I totally get that old4570 does not work for Zanflare aka gearbest but adding a crowd funding link feels sort of over the top.
For a so so light.
but maybe its just me?
Now if old4570 thought it was the worlds greatest light and was worried they would not get seed money and fail? (cool), but we all know Gearbest is behind starting/pushing an inhouse brand (as such I cant think of a single reason I would recommend my friends to dig in there pockets to save gearbest development money on inhouse marketing and product development.
I’m not against inhouse brands or comapnies doing product development but to ask us for money to do is… well… ballsy!
.02
—
(“It’s good that most people can’t remember their previous lives. Otherwise
things would be a lot more complicated than they already are.”
Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo)
First post of the boss:
“….Please avoid discussions here, and just post the name of vendors that you have recently seen spamming threads or using shill tactics……”
I do not understand why people not read the first posts…. there are tons of discussions here….
(sorry for this post)
the “give away” is supposed to be a “Fin17 Six-Month Anniversary Giveaway “ but it is obvious it is just more marketing and research.
I think what we need is a “commercial” button because spam is not quite correct, so we can put these in the proper place and have it recorded.
—
(“It’s good that most people can’t remember their previous lives. Otherwise
things would be a lot more complicated than they already are.”
Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo)
I totally get that old4570 does not work for Zanflare aka gearbest but adding a crowd funding link feels sort of over the top.
For a so so light.
but maybe its just me?
Now if old4570 thought it was the worlds greatest light and was worried they would not get seed money and fail? (cool), but we all know Gearbest is behind starting/pushing an inhouse brand (as such I cant think of a single reason I would recommend my friends to dig in there pockets to save gearbest development money on inhouse marketing and product development.
I’m not against inhouse brands or comapnies doing product development but to ask us for money to do is… well… ballsy!
.02
So information is now over the top ? ( Very strange )
I dont work for anyone – I do reviews – sometimes I am sent stuff – some times its out of my pocket …
I don’t want to get in on the politics of opinion … So how about leaving me out of it … ( I have worked hard at distancing myself from OPINION )
If you dont want a review posted on the B3 just let me know !
Oh and so that you know , I don’t know what I think about the B3 yet !
So far it has some good points and some not so good ..
But I really don’t want to get involved in the politics , I just do reviews – part of that is trying to provide information ..
—
Always remember , the easiest thing in the world to do , is to expel hot air from your lungs and through some vocal chords .. The resulting sound may , or may not be worth listening too ….
Argh come on!
Make it a sport to call bluff, point to nice deals or just give commercial parties a chance
Just wanted to post a reply (I was happy about, bam, topic gone here is the reply I wrote:
Quote:
Welcome to BLF!
Looks like you wanna move this to commercial sellers.
Your products have some interesting designs, maybe send some samples to people here so they can examine them and write a review, be prepared for BLf is friendly but also critical and demanding
A few months back a “shill” posted about some outdoor string lights or something, the topic filled up with the same product for less or same price for more. That teaches more and gives some interesting threads.
Mostly the main issue is posting in wrong section, so a “commercial” button to move it seems cool!
(Funny…or not: everytime this member makes a post, it is his/hers 1st post… BTW, normally the threads presenting their lights are not even in the commercial part)
I have just re-read a Zanflare product thread, but this time without the spammy comment by member Zanflare. Suddenly, the Zanflare product became much more appealing without the spamming. In a way this is contradictory, as the purpose of a spammer is supposed to increase sales.
I have just re-read a Zanflare product thread, but this time without the spammy comment by member Zanflare. Suddenly, the Zanflare product became much more appealing without the spamming. In a way this is contradictory, as the purpose of a spammer is supposed to increase sales.
Exactly, I hope that the flashlight vendors will read this and realize how incredibly stupid and counterproductive their spammy tactics are. And the worst thing is that it’s completely unnecessary, BLF has an incredibly lenient and inviting FREE policy toward commercial vendors.
Seeing as how I just posted a review of a freely provided light recently, and it was my first actual product review, I’d like to post my opinion.
Personally, I like to see 3 or 4 reviews of the same product (with original content, not just copy/paste of the sellers page). This gives me a good idea of what a few different people think of a product. If there are 9, 12, or two-dozen reviews… OK, that’s getting excessive.
If it’s clearly an advertising post masquerading as a “review”, that’s not OK to me either. That being said, it does make some sense to combine multiple reviews of a single model of product in a way…
Ultimately, I think we want to avoid/reduce spam posts, and if we can get legitimate reviews (even for free products) that are not excessive or advertising in nature, that would be a win.
Seeing as how I just posted a review of a freely provided light recently, and it was my first actual product review, I’d like to post my opinion.
Personally, I like to see 3 or 4 reviews of the same product (with original content, not just copy/paste of the sellers page). This gives me a good idea of what a few different people think of a product. If there are 9, 12, or two-dozen reviews… OK, that’s getting excessive.
If it’s clearly an advertising post masquerading as a “review”, that’s not OK to me either. That being said, it does make some sense to combine multiple reviews of a single model of product in a way…
Ultimately, I think we want to avoid/reduce spam posts, and if we can get legitimate reviews (even for free products) that are not excessive or advertising in nature, that would be a win.
It’s true that subtle forms of advertising are a legitimate issue that we need to deal with better. But the subject of this thread is blantant spam that even some established big brands have been posting here on BLF recently. I found an example in of one of HKJ’s usual fantastic review threads where the manufacturer of that product popped in and posted: “Nice review. Wanna buy one? Check it out here (link)”. So garbage like that is nothing to debate about, it’s a flagrant and shameless violation of the Rules for Commercial Sellers, and should be marked as spam if anything like that appears in the future.
[…]I found an example in of one of HKJ’s usual fantastic review threads where the manufacturer of that product popped in and posted: “Nice review. Wanna buy one? Check it out here (link)”. So garbage like that is nothing to debate about, it’s a flagrant and shameless violation of the Rules for Commercial Sellers, and should be marked as spam if anything like that appears in the future.
Thanks for the explanation about this, I also had that doubt!!
It’s true that subtle forms of advertising are a legitimate issue that we need to deal with better. But the subject of this thread is blantant spam that even some established big brands have been posting here on BLF recently. I found an example in of one of HKJ’s usual fantastic review threads where the manufacturer of that product popped in and posted: “Nice review. Wanna buy one? Check it out here (link)”. So garbage like that is nothing to debate about, it’s a flagrant and shameless violation of the Rules for Commercial Sellers, and should be marked as spam if anything like that appears in the future.
Oh, absolutely agree. Anytime a seller/vender or manufacturer comments like that, posting a link to a purchase site, or even if they don’t and they simply solicit a sale by asking for purchase, that is NOT OK. Their comments should be limited to thanking the reviewer and answering any direct inquiries with regards to the technical aspects of the product, so long as things don’t cross into sales territory.
I really felt compelled to post here because I did not want to be seen as contributing to spam posts because of free review samples sent by manufacturers, mainly the aforementioned Sofirn. They have sent a lot of product out to us recently, thus an influx of posted reviews. Full disclosure, the original PM from them to me asking if I’d like to review the light said nothing about being required to post a review at all, just whether I’d like to evaluate the light in my free time.
I think that manufacturer or seller never must talk in the review that we make.
Reviews with aff link must go to the site of negociated deal, review without aff link is fine in the normal section.
I really felt compelled to post here because I did not want to be seen as contributing to spam posts because of free review samples sent by manufacturers, mainly the aforementioned Sofirn. They have sent a lot of product out to us recently, thus an influx of posted reviews. Full disclosure, the original PM from them to me asking if I’d like to review the light said nothing about being required to post a review at all, just whether I’d like to evaluate the light in my free time.
Right, I understand your point too. I was just trying to say that these are really two completely different issues. There are currently no rules about how reviews of free products should be handled, and specifically nothing about those “blitz” style review campaigns where they send the same product to 20 reviewers at once. So that discussion definitely has its place (preferably in a different thread), but I’m not in any way trying to condemn as spammers our BLF members who review free products, because they’re not doing anything wrong and are not violating any written BLF rules. As a matter of fact I occasionally review free samples myself here. This thread is to raise awareness about the cut-and-dried issue of commercial employees posting blatant spam on BLF that clearly violates the written rules, which we all need to be more vigilant about eliminating via the SPAM button.
Right, I understand your point too. I was just trying to say that these are really two completely different issues. There are currently no rules about how reviews of free products should be handled, and specifically nothing about those “blitz” style review campaigns where they send the same product to 20 reviewers at once. So that discussion definitely has its place (preferably in a different thread) […] .
@ JasonJ (and all interested)
There is/was an ongoing thread discussing some issues about affiliate links in reviews and other issues about reviews! http://budgetlightforum.com/node/55508
I for one am done doing any reviews and for that matter, will not enter for any free give-aways.
Let the new members have the shot at new free product for a slice of their dignity.
The repetition and clone reviews get old right quick and of no fault of the reviewer’s, as they all hit the shores at the same time and all manufacturer’s demand a quick review on multiple platforms.
How thorough your review really is, does not matter to the “Shotgun Blast” of reviews intended solely to up Google searches and flood Amazon with reviews.
It is “over the top” total effing BS anymore.
Sign me the h out.
Keith
—
“History doesn’t repeat itself, but it sometimes rhymes,” Mark Twain
…
After the Apocalypse there will be only 2 things left alive, Cockroaches and Keith Richards
I think that manufacturer or seller never must talk in the review that we make.
I think that is sensible unless the manufacturer is addressing an issue identified in a review.
Interestingly most of the multiple reviewed lights recently have actually been quite decent lights that could sell themselves with much fewer reviews. The first few reviews will get much higher views and google ranking than later reviews. Thus too many reviews can be counter productive for the vendor, and under appreciated effort for the hard working reviewer.
Too many reviews ?
Not sure about that ! I have no issue with information .
Sometimes it can be difficult to cut through fact and opinion ( one mans rubbish is another mans treasure ) .
But more reviews = a better chance at the product getting seen from more than one perspective .
Sometimes its good to see a review through another’s eyes and experience , even if its the first time some one has done a review .
If they make mistakes , that’s great because it also becomes a learning experience .
The waters fine – come on in !
—
Always remember , the easiest thing in the world to do , is to expel hot air from your lungs and through some vocal chords .. The resulting sound may , or may not be worth listening too ….
Or as we in general suffer from information overload, more reviews (especially poor ones) are not value added.
—
(“It’s good that most people can’t remember their previous lives. Otherwise
things would be a lot more complicated than they already are.”
Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo)
Really disappointing that olightstore.com is resorting to these desperate tactics of spamming and shilling recently. How far they’ve fallen…
Also, I updated the first post in the Hall of Shame thread to explain more clearly what information should be listed there. Remember, discussions are not allowed in the Hall of Shame, but here in this thread discussion in open.
I also find the case of Olight disappointing. I don’t own any other lights and it appears it will stay so.
On a separate topic, time I have mixed feelings about those vendors that spammed for some time but later recovered and turned to useful members. I believe Vapcell is such vendor.
On one hand they deserve a mention. On the other I feel that the mention should be somehow down-ranked.
I’ve seen Olight asking other people to post their stuff on reddit for years. The rules on /r/flashlight allow three marketing posts per month, and the solution to this problem was to count obvious shill posts toward the total.
—
Ceilingbounce – flashlight testing and runtime graphs for Android
Same here: http://budgetlightforum.com/node/55896
Interesting how huntking bought a Zanflare F1 for the MSRP price of $39, as the light is always on sale.
Edit: the correct answer is Zanflare
Maybes its just me but Zanflare is back at it again.
Starting to feel too commercial in the “non-commercial space.
“ Zanflare B3 Teaser ( Bike Light )”:http://budgetlightforum.com/node/55926#comment-form
I totally get that old4570 does not work for Zanflare aka gearbest but adding a crowd funding link feels sort of over the top.
For a so so light.
but maybe its just me?
Now if old4570 thought it was the worlds greatest light and was worried they would not get seed money and fail? (cool), but we all know Gearbest is behind starting/pushing an inhouse brand (as such I cant think of a single reason I would recommend my friends to dig in there pockets to save gearbest development money on inhouse marketing and product development.
I’m not against inhouse brands or comapnies doing product development but to ask us for money to do is… well… ballsy!
.02
(“It’s good that most people can’t remember their previous lives. Otherwise
things would be a lot more complicated than they already are.”
Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo)
First post of the boss:
“….Please avoid discussions here, and just post the name of vendors that you have recently seen spamming threads or using shill tactics……”
I do not understand why people not read the first posts…. there are tons of discussions here….
(sorry for this post)
Gearbest is using Fin17
the “give away” is supposed to be a “Fin17 Six-Month Anniversary Giveaway “ but it is obvious it is just more marketing and research.
I think what we need is a “commercial” button because spam is not quite correct, so we can put these in the proper place and have it recorded.
(“It’s good that most people can’t remember their previous lives. Otherwise
things would be a lot more complicated than they already are.”
Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo)
So information is now over the top ? ( Very strange )
I don’t want to get in on the politics of opinion … So how about leaving me out of it … ( I have worked hard at distancing myself from OPINION ) If you dont want a review posted on the B3 just let me know !I dont work for anyone – I do reviews – sometimes I am sent stuff – some times its out of my pocket …
Oh and so that you know , I don’t know what I think about the B3 yet !
But I really don’t want to get involved in the politics , I just do reviews – part of that is trying to provide information ..So far it has some good points and some not so good ..
Always remember , the easiest thing in the world to do , is to expel hot air from your lungs and through some vocal chords ..
The resulting sound may , or may not be worth listening too ….
Argh come on!
Make it a sport to call bluff, point to nice deals or just give commercial parties a chance
Just wanted to post a reply (I was happy about, bam, topic gone here is the reply I wrote:
A few months back a “shill” posted about some outdoor string lights or something, the topic filled up with the same product for less or same price for more. That teaches more and gives some interesting threads.
Mostly the main issue is posting in wrong section, so a “commercial” button to move it seems cool!
It is done when it is done
How my BLF Specials generally work, please read before asking Qs
The Q8, Exciting a groupbuy for a Premium BLF special high lumens soda can light!
The GT, A BLF special GIGA thrower
The FW3A, a TLF BLF special small, elegant, powerful triple
Lithium Ion safety 101 important read
Sorry grammarlovers, I am a real King Typo.
llucas xie, spammer for ledflashlighting.com
http://budgetlightforum.com/node/55961
(Funny…or not: everytime this member makes a post, it is his/hers 1st post… BTW, normally the threads presenting their lights are not even in the commercial part)
MY REVIEWS THREAD /// My Flashlight Collection ///
Mods: 1 / 2 // TIR: 1 / 2 // Others: Biscotti 3 + 1*7135 / Triple TIR w/ XP-G2 /// My Review's Blog (PT) /// OL Contest 2019 /// OL Contest 2020 /// GIVEAWAYs: 1 / 2
http://budgetlightforum.com/forum/misc/commercial
Zanflare is now banned after many flagrant rule violations and warnings.
Budget Light Forum ...where Frugal meets with Flashlight!
This thread used to be the Hall of Shame thread, but it has now been opened up as a general discussion thread.
The new Hall of Shame thread (NO DISCUSSIONS ALLOWED!) is here:
http://budgetlightforum.com/node/55963
Budget Light Forum ...where Frugal meets with Flashlight!
I have just re-read a Zanflare product thread, but this time without the spammy comment by member Zanflare. Suddenly, the Zanflare product became much more appealing without the spamming. In a way this is contradictory, as the purpose of a spammer is supposed to increase sales.
Exactly, I hope that the flashlight vendors will read this and realize how incredibly stupid and counterproductive their spammy tactics are. And the worst thing is that it’s completely unnecessary, BLF has an incredibly lenient and inviting FREE policy toward commercial vendors.
Budget Light Forum ...where Frugal meets with Flashlight!
Seeing as how I just posted a review of a freely provided light recently, and it was my first actual product review, I’d like to post my opinion.
Personally, I like to see 3 or 4 reviews of the same product (with original content, not just copy/paste of the sellers page). This gives me a good idea of what a few different people think of a product. If there are 9, 12, or two-dozen reviews… OK, that’s getting excessive.
If it’s clearly an advertising post masquerading as a “review”, that’s not OK to me either. That being said, it does make some sense to combine multiple reviews of a single model of product in a way…
Ultimately, I think we want to avoid/reduce spam posts, and if we can get legitimate reviews (even for free products) that are not excessive or advertising in nature, that would be a win.
It’s true that subtle forms of advertising are a legitimate issue that we need to deal with better. But the subject of this thread is blantant spam that even some established big brands have been posting here on BLF recently. I found an example in of one of HKJ’s usual fantastic review threads where the manufacturer of that product popped in and posted: “Nice review. Wanna buy one? Check it out here (link)”. So garbage like that is nothing to debate about, it’s a flagrant and shameless violation of the Rules for Commercial Sellers, and should be marked as spam if anything like that appears in the future.
Budget Light Forum ...where Frugal meets with Flashlight!
Thanks for the explanation about this, I also had that doubt!!
MY REVIEWS THREAD /// My Flashlight Collection ///
Mods: 1 / 2 // TIR: 1 / 2 // Others: Biscotti 3 + 1*7135 / Triple TIR w/ XP-G2 /// My Review's Blog (PT) /// OL Contest 2019 /// OL Contest 2020 /// GIVEAWAYs: 1 / 2
Oh, absolutely agree. Anytime a seller/vender or manufacturer comments like that, posting a link to a purchase site, or even if they don’t and they simply solicit a sale by asking for purchase, that is NOT OK. Their comments should be limited to thanking the reviewer and answering any direct inquiries with regards to the technical aspects of the product, so long as things don’t cross into sales territory.
I really felt compelled to post here because I did not want to be seen as contributing to spam posts because of free review samples sent by manufacturers, mainly the aforementioned Sofirn. They have sent a lot of product out to us recently, thus an influx of posted reviews. Full disclosure, the original PM from them to me asking if I’d like to review the light said nothing about being required to post a review at all, just whether I’d like to evaluate the light in my free time.
I think that manufacturer or seller never must talk in the review that we make.
Reviews with aff link must go to the site of negociated deal, review without aff link is fine in the normal section.
Right, I understand your point too. I was just trying to say that these are really two completely different issues. There are currently no rules about how reviews of free products should be handled, and specifically nothing about those “blitz” style review campaigns where they send the same product to 20 reviewers at once. So that discussion definitely has its place (preferably in a different thread), but I’m not in any way trying to condemn as spammers our BLF members who review free products, because they’re not doing anything wrong and are not violating any written BLF rules. As a matter of fact I occasionally review free samples myself here. This thread is to raise awareness about the cut-and-dried issue of commercial employees posting blatant spam on BLF that clearly violates the written rules, which we all need to be more vigilant about eliminating via the SPAM button.
Budget Light Forum ...where Frugal meets with Flashlight!
@ JasonJ (and all interested)
There is/was an ongoing thread discussing some issues about affiliate links in reviews and other issues about reviews!
http://budgetlightforum.com/node/55508
MY REVIEWS THREAD /// My Flashlight Collection ///
Mods: 1 / 2 // TIR: 1 / 2 // Others: Biscotti 3 + 1*7135 / Triple TIR w/ XP-G2 /// My Review's Blog (PT) /// OL Contest 2019 /// OL Contest 2020 /// GIVEAWAYs: 1 / 2
I for one am done doing any reviews and for that matter, will not enter for any free give-aways.
Let the new members have the shot at new free product for a slice of their dignity.
The repetition and clone reviews get old right quick and of no fault of the reviewer’s, as they all hit the shores at the same time and all manufacturer’s demand a quick review on multiple platforms.
How thorough your review really is, does not matter to the “Shotgun Blast” of reviews intended solely to up Google searches and flood Amazon with reviews.
It is “over the top” total effing BS anymore.
Sign me the h out.
Keith
“History doesn’t repeat itself, but it sometimes rhymes,” Mark Twain
…
After the Apocalypse there will be only 2 things left alive, Cockroaches and Keith Richards
I think that is sensible unless the manufacturer is addressing an issue identified in a review.
Interestingly most of the multiple reviewed lights recently have actually been quite decent lights that could sell themselves with much fewer reviews. The first few reviews will get much higher views and google ranking than later reviews. Thus too many reviews can be counter productive for the vendor, and under appreciated effort for the hard working reviewer.
Recent Reviews: Light Flashlight Painting Buying Guide 2020 // LumeCube 2.0 // Lumintop FW1A // Light Painting Paradise Lightpainter // KDLITKER E6 // Sofirn SP31V2.0 // Convoy S2+
Affiliate links: Neal's Gadgets
Instagram: @stephenk_lightart
Too many reviews ?
Sometimes its good to see a review through another’s eyes and experience , even if its the first time some one has done a review . If they make mistakes , that’s great because it also becomes a learning experience . The waters fine – come on in !Not sure about that ! I have no issue with information .
Sometimes it can be difficult to cut through fact and opinion ( one mans rubbish is another mans treasure ) .
But more reviews = a better chance at the product getting seen from more than one perspective .
Always remember , the easiest thing in the world to do , is to expel hot air from your lungs and through some vocal chords ..
The resulting sound may , or may not be worth listening too ….
Or as we in general suffer from information overload, more reviews (especially poor ones) are not value added.
(“It’s good that most people can’t remember their previous lives. Otherwise
things would be a lot more complicated than they already are.”
Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo)
They made three almost identical spam posts in less than ten minutes.
(I'm thinking they're a spambot.)
It looks like they have no respect for BLF.
How to Post Images on BLF // Many knives for sale (USA only)
How to move a thread
I deleted three posts from the "Hall of Shame" discussion thread...
and twenty-four posts from the "Hall of Shame" - flashlight vendors that spam or shill on BLF thread.
I basically got rid of any post about a company that isn't about flashlights or other lighting.
How to Post Images on BLF // Many knives for sale (USA only)
How to move a thread
Really disappointing that olightstore.com is resorting to these desperate tactics of spamming and shilling recently. How far they’ve fallen…
Also, I updated the first post in the Hall of Shame thread to explain more clearly what information should be listed there. Remember, discussions are not allowed in the Hall of Shame, but here in this thread discussion in open.
Budget Light Forum ...where Frugal meets with Flashlight!
I also find the case of Olight disappointing. I don’t own any other lights and it appears it will stay so.
On a separate topic, time I have mixed feelings about those vendors that spammed for some time but later recovered and turned to useful members. I believe Vapcell is such vendor.
On one hand they deserve a mention. On the other I feel that the mention should be somehow down-ranked.
I'm really surprised that olightstore.com is up to no good.
I thought they were smart enough to avoid doing that.
How to Post Images on BLF // Many knives for sale (USA only)
How to move a thread
I’ve seen Olight asking other people to post their stuff on reddit for years. The rules on /r/flashlight allow three marketing posts per month, and the solution to this problem was to count obvious shill posts toward the total.
Ceilingbounce – flashlight testing and runtime graphs for Android
I don’t know, but at this rate, all known vendors will eventually appear on the HoS list.
It only take one desperate dude from a company (or one desperate attempt to gain customers) to bring their company on this sort of list.
Searching for High CRI leds since 2010...
Has finally gotten to the bottom after 10 years of delving deep into that rabbit hole of them high CRI lights...
High CRI, high quality lights doesn't need to be expensive, or is it?
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