Why I Don’t Do Product Reviews

When I first started blogging I thought reviews and giveaways just came with the territory. Like wheels on a car, if you wanted to get somewhere, you needed to do reviews.

But I didn’t want to do reviews. I just wanted to write and try to make people smile. I wanted my focus to remain on humor and I worried that reviews would muddy the waters.

When you forge relationships with companies and PR representatives, there’s an inherent bond that forms. Sometimes that bond is shallow and self-serving on both sides, but it’s still there.

I believe that companies and PR agencies dole out free products to bloggers in the hope of seeing shmoopy love posts in return. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just the way it is. They won’t demand it, but it’s hard to argue that this isn’t the intent.

Word of Mouth Quandary
It’s widely accepted that word-of-mouth marketing is one of the most effective methods of promotion. If companies can get you to talk favorably about their products or services to your circle of influence, they stand to gain a level of credibility that can’t be achieved through traditional advertising.

This is the concept that greases the wheels of review blogging. Rather than wait for word-of-mouth to naturally wind its way through the progression of neighbor sharing with neighbor, companies place their products in the hands of those with a large and responsive circle of influence in the hopes of hitching their wagon to that person’s credibility.

Do I think it’s wrong? Absolutely not.

Do I think bloggers who do reviews are “on the take”? Absolutely not.

But I do think word-of-mouth marketing has splintered. There is unsolicited word-of-mouth promotion whereby opinions are shared naturally and then there is paid word-of-mouth promotion whereby there is a pitch and a motive to share a discovery. Whether this “payment” is in the form of cash or goods, it’s clear that value is exchanged.

Understand that I don’t see anything wrong with this arrangement from an ethical standpoint if the reviews are honest and relationships are disclosed. Reviews take time, a lot of time, and a blog’s real estate is valuable. Add in the value of a blogger’s influential reach and I absolutely think that review bloggers should be compensated. When you consider the costs of customer acquisition, I actually think most review bloggers are grossly underpaid.

Marketing Strategies Gone Wild
Warner Bros has a program called the “Word of Mouth Marketing Team” that centers around a series of paid assignments given to team members who help spread the word about the company’s properties and endeavors. I don’t think it’s a bad thing when bloggers are paid to partake in these kinds of programs, but I don’t consider it word-of-mouth promotion. At least, not in its purest form.

PR agencies and marketers have long been seeking the Mecca of word-of-mouth promotion since the dawn of capitalism and I think many perceive blogs to be that sunny destination. Get an influential blogger to write something positive about your product, and boom, instant love. After all, if someone you respect recommends something to you, you are certainly more apt to consider it than if you had simply seen ads for the item.

Personally, I think the crowded landscape is mostly cloudy with a chance of backlash. Like a snowball evolving into an avalanche, the reach has expanded by monumental proportions, and I feel it’s on a collision course with ethics.

Kindness or Agenda?
Companies aren’t sending products out to bloggers for review because they’re feeling charitable. They wouldn’t be asking about statistics and metrics if there wasn’t an underlying agenda at play. Before most companies and agencies will send you products, they want to make sure that your voice can carry, and they are fully expecting you to reach out to your circle of influence.

It is this very concept that left me struggling.

Think about this for a moment. If you know what someone’s expectations are, and you want to stay in their good graces for future opportunities, wouldn’t you feel the least bit obligated to meet those expectations?

This is important to consider so I’ll say it again. If you know what someone’s expectations are, and you want to stay in their good graces for future opportunities, wouldn’t you feel the least bit obligated to meet those expectations?

I know I would, especially if my blog’s existence depended on a steady stream of products to review. This concern, coupled with my desire to maintain a comedic focus, is why I’ve chosen not to do reviews on products or services.

It’s not that I don’t trust myself to remain unbiased, it’s that I know I would remain unbiased. I trust myself enough to know that I wouldn’t be meeting the expectations of companies and PR agencies. If I write about a company, product, or service, it’s because I feel compelled to…not obligated to.

I’m not the type of reviewer companies are looking for and I know it’d only be a matter of time before companies and PR agencies would stop calling me anyhow. With hundreds of bloggers willing to write wonderful things, where’s the motivation for companies and agencies to keep coming back to those who don’t maintain a positive vibe?

Freebie Fever
Some, not all, but some review bloggers blog out of a desire for swag. Many even openly admit that they blog solely for the freebies. Others specifically pitch companies they like because they want to score specific products.

“Why buy it if I can get it for free,” one blogger remarked. Whether or not you find this practice abhorrent, you have to respect that level of honesty. Surprisingly, companies don’t even care about this admission. If the blogger has reach, the blogger has value.

I’ll fully admit that I’ve seen firsthand just how easy it is to get entranced by swag. When I first started blogging, I was offered a number of toys by a company interested in having me do a review. I eagerly accepted and my kids thought I had the coolest job on the planet. It’s when my 8-year old asked when he was getting more free toys that I took a step back.

I didn’t like the obligation that came with the acceptance. While many have told me that I’m not obligated to write anything outside of what I truly believe, I can’t help but feel that I’d be indirectly influenced by the relationship, the hope for future opportunities, and the expectations of those who entrusted me with their brand.

Deflecting Controversy
Let me repeat the fact that I have absolutely nothing against those who do reviews. Quite honestly, I don’t know how you find the time and patience to do them, but I do know that they just aren’t for me.

I’m not questioning the ethics or integrity of those who partake in reviews. I simply have some neurotic phobia about being compensated for my opinion. And it is because of this reservation that I’m not going to entertain offers for reviews.

I do appreciate the consideration but it’s just not for me. If I do write about a company, product, service, or brand, you can absolutely be assured that it was unsolicited and unpaid.

With that, I now return you to my regularly scheduled goofiness. Serious talk gives me a headache.