Review of Climb On Skin Care Products
I’m always looking for new skin care products that are all natural and won’t break my skin out worse than it already is. Climb On Skin Care is a product that works on very dry skin or hard to moisturize areas such as the feet, sides of your ankles, ball of the bottom of your foot, elbows and knees.
According to Climb On, their products can be used for more than just dry skin, they claim it’s also good for burns, scrapes, rashes, cracked cuticles, diaper rash, poison ivy and other abrasions. I recently used the Climb bar for hives on my son who broke out right after Thanksgiving dinner and it helped a lot with the itching and seemed to set the healing process more quickly.
Unfortunately, the company did not send enough product for me to test thoroughly, so I am unable to give a detailed review. The amount of Climb On! Creme was barely enough to use on one ball of my foot so I cannot say if it worked or not since I was only able to use it one time and not even on both feet. The Climb On! bar was a small disc size but was enough to test a few times and it appeared to work well and smelled really good. It is non greasy and is made from Bees Wax but is considered a lotion bar; however, It does not feel like lotion but does remind me of the cocoa butter stick products you can find at most beauty stores.
You can find both products on Climb On’s website Wrryfree Skin Care , prices do vary depending on what you are purchasing.
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.
80 Comments
patricia
It is hard to say whether I would purchase something like this as you did not receive an adequate amount of product to test. I always love to read reviews before purchasing to see what people think. I always have dry spots on my elbows and feet and would have loved to know if this product worked. Good review for what you were able to post about it.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Hi Patricia,
For your information if you do decide to order we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee – don’t like it? Return the unused portion in 30 days for a FULL refund.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Hi Emily,
Thanks for the review! Sorry you felt you didn’t receive enough to give it a full try. Feel free to use the contact form our website and perhaps we can arrange some more fun!
I would also like to remind folks we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee – don’t like it? Return the unused portion in 30 days for a FULL refund.
admin
Hi Will,
Thank you for commenting on my review of your product. I would like to point out a few things and I do hope that you will consider what I am about to write to you.
In reviewing your product the problem was I was given such a small amount of each product that I could not go into more detail because I ran out of product. Both products were tiny samples. As a blogger I never accept samples of products, I need a full sized product to conduct a review. Since I was given the product through Tomoson I did not have a way to contact your company in a timely manner. The bar was big enough to use a couple times but the cream was a onetime deal and actually was not even big enough to use, it was no bigger than a small marble.
In addition to that, I feel as though you do not fully understand the influence of a blogger and what we can do for you. I, as a blogger, do not review products for “fun”, reviewing products is part of a blogger’s job. A blogger is the person who helps a company like yours get noticed; we have an unbelievable amount of influence in social media. Did you know that statistics show that 90% of consumers trust a bloggers social recommendations and 67 percent are influenced to purchase based on social media interaction. Customers want real reviews from real people and traditional advertisements just do not work anymore. Success is in social media and bloggers are the people who can deliver that.
If you have any questions or would like to know what my marketing rates are or if you are interested in ad space please do not hesitate to email me at Emily@emilysfrugaltips.com
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Because this become such a public matter here is the reply I sent privately after reading Emily’s post.
http://cl.ly/image/311y3v2c3Z24
There was so much miscommunication in all of this here’s some quick points to help clear things up,
-Craighton is not an employee of Climb On! Products or WRRYFree Skin Care. He is merely one of our customers.
-I work with Craighton and Ryan co-owning LogicLounge
-I also work at Climb On! Products
-Climb On! Products hand pours all of these products in a production faculty in Wimberley, Texas
-I am the sole employee and only employee of WRRYFree Skin Care – occasionally for help at events we employ a few individuals none of which are Craighton.
-I used Tomoson as a platform to find the best bloggers because I don’t judge on numbers and like I offered Emily I WANTED to give out full size reviews to some folks but I also wanted to give as many folks as possible a chance to use the new platform of Tomoson.
-While the sample size is small at 1/8 of an oz it is meant to be multiple applications. Our full sizes are 2.3 and 4.5 and can easily last more than a month of daily use.
-Samples still cost a lot of money – I personally spent several hours packing and shipping every sample to over 75 bloggers at the cost of over $200 and an entire days work.
Once again,
I am happy to address any concerns you may have regarding this misunderstanding.
Will@WRRYFreeSkinCare.com
412 – 943 – 7655
Craighton Miller
This is hardly a review. Your only sort-of review was saying that you applied it to your son.
This seems more like a rant and general information than a quality review. Your complaints mean nothing to someone looking for a review.
You were obviously sent a “sample” sized pack which isn’t suppose to cover your entire body. It is suppose to let you trial a small area to see if it works. Which it seemed to do when you said it helped your son.
So please insert another coin and try again.
admin
Readers,
I would like you all to know that Mr Miller is a representative of WrryFree Skin care which is the company that makes the Climb! On skin care products. Edited to say: It is unclear if Mr Miller is in fact a representative of WrryFree Skin Care. However, he is co-owner of LogicLounge, the company that Will owns. Therefore, regardless of who he represents he is still very much involved in this situation. He did not just happen upon this review. I believe he was told of it by William and maybe even encouraged to post what he did.
I want to ensure to my readers that I did in fact review this product and I did give honest feedback as I do with every review I write. I never attempted to apply the product to my “entire body” like Mr Miller claims. It is stated in my review that I did attempt to use the Climb! On Intensive Skin Care Cream on the balls of my feet but the sample I was sent was too tiny to do both feet. I do not consider the balls of my feet to be my entire body and they are no larger than my hands. I also used the bar on my son since I wanted to test the product on an additional person and I would think the company would be glad that I took the time to test on more than one person. Like I said in my review, the product appeared to work but I was not able to test more than one time so I could not say for certain.
Additionally,
I received no information for the skin care products I was to review. There were no ingredients list on the samples nor was there a marketing sheet in my package to give me the information I needed for my review. I was extremely limited as to what I could write about. Even with what I had to work with the company was pleased with my review so much so that they gave me a 5 star rating on the review.
The comment by Mr Miller is extremely derogatory, unnecessary and unprofessional of the company it is supposed to represent. I will definitely make sure to send all communication I have had with this company and it’s representatives to the entity that set me up with this review and I caution other bloggers to avoid working with the company until they get better representation and learn to treat their bloggers with respect and dignity.
Sincerely,
Emily of Emily’s Frugal Tips
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Mr. Miller is not a representative of WRRYFree Skin Care nor he is a representative of Climb On! Products, Inc.
His views do not reflect those of WRRYFree Skin Care nor Climb On! Products, Inc – I would be happy to discuss this matter with any who wishes. My Office Number is 412 – 943 – 7655 and my email is Will@WRRYFreeSkinCare.com
Ryan Pierson
Since when does Craighton work for or represent WRRY Free Skin Care? I know the owner personally and Craighton is a friend, not a representative. He’s just passionate, and by no means would his actions here reflect the intentions of the owner, which I would vouch for being an absolutely honest and dedicated individual.
MrsReese
Hmm…. another writer from logic lounge…. interesting.
WynterR
This kind of reminds me of the writer who lost business because of her husband’s ranting… Still makes the company look bad.
MrsReese
Rule #1 of social media marketing: Don’t piss off a blogger. We talk 🙂
admin
Yes we do and the blogger groups are keeping detailed notes…
WynterR
We talk a lot.
Kristi Gilleland
I review for a very large company, and it was nice of the blogger to even mention the product and give it a link and SEO boost IMO. The company sounds new and like maybe they need a social media clue.
Yes, we talk. 🙂
MrsReese
Oh look at that… Craighton writes for Logic Lounge (ttp://LogicLounge. com/)…. where have I heard THAT mentioned before…. hmmmm….
WynterR
*raises hand* Pick me! Pick me!
MrsReese
I’ll give you a hint. It was from someone who was REALLY quick to reply to your comment.
WynterR
And that my friends, is why you don’t send company emails or at least don’t list all of the companies that you work for.
Savanah
Mr. Miller,
As you are obviously not familiar with review blogging protocol, allow me to enlighten you. Bloggers are sent a product as compensation for their review. I use the word compensation because Google considers it payment & so does the IRS. In exchange for the product/payment, a blogger will write & promote a review. If I had received a sample sized product that wasn’t enough to use for at least a week, I wouldn’t have done a review at all (as stated in my published review guidelines) so I feel Emily has gone far above what is required for a minuscule product.sample.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Savanah,
I agree with you. If Emily felt she did not receive an adequate amount to provide a full review I would except nothing less. This is exactly why I offered her a full size product so she could provide a full review if so chooses.
Google will even suspend all your accounts if they find you in violation of terms of reviews including not including “no follow” on back links. Compensated reviews are serious and should be taken as such.
Freetail Therapy
Google can’t suspend an account that I don’t have, so I think that you are misinformed there as well.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
You don’t use any Google products or services? If so kudos to you, that’s incredibly hard to accomplish! Even if you somehow managed to avoid them in every way – they can blacklist your site from search results.
WynterR
First of all Mr. Miller, if YOUR company had a problem with this review that you call a rant, why did they give her 5 stars for writing it? Secondly, there are better ways to get your point across than by being mean. It does nothing good for your company. As someone who looks at reviews before buying, even if she said you had the best product on the planet, I wouldn’t EVER buy it because of your attitude.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Mr. Miller is not a representative of WRRYFree Skin Care or Climb On! Products, Inc.
bloggerlady
Emily,
I just wanted to say that I think this review is wonderful. You did a great job, all things considered. It’s a shame that some places don’t realize how hard bloggers work, and that the things you get to review are your pay. It just really shows how some companies ‘appreciate’ the work that bloggers do for them, and the exposure they get them. It makes me wonder how they would treat their actual employees. Thank you for letting me know that this is one company I don’t ever want to work with.
MrsReese
Emily,
I just wanted to say that I think this review is wonderful. You did a great job, all things considered. It’s a shame that some places don’t realize how hard bloggers work, and that the things you get to review are your pay. It just really shows how some companies ‘appreciate’ the work that bloggers do for them, and the exposure they get them. It makes me wonder how they would treat their actual employees. Thank you for letting me know that this is one company I don’t ever want to work with.
WynterR
I agree. A proper review means that something is FULLY tested and it is obvious that you weren’t able to do that. It’s a shame because I might have gotten this to try for my husband who has very dry skin. Thanks for the as thorough as possible review.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Like I said above,
I agree. If Emily felt she did not receive an adequate amount to provide a full review I would except nothing less. This is exactly why I offered her a full size product so she could provide a full review if so chooses. If she felt there was not enough information provided our contact information is very prevalent.
krista
I also received products to review for this company, although not through Tomoson, which is a joke of a site , but I digress. I was completely shocked at the tiny “samples” as well and I also received no product information with it. I do not feel you can do a complete and honest review of a product without being able to use it for a length of time. What Shocks me even more is the unprofessional attitude being posted here from the company and its associates or friends or whatever you want to call them, and it seems to reek of bullying.
I believe I will be taking down my review of this company and will let my readers know why. Bloggers are a very close knit community and when you do one wrong, you do them all wrong. I have seen small companies in the past that have shown such behavior toward a blogger, lose a significant amount of their followers seemingly overnight due to word of mouth by bloggers.
I am saddened to see that the old adage ” the customer is always right” seems to have vanished from the business world!
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Hi Krista, I wouldn’t consider Tomoson a joke of a site. They are brand new trying to get their barring. They of course have some work todo in regards to the experience they provide but it’s a great resource to connect bloggers.
I took some time to look back at our conversation and noticed you were sent a full size deodorant and a full size bar for review and giveaway after you requested for a review unit. Every order we send includes samples hence why you received the same sample kit that the Tomoson bloggers received.
While the products of the Creme and Bar were sample size sent here and a sample size sent to you we also sell them on our website with free shipping to offer folks a chance to try the product.
Every order including samples come with a letter from me, you can see the one sent to the Tomoson folks here,
http://f.cl.ly/items/1P2Y1n1j3e1Q0z1Q2p0B/samples-tomoson.pdf all samples come with a little information card saying what the product is.
Finally, I personally treat all of our bloggers the same as customer orders. I don’t provide additional marketing mumbo jumbo because I prefer you to have the same experience customers have. I take the time to read every review and comment on many of them as well and I don’t appreciate my name being ripped apart because someone I know and work with did something stupid.
I can not control the actions of others.
Once again,
anyone who would like to discuss this with me is welcome to call or email,
412 – 943 7655
Will@WRRYFreeSkinCare.com
I am not hidden troll on the internet nor do I hide anything about myself or my company. I prefer open and honest communication methods and that is exactly what I am trying todo here.
Savanah
Will, I’m afraid you are allowing Tomoson’s outdated content to confuse you. They are not a brand new company. They have had the same site layout and function since at least Aug 2010.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
They are actually from before August 2010 however companies can easily take several years to establish themselves. Especially when it comes to launching something based on software. It is really tough to develop and move forward.
admin
Will,
A $2 sample is an insult to a review blogger and for your sake you should not have disclosed that publicly because it only hurts your brand even more. I suspected the sample I received was worth only a few dollars at most, glad to know my suspicions were correct.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
I will continue to provide an open and honest communication about myself and my company.
As a blogger myself I know my hourly rate is no where close to the 2.3oz size of creme either. Like I used Tomoson to let more folks try the product. My instructions were very short and I should have been more clear but I was just trying the service. Clearly a mistake.
Like I said below,
I have learned from this experience many things, 1. I will not ever send a sample size to a blogger again. 2, I will make every effort to make sure their is clear communication about what they are receiving
I also still offer a full size review unit to you if you would like to partake in addition to the other folks if they’d like. I did my best to respond from a horrid comment from someone I work with on a separate company. But once again I can not control their actions. I can only control mine and represent my brand.
Freetail Therapy
Tomoson is not brand new, they have been online since 2006. They have had 6 years to get their act together.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
I will reiterate – they are a great resource but they have work todo! Brand new is the wrong choice of words perhaps still developing like every active web based service. If they felt they were ready they wouldn’t be in beta!
Savanah
If you read through their site, you will see Tomoson just doesn’t update things. I’m pretty sure they will remain in beta as long as they exist.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Kind of like Google! How long was Gmail in beta?! haha
Freetail Therapy
Tomoson is not the best platform for anything. It may be good for bloggers just starting out, but other than that, meh. It may also be good for PR companies just starting to work with bloggers. Tomoson is like Blogging/PR Preschool. I’ll still go and play with the toys once in a while, but if you want to grow, you need to take your business elsewhere and don’t ever, I repeat, DON’T EVER, send a blogger a SAMPLE sized ANYTHING, UNLESS it is in ADDITION to a full sized item they are reviewing.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Sounds like lots of folks have many different opinions about Tomoson and actually review blogging in general. I haven’t had a problem to this point because the simple fact is I want to accommodate every blogger who contacts me. I enjoy your analogy and it perhaps is spot on, but you clearly have more experience than me with Tomoson. I saw them years ago when I didn’t have WRRYFree Skin Care and then was contacted by them to try it out.
I have learned from this experience many things, 1. I will not ever send a sample size to a blogger again. 2, I will make every effort to make sure their is clear communication about what they are receiving
I am just trying to have an open and honest dialog so we all can learn from our experience. Again my contact information is (412) 943 – 7655 and Will@WRRYFreeSkinCare.com for anyone who would like it.
MrsReese
Tomoson is like, a last resort for bloggers… or, a place to start out in the world of reviewing. It doesn’t matter what Tomoson says, or what they claim, or how long they’ve been around. It’s not a quality place that most bloggers go to find things to review. And this is exactly why.
admin
MrsReese,
I have been around for almost 2 years and do not need to rely on Tomoson but I liked having the opportunity to apply for things that I found interesting or would have pitched anyway. I wish I would have listened to everyone who told me I am too “old and established” to keep using them and to stop immediately. This incident has made me realize I must use extreme caution from now on. I am not sure I’ll ever use Tomoson again and I for sure will be asking more questions when I am pitched by companies.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Hindsight being 20/20 I will not be using Tomoson. I will continue my route of finding them by hand. I will also make sure to be clear in what I am offering.
Holly
Wow, as a perspective customer or was going to be. I see that I do not want anything to do with this company. So much for your bulleying tacktics. The number one rule is the customer/consumer is always right!
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Hi Holly,
I have done everything I can to provide open and honest communication. I can not control my friend at another company who works with me.
Let me know if you have any further questions,
Will@WRRYFreeSkinCare.com
412 – 943 – 7655
Gena
I think this is silly. I like reading blogs, but you guys sound like whiney babies wanting everything for free. Let me guess, did you vote Obama too? Smh.
admin
Gena,
There is nothing silly about this situation. Will has caused all of this, not me or my blogger friends. Will had the choice to walk away after his initial email to me but he chose to continue to harass and comment on mine and other blogs that are associated with me in some way. It is now bordering harassment.
MrsReese
Gena- The products we receive to review are our compensation for advertising the company, and getting their name out. Emily did the gracious thing, and wrote the review anyways, despite the fact that she barely had enough to test out to give an honest review. And then Will, who obviously showed this post to his friends, started harrassing her here, being Mr. Nice Guy, and setting a completely different tone via email, which shines through in the fact that he had his ‘buddies’ come stick up for him. It sounds like he’s learned from his mistakes though. Hopefully.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
The email you speak of has already been shared above. I made the choice to respond privately because this situation had already damaged both of our brands and I feel discussing this directly is the most appropriate approach.
My phone and email are still open,
412 – 943 – 7655
Will@WRRYFreeSkinCare.com
WynterR
Gena, If someone came to your business and said I want this, but I am not gonna pay you anything or wait, I’ll give you 2 dollars.. What would you say? I think it is highly insulting that nowhere else do you expect people to work for free, but somehow it is ok for you to expect bloggers to do it. For some bloggers, this is their ONLY JOB. I said JOB, because what we do is work, whether you want to classify it as that or not.
And really for the record, I voted for Obama. It doesn’t have anything to do with the topic at hand and only makes your argument invalid. It is childish to throw something out there that has nothing to do with what is being talked about. GROW UP!
Debbie
He’s willing to provide a full size sample so why all the meanness? I’m sure it’s a good product and he’s trying to make everyone happy so maybe it’s time to just stop
admin
Debbie,
It is not me who continues to post, it is Will.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
I continue to reply to every comment to keep an open and honest dialog. This matter could have easily been adverted by me providing better information on Tomoson or using the contact methods put into place. Once again hindsight is 20/20.
I am extremely passionate about my love for Climb On! which is a family owned company creating products 1996. I literally grew up watching them be made. To have such a negative comment posted by someone I considered a friend and have folks lash out is extremely troubling to me.
Ashley
Your private email to this blogger is hilarious. And then you decide to post it? I can’t even believe you think SHE is damaging your brand. Go ahead, bash the blogger. Too bad we talk! I think you probably wish you would have never commented on her review in the first place, or told your “friends” about this review. As a blogger, I’m horrified at companies like yours that thinks a $2 sample is okay compensation for a review, or enough to truly sample. Try $25+ since I spend on average at least 2 hours per review, and most bloggers would probably agree with that. This review here represents the $2 sample and lack of information you sent. Period. Get over it. You would have been better off offering 20 bloggers full-size samples. Even then, I would never consider reviewing for you, ever.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
I believe in open and honest communication. I already admitted my faults. Posted above but here they are
“I have learned from this experience many things, 1. I will not ever send a sample size to a blogger again. 2, I will make every effort to make sure their is clear communication about what they are receiving”
I have absolutely nothing to hide hence why I posted our communication and my contact information for anyone who wishes.
Heather
I have been curious about this product line. I write an unsponsored Psoriatic Arthritis blog and have started doing some reviews on products that have helped me or are suggested by other Psoriatic Arthritis and Psoriasis patients. I have to say I won’t be looking at these products any further. This never should have become the tit for tat that it did. A PROFESSIONAL EMAIL or PHONE CALL to the blog owner with offer of full size product to review would probably have been enough to have her remove this blog with a teaser for a future more thorough review. Handling this AWAY from the comment section may actually have gotten you double exposure.
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
Hi Heather,
If you read my initial comment that is exactly what I offered! I did not want her to remove this blog post because it was her opinion the sample wasn’t enough that’s fine. Only once she replied I asked she remove her comment – I find her original reply to me damaging to both our brands.
laura moreland
i personaly belive if they expect results and for you to be honest about there products they should supply you with full size items, if they want honest they could not of choose a better person for the job ,
Will @ WRRYFree Skin Care
When Emily said she felt she had not felt like she received enough I offered that to her.
Heather
Honestly, I think the reply to his first comment was unnecessary. He/she was trying to offer you more product, and let your followers know they have a money back guarantee. I don’t think he/she was trying to minimize you or your blog in any way, and you came off a little rude. I didn’t bother to read all the rest of the comments, because I’m sure it’s just back and forth of a silly argument which could have been avoided had you not made the first response. However, if the company rep keeps up with the back and forth, it looks really bad on their part too.
Toni Cosgrove
Many many of us look to bloggers for HONEST reviews of products. Commercials and ads only say what the company wants us to believe, Money is tight and we need a place where we can get honest opinions. We also know these are just opinions so we will oftentimes read other bloggers opinions too.if I hear of good reviews on several blogs I am more apt to buy product, than from\hearing about it any where else. Word of mouth is true advertising!!!! If bloggers only write good things than no one will trust their word,,not everyone loves everything, if you want someone to give an honest review than you need to give them enough product to do so. If you had problem with her review than you should have politely messaged her and worked out a compromise,,perhaps a reg size to give a more informed opinion.That would have went over nicely with her viewers, Especially since a company’s practices are just as important to consumers. How can you expect consumers to want to do business witha company that has others being rude and misrepresenting themselves on their behalf???? Actions ALWAYS speak louder than words!!!!!!
Brittanie
I am a fan and a fellow blogger. From a bloggers standpoint I understand where Emily is coming from. I too do not review samples and only review full-size products. If it were me in this situation I would have kindly contacted the sponsor and told them that I do not review samples and I would not post a review unless a full-size sample was provided. This gives me a chance to write an accurate review. This does not guarantee that I would like the product or that I would write a positive review but I do state in my media kit that if there is a negative experience I will discuss it with the sponsor before posting a negative review. So in my opinion, instead of posting this review which has obviously been upsetting to some people, I would have refused the item altogether and requested a full-size product from the beginning. I know you mentioned you do not post reviews for samples or trial sizes so I am curious as to why the review was posted to begin with? I have to say, from the comments I have read I do not think the business involved is handling this in a professional manner. I wish you luck with this situation!
admin
Brittanie,
It was posted because it was a review from Tomoson. When you have a review from Tomoson you don’t have an option not to review the product without emailing them. My email to Tomoson went unanswered and the review date approached. I had no choice but to post it or my percentage rate would be effected.
Brittanie
I understand now. I am sorry this whole thing resulted in this. I am sure it is frusrating for you. I hope things can be worked out because I think a lot of damage has been done. I would suggest blocking the company and it’s affiliates so they cannot harass you or other bloggers. Good Luck and take care.
Jessica Johnson
Blogging is extremley difficult and time consuming and you did the best you could with what you had. I don’t feel like you downgraded the company in anyway. For someone who doesn’t even work for the company to take such an offense to your honest opinion is a bunch of crap. Isn’t that what they want..honest opinions so that people can figure out on their own if they want the product or not? Your review was just fine to me I learned that the small amount you recieved did work in some way and I learned about a new product that I had never heard of. I say job well done.
Danelle
I am only going to say very little here, as I was taught if you don’t have something nice to say-then don’t say anything at all. I have to give Emily’s Frugal Tips HUGE HUGE praise for even attempting to do any sort of review at all. There is no way to tell if a product works well if you can only use it once! Nobody in their right minds would recommend this to friends or family on a one time/one spot use.
The person that is attempting to represent this company or anyone trying to defend this person, should be thinking of how they are ACTUALLY representing this company. Even if this company does offer a decent amount to a blogger for a review, I would NEVER recommend the product because of the customer service and representation of the company.
Asking to remove the comment is asking for a misrepresentation of the company/product. Just because a company offers a remedy to try and attempt to fix an error in judgement {that is what this is -a sample is not enough to be able to review} The customer service and company interaction is now the problem. The rude and condescending way this was handled through the company was handled in the poorest manner I have even seen.
Companies need to realize that their product {while an important part} is NOT the most important part. The way you treat you customers or potential customers IS. A company cannot sell their product when a potential buyer doesn’t trust or have faith in the company. This is what PR is supposed to do- represent the product/company as a company to trust. This is FAR, FAR from what has happened here.
Review Bloggers are NOT in this to just get free items, while there are some that do and that is sickening. The good and honest review bloggers {like this one} puts in more hours than any 9-5 job and this is one only ONE review.
WynterR
As for Will, I accept that this has gone way past what it should have, but it is really bothersome when your friend comes and posts something that basically amounts to schoolyard taunts. I am sorry that your company is getting this negativity, but I will give you the benefit of the doubt and say that you honestly did like her review and you want all of your customers to be happy. We should all agree to disagree, I guess, and let this topic die. It’s really not doing anybody any good at this point.
Christine T
Emily, I think for what you were given, you wrote a good review. I personally would not have written a review because as you said the product is our only compensation in most instances so I think you went above and beyond and are not deserving of the rude comments this businesses friends/colleagues are slinging at you.
To WrryFree/Climb on: As a small business owner/crafter, I understand wanting to get your name out there as much as possible, but as you have discovered, in this instance, it is quality over quantity when it comes to working with bloggers. It is better to have several reviews written by bloggers you pick and choose, than a lot of bloggers that couldn’t even test the product over time to see its full results and thus could not give a proper review. I actually wrote a post on working with bloggers for your future reference.
Christine T
Here is the blog post I was speaking of:
http://savedbygraceblog.com/working-with-bloggers/
Cariann
While my blog doesn’t have the following that many bloggers here have, I have quick reviewing Tomoson products as they are usually smaller samples and for the amount of work a good solid review takes, I don’t feel like what I get from them is close the work I put in value wise. I think you handled the review as well as you could. I have done informational reviews before when I didn’t feel I had enough either product or time given to do a full scale review.
Judith McNeill
Upon review of the posts, this is my understanding. An agency that recruits bloggers(Tomoson) provided the products for review. The company that provided the products was trying to get their brand “out there”. From the information provided, the company thanked the reviewer and offered to discuss and resolve concerns about the amount of product. Then the discussion derails due to an e-mail from Craighten, which granted is very infammatory. The discussion fragments into discussion regarding the virtues or lack of regarding Tomoson, disrespecting bloggers(which I don’t understand, is it because only “samples” were offered? Isn’t it up to the blogger to determine what they will review?), The person representing the company, in my opinion from the information provided, has made every effort to resolve issues. I understand that Bloggers work hard and for most it is a labor of love. Who is Craighten? Is he involved with the product? According to Will, he is not! According to Emily “He did not just happen upon this review. I believe he was told of it by William and maybe even encouraged to post what he did. ” I don’t know the actual FACTS. I guess the blog did what it’s intended to do-get people talking! 🙂
admin
Hi Judith,
Let me clear something up that seems to be of some confusion. Tomoson did not provide the review products, Polly’s nephew Will did. Tomoson is just a gateway between blogger and company that allows the blogger to apply for reviews and the company to select which bloggers to choose to review the product. Think of it like a Monster.com where you the job seeker put in an application and the company looked at it and decides to call you in for an interview. The company is responsible for sending out the product to the reviewer not Tomoson.
Polly Glasse
Hi Emily, thank you for your time in speaking with me. When I read your review, I read that you appreciated that the product helped your son’s hives yet there wasn’t enough product supplied to do a full review. That’s what I saw and my initial reaction is hey let’s get the lady a full sized product (s) so she can do her job. I sincerely apologize for anyone that has misrepresented Climb On! Products. I don’t know the tomoson people who gave you the free sample ( which is not enough to do a review by) and I don’t know the other person who commented. If you check out our site or FB page I am confident you will see who we are and what we are about. And none of the miscommunications posted on your blog represents us. I’ll have product sent to you because it’s a good product and makes a good difference in the world. No need to even review it. Just please enjoy the positive energy of it. Warmly, Polly Glasse, Founder/President, Climb On! Products! Inc.
admin
Hi Polly,
Thank you for reaching out to me regarding this matter both through phone call, facebook posting and now blog comment. It does show that you are trying to do what is right. Let me clear something up that seems to be of some confusion. Tomoson did not provide the review products, your nephew Will did. Tomoson is just a gateway between blogger and company that allows the blogger to apply for reviews and the company to select which bloggers to choose to review the product. Think of it like a Monster.com where you the job seeker put in an application and the company looks at it and decides to call you in for an interview. The company is responsible for sending out the product to the reviewer not Tomoson.
Jennifer Austin
Emily…you did your best with what you had to work with in my opinion.
Mr. Will….No review, no matter how good it proved your product to be would win you my business after all the nonsense I’ve just read on here. If you had an issue with how the review was done, then it should have been taken up privately. As a reader, I enjoy the luxury of reading honest opinions before deciding to purchase….WITHOUT having to worry about being hounded by a company representative. You blew it.
Tara Todd
I have some foot cream, not from this company, but the same type and size of packaging. It’s not meant to be smothered when you use it, you can easily get a few applications for the heel of your feet.. I think todays world is obsessed with overuse of a product and rely on that.. So I do kinda feel like the amount provided, from what I can see would be a decent amount to conduct a decent review and include links etc as a typical review should and the unsatisfied emotion does definitely shine through in your review..
Which, as a blogger myself I can understand, because as they have a job we do too and if you aren’t paying me to spread the word at least send enough product to be worth my time at the minimum but its also a compensation factor, it should be more then my time but also a means of paying me back.
I read through many of the comments from the reps of the company, initially I was feeling bad because it did seem that maybe as newbies in the review world they just misunderstood and it was blown out of proportion and they should have been notified, even if it made you late in the process to have the opportunity to give you more product if you felt the need or return it if they weren’t willing to negotiate that.
But as I read further, the unprofessional attitude of the rep. is definitely going to make a bad mark, and as stated bloggers do have a big community and its hard to get rid of the bad taste once its there.
I feel like with the amount provided, no review should have happened in the first place, it’s like a slap in the face to me as a blogger to say this is what you think my time is worth.
Since it was posted, I do feel that both sides could have handled it better and all the conversation shouldnt necessarily be here on the board until it was confirmed that a resolution was made… I feel its bad business on both sides.
admin
The amount I received was DEFINITELY not enough to do a proper review, it “barely” covered one ball of my foot. It was not a decent amount, it really wasn’t even a sample as the cream container was not filled it had just a tiny amount in it. If it hadn’t been a Tomoson review it would never had been posted. You do not have the option not to review on Tomoson unless they answer your email and remove it from your account which they did not do. A missed review messes with your percentage and that results in other companies not approving you for review on the Tomoson site.
Jennifer
I think that you did a good review based on what you received. I am a blogger myself and I have received tiny samples to “review”. It makes things difficult. Good luck with this.
Ann Williams
I don’t have the time to read through all of this but as a blogger, I can completely agree with Emily. For someone to conduct a complete review, they need more than a sample. I think her review was fair and honest. She gave info about the product and shared it with her readers. What more can a company want? I personally have written reviews that blatantly state that I didn’t care for a product and my personal reasons why, but that others might like it. The companies were still pleased with my review. When you ask someone to review for you, you can’t always expect to get glowing reviews. Emily was not paid, she was asked to give her opinion, which she did. It doesn’t matter that she went through Tomoson (with the exception of time constraints) and I think it is pretty sad to send such a small amount out and expect such more than what they got.