No dosing games?

Just assume any product that is at the top of the rankings with thousands of reviews on Amazon got there by fake and compensated reviews. You literally can't rank at the top without doing it, so every single brand at the top does it. No need to use Fakespot. I've ranted about this for years. Remember in the late 90s and early 2000s when people had blogs they wrote for fun? Remember when the internet had organic reviews and genuine people giving their honest uncompensated opinions on products? That ship has sailed. The internet of 2022 is all bought and paid for. Organic reach is dead. Just assume everything you are reading online is in some way compensated for, and you will be right 95% of the time. The big guys have made it that way. Google, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, etc. all show you what they want you to see. What they want you to see is what they have been paid to show you. They want to keep up the illusion of honesty and objectiveness. They don't want you seeing the man behind the curtain. That man behind the curtain is tailoring your every move online to funnel you towards what the highest bidder wants to show you. Amazon reviews are just one part of that.

It's scientifically proven that products with more 5 star reviews sell more, regardless if people know or suspect they are not all real. It's the numbers that fucks with everyone. Sure, everyone assumes there are some fake reviews on there, but a product with 5,000 or 10,000 reviews surely has mostly real organic ones, right? It's obfuscation through large numbers. People naturally want to believe the things they read. Most people don't actually want the truth. They want their preconceived biases confirmed for them. It just human nature. As a whole we are trusting people. It's not fun always looking at the world through a skeptical lens. It's why many people lash out at the messenger when that illusion is broken, rather than directing their anger at the people actually misleading them. The modern internet uses this psychology against everyone. It's why influencers are so big. We subconsciously want people to tell us what we should do and buy, and then reassure us that we made the correct decision after we make it. A lot of modern advertising actually focuses on this, especially in the luxury sector. The advertising is as much about reassuring people who have already bought, and keeping up the illusion, as it is trying to reach new people. This is why many of the most successful brands almost never talk about the science or facts. They focus on making consumers feel a certain way. I think that has been one of our biggest shortcomings. We have tried to reply solely on the facts and science, and let people come to their own conclusions. I've never liked the scumminess of modern marketing techniques. It's all about deception and manipulation. I don't want to trick people into buying things. I want to offer things that I truly believe in, give people the data behind it, then let them make their own choices. However, subconsciously most consumers don't want that. They want to be told what to buy, have the marketing make them feel a certain way, then be reassured they made the correct decision after the fact. It's why lifestyle brands are so popular, and why these big influencers, podcasters, and actors start their own merchandise brands; be that cosmetics, supplements, alcohol, or clothing. People often don't want the best product. They want the product that makes them feel a certain way. Does anyone honestly think Kylie Jenner's company makes the best makeup? Does anyone honestly believe George Clooney or Ryan Reynolds developed the best liquor? No, they like the way buying those products makes them feel. They like the story behind it all. They attach themselves and their identity to that story. It's why Elon has a rabid fan base. People tend to stick to their stance once they have formed it. It's called belief perseverance.

Anyway, the psychology behind it all is interesting, and frustrating at the same time. I know how things work. I know what sells more products. I just refuse to play that game. I've always said that if you can't be successful honestly, then you are not actually successful. I guess it is more of a moral argument. Is George Clooney a bad guy for capitalizing on the opportunity to sell mediocre tequila to people? No, certainly not. However, lying to consumers and using fraudulent and shady tactics to deceive people does make you a shitty person, and there are a lot of shitty people in the supplement industry. While I do get frustrated by it all, I am happy that I get to keep pushing my mission forward. Some people do want to hear the truth. Some people do want to learn that they have been misled and deceived. The other psychological phenomenon that does play into our hand is the fact that people are more likely to engage in controversy. There is a tipping point where people's belief perseverance is overrun by enough momentum that then leads to the controversy taking over. Nobody likes to feel like they were defrauded or taken advantage of. If enough evidence and momentum builds that convinces enough people of a controversy, then it starts to perpetuate itself. It's what I have been trying to do by showing people how bad the lab testing and quality control standards of the industry are. It's tough at first, because people don't want to feel deceived. However, once enough evidence and momentum pile up, that reluctance to admit you were taking advantage of turns to anger at those that did it. It this anger that is the only thing that will change the industry. Only enough consumers demanding that things change will force companies to do it. I am hoping that I can get people angry enough at the state of the lab testing and quality control standards of the supplement industry that one day we can look back on these times and wonder how we ever allowed such bullshit to stand for products we are putting into our bodies.