Acne Treatment Reviews

30/10/2011 10:24

If you are an acne sufferer, then the last thing you want to do is read through dozens of advertisements hawking the latest and greatest acne treatment. After all, as a society we've become numb to advertising. For one thing, advertisements can't always be trusted; obviously the advertiser has a vested interest in seeing to it that you purchase the product.Product reviews, however, don't generally fall in the same category as blatant advertisements.If you are interested to know more, take a look at Acne Treatment Reviews. And so it should be with acne treatment reviews. The reality here, though, is different; the internet is full of acne product reviews that are thinly disguised ads. The result is that you feel like you are looking at nothing but advertisements when you read most acne treatment reviews.The reason? Because of the number of affiliates that are promoting acne treatments. Many of these affiliates have never even bought the acne product they are promoting, much less tried them. Yet they'll act like they are intimately familiar with the product and all other similar products. Being the astute and observant web surfer that you are, however, you can see right through their ploy.So how do you know which acne treatment reviews to trust?Luckily, there are some specific tell-tale clues to look for on the reviewer's (affiliate's) website. Number one, the affiliate should prominently display an "Affiliate Earnings Compensation Disclosure" statement - or something to that effect - on the front page of the product review website. This statement is now, in fact, required by the FTC - Federal Trade Commission - as well as Google for all affiliate websites.The statement should say something like, "You should assume that the owner of this website is an affiliate for providers of goods and services mentioned on this website and may be compensated when you purchase from a provider. Perform due diligence before purchasing from this or any other website."99% (percentage is just my guess here) of all affiliate product review sites, however, do not prominently display this information. Instead, they reluctantly comply with the FTC's requirement by burying a tiny, almost transparent link to this statement somewhere in an obscure 'corner' of their website. The idea here being that if you know ahead of time that the website owner stands to get a commission if you buy a product through their site, that you may click away in disgust.I should point out, however, that this would be prejudicial on the part of a website visitor!Because not all affiliate sites and their owners (even if they DO hide the fact that they are indeed affiliates for the product they are promoting) are untrustworthy; the key here is to know what to look for in an acne treatment review - or ANY review for that matter.So back to the biggies to look for:1. As we discussed, the all-important "Affiliate Earnings Compensation Disclosure," prominently displayed.2. Contact information, including phone number.Now, realize that it's risky to put your home or cell phone number on the internet - regardless of how trustworthy the site is that the phone number is on. A toll-free 800 or 888 number, however, can go to an inexpensive answering service for an affiliate site, protecting the affilate's privacy. But the presence of such a number on an affiliate's website is a sign of goodwill.3. Testimonials (on the merchant's site).An acne treatment review that recommends a particular product should only recommend one with testimonials - verifiable through email addresses posted on the merchant's site, or available on request. Recorded audio testimonials on the merchant's site are also a good sign, as are photos of the persons leaving the testimonials. If the merchant can show that some testimonials are UNsolicited, all the better.4. Specific product information to help the web surfer (you) know the product better.While this may seem obvious, too often you'll run into acne treatment review sites that have little more than the same info that you can get directly from the merchant's sales page. Statements like, "This is the best acne treatment product available anywhere, it works great..." are vague, blatant salesy-type statements that don't help you know the product.Instead, something like, "Tests performed by XYZ corporation showed that 78% of Grade II acne sufferers who tried this product experienced an improvement in their acne within 14 days." Statements like this that give specific numbers are what you should look for.5. Background science and/or history of a product.This shows that the affiliate is making an effort at educating you instead of just selling you on a product.So, yes, it is possible to find a trustworthy acne treatment review online, even though the reviewer will often be an affiliate of the acne product that he/she is reviewing. But if the affiliate has done his job right, you stand to benefit from his research, saving you time and money in the process. You will be an educated 'acne cure product web searcher,' able to make a smart purchase decision. For more info, visit Acne Treatment Reviews.