I got a comment the other day about being paid to promote Paula’s Choice on this post where I had purchased & used with absolutely zero results, a very expensive acne gel from Ayla Beauty that had been recommended in some magazine by some beauty editor.
I wrote a pretty frank review about it because I thought others should know my real experiences with this product.
I just want to be clear about something to all my friends, readers & fellow bloggers:
I don’t get paid to promote Paula’s Choice but I do get a $10 referral credit on my account with them when you use my referral code (you get $10 too)…. which is what every Paula’s Choice customer gets if they refer a friend.
There’s a big difference between being “paid to promote” (a fee for writing about & recommending sponsored items) and a referral fee for recommending something you already spent a lot of money on, continually buy and can actually, honestly recommend (which is this case).
NO ONE from Paula’s Choice is throwing money at me to promote their stuff.
This is all happening because I am trying their products & am impressed by them; and I continually buy, recommend & love Paula’s Choice and I am not going to stop doing that.
In the meantime, as I am recommending all of their stuff which I would ANYWAY without a referral code, what is the harm in my getting a referral credit of $10 if you get $10 too?
I’m spending all of my time (for free) and money (not free) talking about their products, taking pictures, answering questions & waxing poetic here.
So if it benefits you as a reader and you kindly deign to use my code, what’s the big deal?
You can read about my entire acne journey & my acne regimen here with a recent update (which I follow very faithfully even to this day).
Here’s a sneak peek:
If I can get more people’s skins cleared up for less money than what these other companies (Ayla included) are doing, then I’m going to do so.
Just because I get a referral credit if you find out about their products on my blog, and you get a $10 credit and I get a $10 credit, doesn’t mean that I’m being paid to promote them.
Regardless of whether or not you buy their products, use my referral code or not, I will STILL continue to buy from Paula’s Choice and I will be frank in my reviews of their products.
Case in point:
I’m currently testing out PC’s Vitamin C 25% Dark Spot Eraser that I paid a lot of $$$$ for, and I am starting to feel like it is not working at all.
Kind of disappointed.
….but their sunscreen is pretty good with a minor flaw I will review after I am done BOTH products so that you don’t waste money (if you are interested).
I also bought some The Face Shop masks for $2 each and in hindsight, I was in a spendy mood because they’re not worth the $$$. I’ll review those too.
I will be reviewing and writing HONESTLY about Paula’s Choice products once I am done being the guinea pig for them.
If you have tried any product I have said was not amazing, and it worked for you, by all means, keep using it!
But if you are wondering if you should spend $60 USD on a little tube of cream that may or may not work, you might be willing to read a review on whether or not it is really all that and a bag of chips.
Bottom line:
If the product / thing / service / whatever is terrible, I will tell you that it’s terrible because I believe that you have a right to know and if you can’t trust your online, anonymous, spendaholic blogger, then who can you trust?! 🙂
(Don’t answer. Was a joke.)
However if it’s great, I’m going to tell you that it’s great and recommend it, with or without a referral for doing so.
If/when I ever get sponsored anything (have not yet, to date), I will be sure to let you know it is sponsored.
That’s all I had to say.
