- According to Jessica, a number of the off-brand products that she has reviewed — especially items like clothes and home goods — are perfectly adequate. “It’s their way of marketing,” she said, adding that “the products aren’t necessarily worse than something you’d buy with a name brand on it.”
But sometimes the products are worse, and Jessica still rates them 5 stars. “I haven’t found a thermometer by doing this that works correctly — they all give me different readings,” she said. Jessica is afraid to use the electronic appliances she receives, which often come with incomprehensible instructions written in both English and Chinese. She took photos of one product, a foot spa, without adding water or plugging it in.
Jessica also doesn’t trust health and beauty products on the site, because of her boyfriend, a chemist, who has found toxic ingredients in analyses of unregulated products.
A coworker at Jessica’s day job once asked her about a keratin hair mask she had seen Jessica review. But Jessica hadn’t actually used the mask, and explained how the hustle really works. “She was noticeably disappointed that she trusted the review. I really felt bad!” Jessica said. She offered the coworker her unused bottle.