Announcement! Suspension of Some Articles on IMBB

reviewsHi All,

After lengthy discussions within our team, we are making a small announcement for all our present and future writers- we would not be accepting the following articles for publishing on IMBB from today onwards-

  • Products reviews on brands which don’t add anything to the blog such as boroline, boroplus, vicco turmeric, fair n lovely etc.
  • Product reviews on brands such as miss claire, incolor, vedic line, just herb, aloe veda, etc. which are of limited reach. We want reviews on national and international brands only.
  • Reviews with pictures taken with cellphones. Please send pictures taken only with a camera.
  • Reviews on different shades of foundation, concealer and compact powder of products which have already been reviewed on IMBB. This does not apply to different shades of lipsticks, eyeshadows, eyeliners etc.
  • Soaps and handwash reviews (except for the high-end brands).

For beauty-related articles, we would prefer if our writers can take their own pictures. We would like to reduce the usage of pictures taken from the net. For do-it-yourself articles, all the pictures taken should be your own.

As a general guideline, please take IMBB Indecision Test– If you’re wondering whether to send a particular article or not that means you shouldn’t send that article. If the article is not love-at-first-sight for you, that means you shouldn’t send it.

Also, don’t limit the pictures for the product reviews to 3 or 4, click as many as you want and send in, the more the merrier, but click pictures in daylight so that they turn out clear.

Another important point is that please do check your review document before sending in. Though each and every review that comes up on the blog is edited, we would still like review documents that do not have a lot of grammatical errors πŸ™‚

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72 thoughts on “Announcement! Suspension of Some Articles on IMBB

  1. Sanjeev sir one doubt are you posting nail paint reviews now? I got mail saying you are not doing them some 2 months back, or can we do more than one nail paint review together so that they will be posted ?

      1. Thanks for reply sanjeev sir and jomol di! i am just desperate to show off a new maybelline nail express finish nail paint that I got recently. the color is super awesome! Will try to take pictures for other reviews with my nails shown!!!!!!!

  2. I have a question. How to send more pictures? I am finding 25MB limit per mail a great hindrance. Naturally, I reduce the number of pictures I send πŸ™

    1. I totally agree Sanjeev ji,,,,

      But what about soaps from lush, crabtree and evelyn and L’occitane( As well as body shop)

  3. sanjeev ,,I would say good decision.. i never wanted to say this ever but i felt tht the articles should always be of products which a consumer can easily access…brands like vov incolor etc are not easily avlb and aren’t of great quality either… but dint wanna offend anyone so never said it.. πŸ™‚ still i do hope no offence is taken

    1. i veto aruna…
      and thank god no more boroline n f&l..
      but i think other brands u mentioned like vedic line, aloe veda have really nce products whch work at par or better than nternational stuff n thy r dnt come cheap too…it wd also encourage us to know n buy more desi n upcoming stuff… πŸ™‚

      1. Kudos for coming up with that Aruna! i completely second her, because reading the review of a deo really doesn’t benefit me at all, as diff fragrances react diffly on skin types and moreover a fragrance is not tangible enough to be captured in a review.

  4. This was a much needed step towards enhancing the blog. Might I add one more point? Since the name of the blog itself says Indian Makeup and Beauty, what’s the point of product reviews which are not even available in India? There are enough International beauty blogs, but Quality Indian beauty blogs, not so many.

    1. Hi Leez,

      We are taking products of international brands even if they are not available in India. There is a huge readership of IMBB amongst Indians settled abroad also and they want product reviews for these brands done by Indians only.

      1. Spot on Sanjeev ji,…..

        Im always on the lookout for international brand reviews and I have introduced IMBB to my colleagues as well…. If it is an international brand then people all over the world will read it …

        1. true.. πŸ™‚ I always look up for imbb reviews & suggestions before swiping away my CC anywhere.. However it sometimes disappoints me wen i fail to get the desired product here.. Still searching for faces canada & colorbar… buhuuuuu πŸ˜›

          1. international prdct review shud def be there πŸ™‚ as these days we can get most products here too… and many times i have relatives or friends coming from abroad and reading reviews on products beforehand helps me a lot if i want something πŸ™‚

  5. Hey, can also ask you to enforce writers from mentioning what skin type/hair type they have? Coz most of the reviews are positive so it kind of becomes hard to judge what can be good for you.

      1. i also agree, u may give drop down options for selection or fixed choices for eg. skin type /hair type & texture – they can be classified and categorized well this way (and creates less confusion cause options are already provided) … this gives some idea if product shall suit us or not considering only high ends and international brands will be mostly reviewed here ( they have quality but also cost more too most of the times ) … though agree even if skin type is same results vary ..still it helps πŸ™‚

  6. i would like to add one point, once review is posted readers might have some doubts/clarfications related to that product, however the few writers(certain writers only) are not available to address those questions, so it would be good if the writers respond to queries as well.

      1. i agree with Shami’s comment… there have been so many occassions when i have taken the time to actually read the article and commented inspite of being busy bt many a times no reply or no acknowledgement of the same has been done….

  7. I read your blog daily … Like i read my newspaper and even i felt dat some reviews on boroline and fair & lovely were crazy … But i felt maybe this is your blog and you welcome every type of articles from new writers . Even deo & perfume reviews i feel is v personal choice . I wud never read the review and pick up a deo i need to test the fragnance my self . Believe me before i want to buy any beauty related products i check for review on your blog . Atleast it saves me some money and place in the cupboard from culter !

  8. Awww…Sanjeevji… u not only lessened my burden about asking doubts on IMBB but also helped me to learn more about resizing, compressing pics and also how to make a collage of pictures easily online…. I always thought that there is a separate software for resizing, compressing etc…
    Even though this MIGHT sound silly to some but honestly it has been a immense help to me…Not only did IMBB help me with its beauty reviews but has also polished some of my Computing skills….

  9. This is one of the factors I stopped reading blogs regularly… still do that off and on but the obsession with beauty blogs went down…. I dont mean to sound snobbish or offend anyone but when all i found on IMBB were user written articles, its face changed. I agree that the growth sky rocketed, but the warmth a personal blogger brings was lost.

    I would love it if along with the quality control, you could try and bring some of that personal touch as well!

    1. Also, I believe IMBB had forums a long time back. If it is possible, do you want to revive that? Users can talk about and discuss brands that do not appear in the reviews. Some of these could be local gems and one can benefit from others!

    2. Hi Anks,

      To be honest, I do not appreciate this comment. It offends IMBB and its writers on many levels.

      First, I still find that IMBB (and its writers included) have more warmth than any other ‘personal’ blog that you talk about. And most other personal blogs are only trying to copy IMBB at all levels. Just because a blog is written by one person does not mean that it has quality and is full of warmth. I find writers such as Naina, Nupur, Parita, Surabhi, Neha and many other writers having more warmth, quality and panache than any other personal blogger away from IMBB. For that matter, you also wrote here, remember? https://makeupandbeauty.com/author/anks/

      Yes IMBB’s growth has skyrocketed. Not because many others writers were writing on it but because many women, including you, found a place they liked. You also did before. And Rati and I realized early on that there were many good writers besides us who need a chance to express themselves without getting into hassles of blogging and having a chance to earn on their own. And we got so many good people together.

      You ran a personal blog yourself. That was your strategy for growth. Whether you succeeded or not was entirely on you. But please do not cast aspersions on IMBB’s success by saying that it was because many ‘not so good’ persons are writing here. By saying so, since you were a writer here also, you cast doubts on yourself. I find the whole IMBB team working harder than all the beauty bloggers combined to improve the quality at IMBB. And if we had put this kind of hardwork even if we were lone bloggers we would still have been this big. We ran http://www.totalgadha.com alone and made it as big as IMBB is. I don’t see any other so called ‘personal’ blog growing at all because they have never put in so much hard work as Rati has. So don’t belittle hard work of our team or our writers by saying that we have grown because there are many writing here. There are many other blogs taking writers and which are not growing. And don’t belittle personal warmth at IMBB also. See any ‘bloggers meet’ around. Most of those friendships happened on IMBB only.

      And I’m proud of IMBB writers, each one of them.

      And if you have forgotten, Rati, Jomol, and Neha are still writing here. You can go and check today’s article also. πŸ™‚

      1. Anks there are a lot of personal articles on IMBB still and each writer brings her own personal touch through her own article. Since you are not around much probably you miss out on the personal touch. I also dont want to sound snobbish but I am very proud of where IMBB is and I value each one of the writer here who takes out times to share her part of life through her posts. I read all of them. πŸ™‚

        1. Truly appreciated ur efforts & words dear imbb team.. πŸ™‚ I feel proud to tell everyone at my place that am a happy home maker yet imbb reader / writer.. πŸ™‚ my hubby my in-laws everyone are impressed n surprised by new neet.. πŸ™‚ he always encourages me to visit ur blog & learn how to stay happy & cheerful in ups as well as downs.. needless to say today am connected wid my homeland n all cheering persons thru imbb.. so it’s my facebook, my Skype, my Google everything.. I have my own identity besides dependence on h1 hubby, have lots of virtual frends sharing real joy & grief s,, wt else a lone dependent immigrant may expect from life now.. πŸ™‚ it all happened here at imbb.. I dnt know if I wud ever be able to repay u same.. : p just my best wishes to imbb for a record breaking success ahead! Words are getting shorter to describe hw I feel to be here!!
          Best wishes to every imbbian.. πŸ™‚

      2. Sanjeevji,

        I totally agree on this part “Most personal blogs try to copy IMBB” πŸ™‚ so true and they have also started taking articles ….

      3. Hi Sanjeev, I was very very apprehensive about writing this for the sole reason that you guys and other writers might feel offended…. and to clarify, i loved imbb to the point of obsession. it used to be the first thing i looked at every morning and kept checking throughout the day. In no way am I undermining the efforts that were put in by you, Rati, Jomol, Neha or any of the IMBB editorial team. I understand the massive effort it requires to run this site. Not just that, I also know that you need a great deal of commitment on the team’s part. I have no qualms in admitting that I stopped beauty blogging because I did not have the commitment level required for the job. It is hard work. Speaking of myself, I am and will always be thankful to IMBB for opening up the world of beauty to me like never before. In fact, I had written a very emotional letter to Rati once about this thing.

        You guys were one of the first sites to start accepting guest posts IMO and yes I wrote for it too. And here again, I am not undermining the effort that goes into the guest writer’s articles. All I am saying is that the site changed because of that. I missed the old format and thats what I said. And honestly, I am not saying that ‘not so good people’ are writing here. that would be a downright insult to the contributers and I can never do that. Only people who put themselves on a pedestal look down upon others such and am not one of those. My intention was to point out that there was a change and I preferred the older way of things. My obsession reduced and I became a sporadic reader. Its like this. There is a new TV series, you love it and watch it religiously. Then the twists and turns change the story and you don’t like it as much. You stop watching the series. I am sure you’d be able to relate to this.

        As to the warmth part, there is no dearth of that in the interactions. You see the comments and you know that. What I wanted to say is a personal warmth in the content that an individual blogger brings about. Reading IMBB was like reading a magazine. Is that a bad thing? No, ppl all over the world read magazines. But in a magazine, we do not know the author. A blogger on the other hand, lets us know little things about themselves that we can recall when we read their articles. For example, when I read Jomol’s articles, I remembered Aarohan. When I read Parita’s, I remembered that she is a fantastic cook. With Rati, I remembered all sorts of things from her last shopping expedition to her love for jeans!

        As far as the growth of IMBB is concerned, there is no belittling it. The fact that so many writers want to write here is because of what it is. And frankly, whether you want guest contributors or not or how many of them is your call. You run this. There is no denying that you guys have done very well. There is no denying the effort and thought that has gone behind the success.

        Finally, I hope I have clarified my position. I had no intentions of offending anyone. If I have, my apologies.

        1. Anks,

          I would like to point out only one thing and then I would stop- most of the personal bloggers that you talk about started writing on IMBB first. I sincerely believe that their writing was as personal here on IMBB as it is now on their blogs. And this is true for all the writers on IMBB.

          1. i just want to add in that there is so much positivity on IMBB that is the reason our readers come back again and again..no snobs no arrogance but just a slice of everyone’s life reflecting in their review…imbb is the haven that ppl delight in,when they are stressed…due to so much of warmth here…it is a people’s blog…everyone loves it!

    1. Aishu…..if the product hasn’t already been covered on the blog, if the pics are clear, if the content is genuine, and if you have followed all the guidelines that we have mentioned now and earlier, your review would have come up πŸ™‚ any way, please send a reminder.

  10. I read all the comments and I just want to smile πŸ™‚
    IMBB is my 2nd family and new or old faces… I’ve made some great friends here…
    *hugggs*

  11. Hi,

    That’s a grt info! But it would be great if we can get to know the rejection of the article asap, as we then stop waiting for it to come up on the website and also we stop sending you Reminder emails, which i don’t get a response on. πŸ˜€

  12. I wondering if you could make it mandatory for the ingredients list (or the lack of it on the packaging) to be mentioned? Personally, I love the fact that you have so many writers on IMBB. Keep up the good work!

  13. I Agree with Rene,…..

    I became hooked on to IMBB because of the variety it offers and compared to personal blogs it definitely has a massive amount of content…… Benefits of IMBB taking on reviews from writers compared to personal blogs …

    1.A huge number of products are covered,..instead of googling for a product review, I first check out IMBB and only if I cant find a review in IMBB then I google…. πŸ™‚
    A personal blogger cannot possibly cover so many products …..

    2.Because of many contributors I can relate to atleast one persons skintype, skincolour ( for foundation) hair texture etc ….However in personal blogs if the blogger has a totally different skin type any of their reviews wont be useful for me when it comes to skincare..

    3.Since almost half of the reviews are from writers who are based overseas I get to know new brands I can read about American,British ,European, Indian as well as international brands ..

    4.Atleast half of the personal beauty blogs I have come across have articles with lots of grammatical errors …i dont mean just one or two errors here and there….and the content is too short…..compared to the reviews on IMBB these other reviews are too short and are like a summary.

    5.Most of the products reviewed on IMBB are purchased by the writer where as in personal blogs quite a big percentage is sent for consideration by the brand as samples. freebies etc.

    Recently lots of personal bloggers have started to take articles from readers …. which kind of proves that the formula of IMBB works ….even their guidelines for writing articles is very similar to IMBB’s guidelines πŸ™‚ which means they are starting to get inspired by IMBB too ?

    However, After having said all these I do agree that there are a few good personal beauty bloggers out there who regularly update their blogs and have a wide readership but they are very few….. I like one blogger based in singapore….

    Moreover , the internet is inundated with beauty bloggers these days and in this sea of “beauty blogs” IMBB definitely stands out πŸ™‚

    This is my 2 cents πŸ™‚

  14. Hi Sanjeeviji,

    Previously I used to find all the articles written by me, by clicking of the link which had my name ,.. that link is missing nowadays ….could you please reinstate it if possible … πŸ™‚

    1. Hi Supriya,

      We have been reducing our plugins on IMBB slowly because the server load is becoming mammoth steadily. That plugin also got removed in our house cleaning. πŸ™

      What you can do is find one of the articles written by you and then click your name where it shows you as the author. It will show all your posts.

  15. My personal opinion is that im not looking for “personal touch”…. I want a review on a product im contemplating on buying ….I look for the ingredients ,price, and pros and cons of the product .. I also want it to be genuine…. thats all A review helps me to make a decision… but thats only my opinion πŸ™‚

  16. I think, for the Indian product range, you can probably add a tab that compiles brands like Aloe veda and all…. Govt. has also allowed FDI where retailers are saying they will help local farmers and support local produce…. I think we should as well… πŸ™‚ Our one bit towards the society by supporting Indian small industry….. I agree with one of the above comments… Sometimes these products do work wonders… And a looooooot of the readers are based in India, who might buy those, like you said there are international readers who want international brands reviewed…..

  17. I agree with all of your points, but yes maybe you can consider the indian brands suggestion as well. Its not about limited reach you know. Sometimes, we see a regional product with amazing reviews and we order it or ask our friends to get it from somewhere. A review is always helpful for people who really need a product like that but cant afford high end brands. Cosmetics brands like Incolor are available online and they might not be high end but their quality is so good- a beginner can always count on such brands in their collection.
    Other than that, no complaints, its always great to see when IMBB comes up with ways to improve itself. Its already on its way to the top! πŸ™‚

  18. Hi Mugdha and Shruti,

    I think you are mistaken to think that we are not going to cover these products, we are. We are just not taking them from every writer. We want only a few select writers to cover these products and that is why the block.

  19. Oh! God how much I miss being on IMBB these days.. πŸ™ Soooooo many things, happening all together.. πŸ™‚ But still happy on the inner note.. :):) I would love to contribute more to this but I don’t know how. Can someone please suggest me how can I do that? Would be more than happy to have a reply.. Love you all!!

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