In the interest of Full Disclosure...
Sunday, August 13, 2006 at 08:32AM I had this posted on the part of the website where I have the product reviews, but based some of the conversations we've had here, I wanted to post this here.
I know that what I'm about to post may turn some people off altogether, but I'm willing to take that risk, because I want to be totally honest.
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I believe that every problem has a solution. This website is a product of that belief.
As a Life & Business Coach, I am constantly searching for tips and tools to help my clients solve common problems - big and small. I have such incredible resources in my files, and I wanted to share them with a wider audience -- so here you are!
But that being said, I feel it only fair to tell you that my motives in writing my product reviews are not entirely altruistic. You see, I am an entrepreneur as well.
***In The Interest of Full Disclosure...***
I feel it only fair to tell my fellow moms that I do earn an affiliate commission on the sales of some of the products that I recommend. I can do this, guilt-free, for several reasons:
1) I know in my heart-of-hearts that I only earn affiliate commissions on products that I believe are excellent problem solvers. That knowledge allows me to sleep at night.
2) I receive a commission on some of the products I review, but CERTAINLY NOT ALL them. I am committed to reviewing the BEST solutions for you - whether I receive a commission or not. Plus, throughout this blog you will find many FREE resources as well.
3) There is no cost to you. If you choose to buy a product that I recommend, and I am a member of the products affiliate program - I simply get a percentage of the sale. Think of it as a "finders fee" that I get for seeking out great solutions for you -- only YOU don't have to pay the fee!
4) Though I would like to help everyone in the world for free, I have learned to accept that "I can't make a difference if I can't make a living." (Not that I will be making a living from recommending some of these products. It's more like a supplemental income for my family.)
5) I'm a proud supporter of other Work-At-Home-Moms - and I figure what goes around, should come around!
The Final Word:
Obviously, if you're going to buy a product that you discovered here anyway, I would greatly appreciate it if you bought it through my affiliate link. Remember, it doesn't cost any extra to you, and you help support my continuing "Solution Hunting" service. But in the end, it's your decision. You can buy the products by clicking through my website, or not. It's up to you. No hard feelings either way -- and you're always welcome back here no matter what!
***End Disclosure***
Whew! I'm glad I got that off my chest. Now I can sleep easy knowing that I've told the whole truth!
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE! More solutions to come...
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Reader Comments (2)
I appreciate your honesty about having affiliate connections on some of the products you review. But honestly, I have come to expect that if people mention a product on their website or blog that they may be making a commission on it. That's fine by me. It's always MY decision whether to buy or not and I wouldn't know about even half of the great sites or products out there if I hadn't clicked through on a link (affiliate or otherwise).
I also know that it's not cheap to run a website and that it takes a lot of time to do the research and maintain the site. Your time is valuable. I'm sure you need to pay the bills just like everyone else!
So don't worry about it... if you can make a few dollars from a purchase I make, hooray for you! I'm glad to see that there are businesses out there that reward people for their referrals.
Good Luck!!
It is completely fine for you to include affiliate links in your product reviews. On our site we also do product reviews and we also plan to include some affiliate products in those reviews. (Currently most of the products have been reviewing lately are mom-created products and they have sent us a sample to review and those companies do not have affiliate programs. But if they did, we would use an affiliate link.)
It's funny how sometimes we feel bad for trying to make a living. But I sincerely believe that we moms need to seek out opportunities to help other moms earn their living while working at home. And that is the main idea behind our site "5 Minutes for Mom". To help promote moms.
Life is tough. Being a mom is tough. And being a work at home mom is almost impossible. So let's all work together to make it a bit easier.
You're doing a great job with this site. And I look forward to browsing around.