When starting out doing reviews for companies on your blog, it can be pretty overwhelming at first.  You receive all these ‘free’ items in the mail in exchange for your honest opinion of the item after trying it out.  It sounds pretty easy doesn’t it?  And so, people (mostly moms) flock to WordPress (as they should) or Blogger and create their own blog.  Once you start pumping out a few reviews, more and more can come your way.  Soon, your house may start to get a little crowded with all those items.

What’s a blogger to do?

Here comes the morality question of the day:

Is it ever ok to sell your review items?

After all, if you can’t make use of little Suzie’s diaper bag after using it to review for  month, why shouldn’t someone else enjoy it (and why not make a few dollars on the side).  What about that DVD you watched with your kids once and is now sitting on the shelf?  It’s still on the shelves at the local department store, surely someone would want it for half price from you.

In my case, if I can’t make use of an item after it’s been reviewed, I pass it on to a friend or family member who is all too happy to have my used diaper bag, or even the half-used bottle of shampoo or body wash I tried.  My friends love these small little gifts, even used, because it was free and they love trying out things too.

Innocent enough, right?

But what if a blogger decided the review itself was too much work, simply wrote a so-called “review post” ripping off information and PR Releases from the company’s site, and then turns around and sells the item “brand new” to build a nice little bank account?

Sadly, this happens.

But its shocking when you catch it….like I just did.

*cue Law and Order music*

Recently I was blog hopping and came across a review website with a few reviewing bloggers posting a variety of items. After reviewing for the past few months (not quite a year) it seems the girls have grown tired of it and would rather write a quick post using information from various websites, LIE ABOUT USING THE PRODUCT, and then sell the item on their handy Facebook Group Page-which all three writers are a member of at the time of this article.

Immediately I noted the ABC Family DVDs for sale.  Good deal on them – brand new and sealed!  But wait, didn’t they just “review” all these items? How do you review a DVD you haven’t watched?

Surely they couldn’t be lying with this disclosure statement all front and center on their blog.

Take a peek:

Blog Policy

Get out the popcorn, it gets better…  In September this blogger “reviewed” the O Yikes 24/7 Messenger bag.  Here’s a screenshot of the so-called-review where the writer states that her husband “uses the bag all the time” and loves it.
O Yikes
Interesting since they’re now selling the bag on Facebook,  brand new, for half the retail price.

O Yikes Facebook

Children’s toys are not safe from being sold off quickly either.

Here’s the December review of the very popular Plasma Car where the writer explains that, “The Plasma Car comes in a few pieces and it only takes a matter of minutes to put everything together.  The included instructions were very easy to follow; there is an illustrated diagram for each step of the process.”

Plasma Car

And then….are you rolling your eyes yet…the Facebook post where they’re selling the Plasma Car new in the box…

newinbox

One final example, another laptop bag, this one from Melissa Beth Designs.

The writer states, “have taken my bag out several times in the rain (welcome to life in Nova Scotia) and was expecting the felt to go a bit lumpy or pill…not so, the Pocket Full of ‘Puter kept its beautiful exterior felt and did not disappoint me.”

She also shares that, “Almost every time I am out my Pocket full of ‘Puter, someone comments on how cute it is and or asks where I purchased it.”

melissabeth

The same bag is being sold on their blogs Facebook page, you guessed it, brand new with tags still on, for $120. So…are you lying to your visitors of your blog or the facebook buyers? Me thinks the blog since the tags would be soggy from the…rain.

melissabeth

As a blogger, I find this disgusting.

Not only is this blog not actually reviewing these (and likely many other) items for the companies as promised (remember, they are offering ‘an honest review’ in exchange for the product) but they’re also doing a huge disservice to their readers who read these reviews and make purchasing decisions based on them.  Further, by selling the items, brand new and at a discount, they’re undercutting the hand that feeds them, selling the same item for less than the company that provided it!

While the writers at this blog were stupid enough to post their items on a public page, I wonder how many others are secretly doing the same.  How are we to trust review bloggers now?  Is this a case where one  apple ruins it for the rest of us?

I hope not.

I know many bloggers, review bloggers, who work very hard trying out items and testing them for days, weeks, before writing an honest review.  Some will include photos of the product being used too which should almost be standard for blog testers.

I would out them by name, but Trisha wont let me. You talk her into spilling who this is so you wont accidentally become a victim of this deceit. Oh, AND they are touting blog advice to newbies on their pages. I wonder if one of their upcoming blog posts will be “how to deceive your visitors and not get caught.”

The lesson here, I suppose, is that greed can get to bloggers and ruin what could have been a great blog with loyal readers.  I know I won’t be checking out the opinion of this blog for any of my future purchases, but hey if I’m looking for a deal on brand new merchandise, now I know where to go…

~Anonymous Guest Writer

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*editors note.

I did not write this article, although its published under my name. This isn’t a frequent writer of ours so they don’t have an author tag.

Please note that this article came in with the bloggers info and links attached.  I chose to take them out, and edit the photos -although I felt like leaving them.

Consider that my good deed for the year and don’t ask for more.

I verified these screenshots and all of the bloggers on the blog were also a part of the facebook page, so they were all well aware of what was going on…sad…sad.

BTW, if the FTC reads this and wants the info…..

Hey, I’m not *that* reformed.

~Trisha