Before You Click “Add to Cart”: Who Do You Trust Online?

Influencers, viral products, magic fixes—and why I'm choosing trust over hype.

I have a confession.

I fall for it too.

I can't even begin to tell you how much money I've spent over the years on the latest pill, powder, supplement, beauty product or "you absolutely NEED this" discovery that was supposedly going to fix something.

More energy.

Better sleep.

Better skin.

Lose weight.

Grow hair.

Stop cravings.

Reduce inflammation.

You name it—I have probably clicked on it.

And here's the really embarrassing part...

I have products sitting in my house that I ordered months ago and haven't even used.

Apparently I needed them desperately enough to pull out my credit card...

Just not desperately enough to actually open them. 😂

And recently I started asking myself:

Why do I do this?

I don't know these people.

I've never met them.

I don't know if their skin really looks like that.

I don't know what else they're doing.

I don't know whether they've been using the product for six months or six minutes.

And sometimes I don't even know whether they actually like the product—or they're being paid to tell me about it.

Yet somehow...

ADD TO CART.

Sound familiar?

We Are Living in a Clickbait World

We are bombarded with messages all day long.

You NEED this.

I can't believe nobody told me about this sooner.

This changed my life.

Run, don't walk!

Doctors don't want you to know this.

I lost ___ pounds doing THIS.

And then there's my personal favorite...

"This is the one thing women over ___ need to be doing."

Well, apparently I need to be doing about 147 things before breakfast.

It's exhausting.

But it's also incredibly effective marketing.

These headlines create curiosity. They make us afraid we're missing something. And perhaps most importantly, they offer us something we all want:

An easy answer.

I Think That's Why I Fall for It

This was the part I really had to think about.

Why would I take advice from a complete stranger on the internet?

I don't think it's because I'm gullible.

I think it's because I'm human.

When something is bothering us, we want a solution.

If we're tired, we want energy.

If we're struggling with our weight, we want something that will finally make it easier.

If our skin is changing, we want something that will make us look in the mirror and think, There I am.

If our hair isn't what it used to be, we're going to notice the woman telling us she found the product that changed hers.

And social media has become very, very good at finding that little insecurity and saying:

"I have the answer."

That's powerful.

Are Influencers the Problem?

No.

And I want to be very clear about that.

There are some wonderful content creators and influencers out there.

I've learned from them.

I've discovered products because of them.

Some spend tremendous amounts of time researching products, testing them, creating tutorials and educating their audiences.

And influencers absolutely deserve to make money for their work.

That's not the problem.

The problem, for me, is when we stop distinguishing between information and persuasion.

A beautiful video isn't proof that something works.

A viral product isn't automatically a good product.

A million followers don't necessarily make someone an expert.

And something that worked beautifully for one person may do absolutely nothing for me.

I'm Selling Products Too

I have been in the beauty business for a long time.

When I recommend an Avon product and you purchase through me, I can make money from that purchase.

I don't want to pretend otherwise.

I'm running a business.

But all of this has made me think more carefully about how I want to run that business.

I don't want to tell you every new product is life-changing.

I don't want to tell you something will erase every wrinkle.

I don't want to tell you a shampoo is going to grow hair when that's not what it does.

And I definitely don't want to convince you that you need something you don't.

I'd much rather say:

Here's what it is.

Here's what the ingredients can do.

Here's what they can't do.

Here's why I'm interested in it.

Here's what happened when I tried it.

And then you decide.

Trust Over Hype

I've been doing this long enough to know that the quickest sale isn't necessarily the most important sale.

I'd rather have you trust me.

Because if I tell you every product is incredible, eventually my recommendations don't mean very much.

I don't need every product to be amazing. I need you to trust me when I tell you that one is.

That's become increasingly important to me.

If I don't know something, I'll say I don't know.

If the science isn't there yet, I'll tell you.

If I haven't personally tried something, I shouldn't talk as though I have.

And if I love something?

You'll probably know that too. 😂

Maybe We Need to Start Asking Better Questions

I'm trying to do this myself before I hit that Add to Cart button.

Instead of:

"Could this work?"

I'm trying to ask:

Do I actually need this?

Do I already own something that does the same thing?

Who's recommending it?

What are their qualifications?

Are they being compensated?

Are these realistic results?

Is there actual evidence behind the claim?

And perhaps the most important question for me:

Am I buying the product...or am I buying the promise?

Ouch.

That one hits home.

Because I'm pretty sure I've bought a lot of promises.

There Probably Isn't a Magic Powder

This may be the hardest lesson for me.

I would LOVE the magic powder.

Seriously.

If someone could put better sleep, more energy, perfect skin, great hair and effortless weight management into one scoop...

Take my money.

Unfortunately, most of the things I want don't come from one product.

They come from the boring stuff.

Consistency.

Eating better.

Moving my body.

Sleeping.

Drinking water.

Taking care of my skin.

Managing stress.

And giving things time to work.

Not nearly as exciting as "THIS CHANGED MY LIFE IN 7 DAYS!"

But probably a lot more realistic.

I'm Still Going to Click

Let's not get carried away here.

I'm not going to suddenly become immune to marketing.

I'm still going to see something and think...

Ooooooh. What's that?

I'm still going to discover products through social media.

I'm still going to follow people whose recommendations I enjoy.

And yes, I'm probably still going to buy something I didn't need every once in a while.

I'm a work in progress.

But I want to become a smarter consumer.

And I want to be the kind of person you can come to when you're wondering:

Is this really worth the hype?

Not because I know everything.

But because I'm willing to ask the question.

And maybe that's what we need a little more of online.

Less:

YOU NEED THIS.

And more:

Let's find out.

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