As of now, I would not receive free products in exchange for reviews because I value my objectivity. I think one of the greatest things I offer, aside from my amazing personality, is my unbiased opinion. I spend my own money on products that I believe in. I want you to feel confident that none of my reviews or recommendations are swayed by any monetary compensation or felt obligation to cosmetic companies. I understand that many beauty gurus do accept free products, and I don't have a problem with that, but it does make me question their bias. It's also amazing that beauty and fashion mags publish lists about favorite products, while the pages are covered with paid advertisements form all the major beauty brands. Um, does anyone see the conflict of interest here?
A long time ago, longer than I care to admit, there was a well-known horse trainer that came out with his own monthly horse magazine. It would mainly feature training and educational articles, but they would also do product reviews. The catch was that they had ZERO paid advertisements. You couldn't question the integrity of their reviews because they had no advertisers to answer to. That has always stuck with me and I decided a long time ago that I valued being honest and unbiased more than profits. I'm not anywhere near reaching a level of influence where I have the option to receive free products or compensation, but I would not choose to accept if I had the opportunity. I don't feel right recommending people to go and spend their money on a product that I myself didn't actually purchase.
That's not a problem I've had to deal with so far. Maybe I'll have to cross that bridge in the future, but as of now, I don't get free stuff and I don't get paid by any cosmetics companies or stores. I'm not anyone's shill and I never will be. I've got enough opinions without being handed some from a PR department. Peace out!
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