As most of my friends on social media know, I frequently do reviews on new products supplied to me by the manufacturers or through agencies such as Topbox, Shopper Army or Chickadvisor. I always give my honest opinion. While I have been introduced to many products that I have happily continued to purchase there have been others that I didn't like for one reason or another and said so in my reviews.
I also so surveys, not just for the mad money it brings in (I have collected $90 this month) but also because I am rather opinionated (cough, cough) and like having an outlet for that. I have noticed one question has been popping up frequently in recent months about reviews. They ask if I trust the reviews posted on Amazon or Walmart, etc. Well, of course I do because I am one of the reviewers. I always figured if I was provided with a product and told that a negative review would not affect my chance at getting others to test then anyone who bothers to review something they didn't get for free would also be truthful. So yes I trust the reviews but always read several because personal tastes and options vary.
The items I receive for free are often posted on my Instagram page. This week I got a message on Instagram offering me more free stuff if I gave 5 Star reviews on Amazon.
What? They want me to jeopardize my integrity? No way! I looked into this further and found that small companies and knock-off artists wanted good ratings to help boost their sales. I want no part of that. I will continue to give my honest opinion in my reviews but now I will be suspicious of any actual 5 Star ratings. Personally, I seldom go higher than 4 Stars as I believe there is almost always room for improvement. Now I will be very wary of 5 Star reviews!
