid reviews and no other info.
Beauty blogging is not about money or getting free stuff… those who are here only for these two reasons will be totally disappointed ๐ only those with true passion for beauty will survive in the bblogger’s world ๐
Hey Shreya, Its really good and appreciable that you are doing full justice to blogging!! Even I am surprised that none of the ZA product is less than Amazing.. It’s okk that brand came up with good stuff but does it really work so well on each and everyone of them.. I wonder!!
Yup Sponsored posts are ok to do but you must declare and never ever cheat with your readers for the sake of goodies!!
Right.. in the long run only those who feel really passionate about blogging will stay and rest will fade away..
Totally agree with you Poo..I know quite a few bloggers do not even mention that the product is a PR sample. I always always do. Also, I have never given a product 5/5 rating unless I am completely blown away by it! Skincare products do work differently on different skin, and same goes for hair too. Some shampoo brands just do not work for a few people, where as most of the shampoos do work for me, so there is always some difference.
Also I feel you should list the products which have and have not worked for you, so that someone with your skin type will know what to buy.
Totally agree with you Pooja. BTW congrats on the baby. i didnt evn kno u wr preggers.
Hey Althea.. Its Poonam ๐ ..!!!
Thanks dear ๐
Totally agree with you Poonam! An honest review is waht matters at the end of the day. True that skincare works differently on different people, but makeup is something that remains constant most of the time.
I have had some dud buys too. But these days I make sure to always test out a product at the counter before putting my money into it.
I haven’t tried Revlon Audacious yet, but I have Sultry and love it a lot. Maybe there is a problem with the piece you got or just the shade in general. I never liked the Revlon Link shadows…they look bad even in the pan somehow ๐
My sister uses the Loreal True Match foundation and really likes it. I have tried it yet so cannot comment on that one.
Hi Poonam, totally agree with your views, I have also got carried away with reviews and got few products that did not work for me, but I became alert and always think a lot before investing a lot in one product based on only reviews. Thanks for opening up your mind and sharing it with us, it is also one thing always to remember especially for us new bloggers too. Now when I am reviewing I try to point out even the smallest dislike I have about the product as it might be a big concern for some other person.
Hii Poo it’s been a longtime I log into to your site everyday to check reviews jst tht I don’t comment BTW Congrats on your baby..as Althea said even I wasn’t aware you were preg…this is grt news…n this particular article I had to comment…bcause mostly atleast women like me depend mainly on Bloggers for their reviews on products if they are gonna giv a fake review not only are we loosing our money purchasing the product ..we also loose the confidence we hav on the particular blog .,,whts the difference then between the commercial AD we see on TV n the fake reviews the blogger writes ??? Makes no sense n we bcum fools at the end following them .,.grt article Poo it’s nice to speak out rather than fool pple who follow you…agree wrh me?
Hey Melissa, good to see your comment after so long.
Thanks for your warm wishes and that ecard.. it was super cutte!! <3 <3
I totally understand your concerns dear.. even I had been the vitcim years back when I used to trust advertisements. 90% of them were just to lure people and have nothing substantial.. this is one of the reason I started blogging to help myself and others and bring out the truth of the product and help someone save their money!!
I totally agree with you and bloggers should also understand that they are blogging for the readers and not the brands ๐
faced the absolute same problems a million times.. later stopped referring to websites of Big Bloggers would rather search unbiased blogger posts online ๐ great review Poonam xx
thats so true dear….I have come across so many products that were a suggestion by great bloggers but the products never suited me….May be they were not right for my skin type, or may be they were not good enough……
I feel your frustration Poo…Luckily I haven’t fallen for the hype and until recently I was in college so I didn’t even have the budget to spend on high end products.
I’m pretty frustrated with the reviews of L’Oreal Moist Matte lipsticks (they BREAK) and Rouge Caresse lipsticks (patchy application, not moisturizing at all) from bloggers who got PR samples of it. BBloggers have given these lipsticks 5 stars simply because they didn’t have to spend their own money & see it go to waste when the lipstick broke or when it didn’t work out for them.
I feel like some bbloggers are partial to high end products.
For EX: some of them always say MAC is MAC (its the BEST brand in their minds)and I don’t take their recommendations seriously and you should not too. Because such people will always buy anything as long as it has a MAC label on it & to make-up (ha, pun!) for the amount of money they spent on that product they will always say its worth it even though it may be crappy. Just image if such a person got a press sample from MAC, obviously they won’t be unbiased about it! Just a thought
Have a nice day dear!
Hey Poo,
I second you completely on the fact that few reviews are just so unbelievable..Some products just dont work but according to the reviews they are mind blowing ..I myself have faced it many times..I buy something on someone’s recomendation and end up getting nothing.I can not really comment on skin care and hair care products because everybody’s hair and skin reacts differently but makeup products..you can not ignore if its a fail.. I havent received many PR samples till now (the number is almost negligile) but whatever I am lucky to have enjoyed whatever I got til date. And yes Its really important to emntion if something has been sent by brand or not.. I wish bloggers do justice to their audiences and I wish I never get too tempted to write false reviews LOL ๐
Hows your baby doing ?
Love Purva
And yes…Let me also form a list of dud products ๐