If you're anything like me you love trying free samples at your local grocery store or Costco. Well imagine if you could do that for more products and from the comfort of your home. Well that's what Influenster claims they can do for you. But you're probably wondering if Influenster is legit or a scam. So that's why you're going through a couple of Influenster reviews like this one.
Well, we have scoured the web to find the good, the bad and the ugly about Influenster. We've laid out what we found below and you many not like it. So let's dive in, shall we?
What Is Influenster?
Influenster found at www.influenster.com is a product testing, discovery and reviews platform for consumers. According to Wikipedia, Influenster was founded by Aydin Acar (CEO) and Elizabeth Scherle (President) back in 2010 and is currently headquartered in New York City, NY.
How Does Influenster Work?
Basically Influenster gives people like you and I a chance to test real products that we use every day like make up, hair and beauty products, food, household items, alcohol and more for free. They'll send these free items and you get to keep these products. all they want from you is an honest feedback about the product on your social media accounts.
How Does The VoxBox Program Work?
It's probably worth mentioning at this point that Influenster is not really a work at home opportunity. You don't get to make cold hard cash. Instead if you're lucky enough to get these product samples, you get to keep them. So that's your compensation; free stuff! Mind you, these are actual products, not trial size items. But you can also earn gift cards.
That said, here's how Influenster rewards testers.
Influenster VoxBox
As mentioned earlier, every month Influenster sends out products to select users in a package they call a VoxBox. If you're chosen to receive this VoxBox, they'll only ask that you share your opinion about the product on the website and your social media accounts.
Campaigns
They say you can improve your chances of getting free products to test and possibly gift cards by completing campaigns on the website. Otherwise known as Snaps, these campaigns usually involve you answering survey questions, tasks and keeping up with social media interaction.
Buying Products
Well this may sound a little bit unorthodox, but here's the deal. Influenster may ask you to buy something, review it and post your results across your social media accounts. If your word sounds good to them you earn badges, as you can see below.
Expert and Lifestyle Badges
These badges also improve your chances of getting free products every month. To earn badges, they say you can just continue using Influenster the normal way you would. As you level up and your social media influence improves, you'll stand a better chance of getting samples.
What's an alternative to Influenster?
As mentioned above, you can't quite make actual money with Influenster. So that may be a turn off for some people.
Don't worry, If you're looking for an opportunity to make real money sharing your opinion, check out SurveyJunkie.com. Again, if you prefer making even more money doing the things you already do online like watching videos, visiting websites and more, check out sites like InboxDollars.com, SwagBucks.com and FusionCash.com. They will pay you cold hard cash for things you already do online. But if you're looking to make real money online working part time or full time, you may want to check out My Best Work At Home Recommendation.
How Do I Join Influenster?
The Influenster application process is pretty straightforward. It's easier if you have a Facebook or Instagram page. But an email address will do either way. You can also opt to download and use their Android app or iOS app or through the desktop website.
All you have to do is register with your Facebook, Instagram or Google account. You can then connect all your social media accounts and blogging platforms to your Influenster profile.
At the time of this review, you can join Influenster from anywhere in the world, but only users in US, UK, Canada, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait qualify to get VoxBoxes.
Here are the platforms you can link to
- Foursquare
- Youtube
- Tumblr
- Foursquare
- Google Plus
- Blogger
- WordPress
Next you'll answer a few profile questions about your interests and shopping behavior so that they know what products to connect you with.
All these steps earn you scores that go into determining whether you qualify for free samples. So you're better off having as many as you can.
Maybe you don't like the idea of having to connect your social media account but like free stuff. You can earn cash or Free gift cards at sites like InBoxDollars.com, SurveyJunkie.com, SwagBucks.com and FusionCash.com. But if you want to make real money at home working part time or full time, check out My Top Work At Home Recommendation.
What We Like About Influenster
You get actual products, not trial size items.
Influenster doesn't send users tiny samples and testers to try out. They actually send actual products you can use every day. That's not normally the case with similar websites like PINCHme.
Influenster Complaints
I know this is the part of the review you're most interested in. So here are a few red flags about Influenster we thought you should know about before you decide to get your feet wet.
“Where's My $h*t!?”
Some Influensters say they never got their VoxBox even after doing all it takes to get the free samples. Some say there's no guarantee that they'll honor their end of the deal even if they say they will. Serious influensters who go as far as buying stuff to review are of the view that the formula they use to pick people who deserve VoxBoxes is leaky, adulterated and misinformed.
No BBB Profile
For some of you the Better Business Bureau determines if a company is legit or not. Well the fact they don't have a BBB listing may be a deal breaker to you then.
Fake Reviews
We don't know how true this is but some folks noticed that some of the reviews influensters post sound generic and fake. It could be hear-say as far as we are concerned. But if there's any truth in that it means Influenster is not doing a good job fishing out people who are just in it for the free stuff, not actually helping buyers know the truth about these products.
Is Influenster A Scam?
Influenster is not a scam, but in my opinion, it maybe a waste of time if you don't qualify for the free stuff they offer. There just seems to be a lot of complaints about not getting the free stuff even if you jump through the hoops. That may explain the lack of a BBB rating as well. Well at least now you know the good and the bad about Influenster. It's up to you to decide if its worth your time or not. You may have better luck than others.
Ultimately you can get all the free stuff you want without jumping hoops with Influenster. Sites like InboxDollars.com, SurveyJunkie.com, SwagBucks.com and FusionCash.com will pay you real money or gift cards to buy whatever you want. And all you're doing to earn them are the things you already do online like watching videos, visiting websites etc. But if you are looking to earn a part-time or full-time online, check out My Top Work At Home Recommendation.
Well, that's it from me. If you still have questions about Influenster, you can read their FAQs page here. We love hearing from you, so feel free to chime in your thoughts on the comments section below.
Until next time
Eddy “with a Y”
Thanks for your overview. I believe it’s a total waste of time. Spending upwards of 40 hours to get one free box.
I hear ya. I probably wouldn’t waste my time with it either. But that’s me.