To start with, till date I haven’t reviewed any
products sent to me by PR. And, this post has been written in general.
Moving further, I’m in two minds about this.
From one point,
I don’t think it’s necessary for bloggers to
disclose. I mean, there are a few blogs that I follow really closely and whose
opinions I do even trust. And, if they disclose or don’t disclose that the
product has been sent by PR, it doesn’t matter to me. If I’m reviewing any product sent by PR and
making a disclosure for it, it’s like saying “Yes, this product has been sent
by PR; so you are free to think that there might be some chances of me lying
here”. It’s because if your true readers have been following you from a long
time and trust your opinions, it’s not going to matter for them.
But from the other point,
I have seen a few blogs that blog so much about the
products been sent by PR. That sometimes irks me. To see too many product
reviews provided by the PR.
So, I have two questions to ask :
For
bloggers:
Do you have a disclosure policy for PR sent items?
For
our valuable readers:
Does it matters to you that “Disclosure is made for
items sent by PR?”
P.S. : In USA, it’s mandatory to disclose this while
in UK, it isn’t. Anyone has any idea with respect to India’s blogging policy?