Dear SimpleHuman,
Thank you for the stuff you sent me. I'm sorry I haven't written about it even though it's been a year. It's not personal. It's just that I usually write up the reviews about the stuff I either really love or really hate. It just makes for a much more "Mommy Lite-ish" story.
Your stuff is good. Don't get me wrong. I like it. Not all of it. Some of it.
However, last night a blogger (let's call her Blogger chick) set me straight for getting a free dishrack and not writing about it. She yelled across the table at me "You took free stuff and you didn't write about it??!!! Did you tell them you weren't going to write about the stuff?!
I tried to casually explain that I liked the stuff they sent. That I e-mailed them to say I had planned to talk about it, but that I wanted to wait for the right story to work it into. I tried to explain that Mommy Lite is a humor site - not a review site - and I try to have a consistent thread throughout my content. I tried to explain that I'll do a review if I love or hate the stuff and I can work it into a story that's funny, or weird, or disconcerting so that it's consistent with my site content.
And while I was casually explaining my position to this woman I hardly knew she delivered a line that turned this review into a story. "CAN YOU JUST FOCUS ON WHAT I'M SAYING TO YOU!!!!! CAN YOU FOCUS???!!!! ARE YOU FOCUSING??!!! DID YOU TELL THEM OR NOT!?"
I was beside myself. And a little afraid. "Er...no." I don't think I actually did anything wrong. After all, Mommy Lite is my site. I am in charge of my content and have a right to say what works and what doesn't. I also don't think mediocre reviews of anything do anyone any good. But, I said "no" to end the conversation. Fast.
"WELL THAT'S JUST WRONG!" She shouted across the table and group of people who all looked like they had just stumbled across a naked married couple fighting. Awkward...
Honestly, I'm not greedy, and I was so grateful to be invited to the event. Again...I like your stuff. I just had no idea that a follow-up review (whether or not the blogger liked it) was such a touchpoint.
So anyway, SimpleHuman, I've posted a review of the fabulous stuff (and the not-so-fabulous stuff thanks to this blogger chick) under my REVIEW section.
Yo, self-righteous Blogger Chick, focused enough for ya?
I really don't want to do reviews on my site because it so goes against what my blog is about. Not that I've been deluged with requests. So far, I've only had to turn down three companies! LOL Maybe if a company offered me a $500 necklace to review, I'd change my policy!
ReplyDeleteI like that you try to fit the review into your narrative. That's awesome!
Nicely done, my friend. Nicely done. (And I know that self-righteous blogger chick. She's a real beeyatch.)
ReplyDeleteHow much can you really say about a dish rack. "It comes in three lovely shades of lime green and doesn't rust."
ReplyDeleteI don't do reviews for material or items I don't like. I don't mention them at all, because it would be better for the persons associated with those products (many of whom are independent musicians and small business owners) if I didn't give the items bad reviews. I can't help that people send me things that I don't necessarily like, and I sure can't afford to send it all back. Just because I don't like the products, doesn't mean I don't like the people who made them, so I choose to keep it positive and just talk about the stuff I REALLY like. That other stuff's good too, and somebody out there is really gonna LOVE it- just not me.
ReplyDeleteI don't have that problem, but can sympathize. I received stacks of books to review when I worked at the paper. Some, I liked, some, well...
ReplyDeleteIt's too bad she had to get so hyper about it. Often what the marketing dept says and what the agreement actually is are two different things.
Sharon
great article, great writing, great point of view! you go girl!
ReplyDelete