Want a Gear Review?

I am frequently asked to review products from vendors who wish to have a positive mention of their product and business posted on my blog. Over time, I have reviewed approximately 30 products which were provided to me at no cost. Likely part of the draw for me to review a product is that I am no expert, nor a scientist, but rather a common user of outdoor products, someone who appreciates the industry and has experience with varieties of comparable products, and someone who can offer a sensible review based on real-life situations and not simply ideal lab conditions.  Of greater interest is the fact that this blog has attracted up to nearly 10,000 visits per month.

Those wishing me to review a product can contact me by posting a comment under any blog entry. This comment will not be published, but I will receive it and will reach out to you privately.  Please make sure you include an e-mail address where I may reach you.

Any product I review and elect to comment on will contain my opinion and my opinion only. It will be unbiased from any desired marketing content unless I agree with a statement therein.  Any product sent to me becomes my personal property for me to do with what I want to include retaining it or reselling if I choose.  Testing takes anywhere from six weeks to three months depending on the item and whether exposing it to different environmental and/or seasonal conditions is desirable.  All products reviewed under these conditions shall bear the following disclosure:

(Disclosure: This product was provided to me free-of-charge for the purposes of this review and is owned by me.  However, any information contained herein is my personal opinion without bias.)

Because I appreciate the opportunity to review products, I may offer anyone requesting a product review the option of avoiding a possible unfavorable review on my blog.  This means I will write a blog and the service requester may be offered first right of refusal as to whether or not it is published as-is. Keep in mind, this may only come up if the review has negative elements. Simply, we can both agree that no blog entry casting the item or the vendor in a negative light will be posted. I retain the right to potentially comment about tested products as I see fit, but I simply will not dedicate an entire blog entry to cover the subject matter and may mention it only in passing as it relates to another comparable subject which is the primary focus of the blog.  If no response is received for my review under these circumstances within two weeks of it being released to the provider of the item(s), I reserve the right to publish it as-is, in part, or not at all.

Lastly, my readers are more engaged if they are offered the opportunity to win free products.  What has worked well in the past is that a random reader who leaves a comment in the article is selected for a free product.  They can be given a code or direction on how to obtain the product directly from the vendor.

One more thing, if you provide me gear, agree to these terms, and I write a blog entry and forward it to you for review, you have two weeks from the date I send it to you to respond with your comments.  The lack of a response will be interpreted by me to do what I want with the article, whether that be to never post it, to post it in part, or to post it with whatever changes I see fit.  

Thanks and happy trails,

JOLLY GREEN GIANT