I think sometimes with the skin lightening boards that suggesting a specific site to order from borders on the edge of advertising. There's also the fact that if you can't obtain it legally within your country, you are asking someone to help you break the law. We absolutely do not condone breaking the law on AMHD. If you'd like to share website information with each other, that's great--but use the private message function.


Your obviously not familiar with the skin lightening boards, we've ALWAYS suggested specific sites to order from. Not only did we do that to help other members find a product they were looking for but also for safety reasons, there are a lot of knock off products that look like the real deal and we have helped members stay away from those particular sites.

Now your asking us to share website information with each other, but use the private message function:confused: Because YOU think it borders on the edge of advertising? That doesn't make any sense to me at all, what's the point of askmehelpdesk boards if we all have to private message each other for information?

I'd rather hear from one of the higher ups such as Curlyben to lay the law about what we can or can not do when it comes to sharing information on the skin lightening boards because IT KEEPS CHANGING! I thought that's what askmehelpdesk was about, exchanging information, has that changed too?

I've been on this site for couple of years and one minute we can link then we can't, then we can link to the homepage but not to the sales page, now we can't, while some people who did link and their posts remained, others who did the same thing had their post removed.

And your comment about obtaining products outside the country is asking someone to help break the law, is not necessarily true. There are companies in both the United States and overseas who offer products that are normally sold locally, are now being offered online to ship internationally so that buyers outside their country can purchase. Nothing wrong with that!

I think you got most of the products we talk about here mixed up with the member who's package got stuck at the post office! I don't follow his posts so I don't' even know what he purchased and where he purchased it from but the fact that he got a little paranoid about being arrested was a clue I missed.

Your method of coming here having your say and closing threads without so much as giving members a chance toask questions to clarify what you meant was unfair! I have never seen any of your posts on this side of the boards before and it seems that members like you who don't normally post on the skin lightening board always seem to disrupt the natural order of things because what your all of a sudden asking us not do to we've always done!

That's why I'd rather hear from one of the higher Admins or Curlyben who can advise us on what is allowed and most of all whatever it is that's allowed it WON'T CHANGE!! Cause over the years it's been too many changes on what we can or cannot do. Can we just STICK WITH IT this time around:confused:

Example: If someone comes to the board and ask where they can purchase Tonique Skin Care:rolleyes:


Which is the wrong way to post an answer?
Which is the right way to answer that question?
Which one?

#1 You can buy it at ToniqueSkinCare.com
#2 You can purchase it at Tonique Skin Care-All Natural Skin Whitening Products (http://www.toniqueskincare.com/)
#3 You can get it here toniqueskincare - Google Search (http://www.google.com/search?hl=&q=toniqueskincare&sourceid=navclient-ff&rlz=1B3GGLL_enUS363US363&ie=UTF-8)

Nikki, I think the problem stems from new posters who come here and spam the boards. It is hard for us moderators to determine who is trying to make a profit off these products and who is legitimately trying to help others.

The skin lightening board is the least moderated board on all of AMHD. We just don't know who could be helping and who could be hurting, if you know what I mean.

I agree with J9.

There are so many new questions on the skin lightening forum every day, it's hard to know who's advertising and who's just recommending a product that they use.

I don't know how to solve the issue, I also don't know who could moderate the site because it would obviously have to be someone that knows about the products being used, which are harmful, which aren't. From what I've read, there isn't such a person because most of these products haven't been tested enough to determine what's safe.

Another thing to consider, and I don't know if this is a legal issue or not, is that the mods are protecting you when they remove the link. If you recommend a product then you're putting your name behind it, even if you're not selling it. So what if something goes wrong with that product?

I think it's best to stick to posting about what you're using, how it's working for you, and not posting links so that people can purchase these products.

Just my two cents and that's probably what it's worth. ;)

Nikki, I think the problem stems from new posters who come here and spam the boards. It is hard for us moderators to determine who is trying to make a profit off of these products and who is legitimately trying to help others.The skin lightening board is the least moderated board on all of AMHD. We just don't know who could be helping and who could be hurting, if you know what I mean.

I understand what your saying, I just wanted some clarification on how members can share website information on the boards without having to use private message.

Synnen didn't take in consideration certain members who lurk these boards or others who have not joined but search for info here. If someone ask a question and another answers in private message it's going to look like an unanswered question on the open board. How are they suppose to know the answer when it's private?

There is more than one person waiting for the answer and we're suppose to private message ALL of them:confused:

I think why you see advertisement deleted one day and not another is that we have not always keep a moderator watching all of the posts, this is often an active board

I do delete advertisements anytime I see them here,

I do it since it is normally advertisement and that in most areas it is not legal, so it breaks both of the site rules.

I would expect senior members to report it when they see it, and not do it thierself

And of course sending that info on PM is also against the rules, and when found can result in action against those doing it.

I understand what your saying, I just wanted some clarification on how members can share website information on the boards without having to use private message.

Synnen didn't take in consideration certain members who lurk these boards or others who have not joined but search for info here. If someone ask a question and another answers in private message it's going to look like an unanswered question on the open board. How are they suppose to know the answer when it's private?

There is more than one person waiting for the answer and we're suppose to private message ALL of them:confused:
I completely agree with you Nikki. One of the TOS is NOT to PM members and to keep all questions and answers on the open forum.

I would be interested to know if you have an idea how we can control this. We will definitely take it into consideration.

I agree with J9.There are so many new questions on the skin lightening forum every day, it's hard to know who's advertising and who's just recommending a product that they use.
I don't know how to solve the issue, I also don't know who could moderate the site because it would obviously have to be someone that knows about the products being used, which are harmful, which aren't. From what I've read, there isn't such a person because most of these products haven't been tested enough to determine what's safe. Another thing to consider, and I don't know if this is a legal issue or not, is that the mods are protecting you when they remove the link. If you recommend a product then you're putting your name behind it, even if you're not selling it. So what if something goes wrong with that product? I think it's best to stick to posting about what you're using, how it's working for you, and not posting links so that people can purchase these products.Just my two cents and that's probably what it's worth. ;)

Terms of Service ("TOS")
Members are offering their view and/or opinion only. In their giving of their view or opinion, they do not in any way imply or state a relationship of any kind. Neither AskMeHelpDesk nor it's Members may be held responsible for any consequence to any action or lack of action you take after reading any material posted to this site.


How are they protecting us by removing a link? Product recommendations can be made WITHOUT a link. Link or no link I'm not putting my name behind it and I am not responsible if something goes wrong! I don't think this is a legal issue at all.

Skin lightening members here have been excellent in determining which products are not safe to use because we've tried many many products through the years.! At times someone goes to the wrong site and purchase, they should have went to .com instead of .net

I have been posting about what I use and how it's been working for me and guess what question is asked afterward? They want to know where you got from. Some products name don't match the site name.

I gave three examples and asked which is the more appropriate post, from what you saying maybe example #1 is best? It's not a link but it tells you where to go.

Your post is worth more than two cents:p Thanks for helping.

The TOS does state that, but sadly most people don't read the TOS, even though they did agree to them when they signed up. That's my concern.

Like I said before, I really don't know how to fix it, because I do see your point, people will ask where you bought the product from and that is the point of the skin lightening forum, to share info and products being used.

I also see the mods point that it's hard to moderate, hard to determine what's an advertisement and what's simply a sharing of info.

Two cents plus tax? ;)

Nikki, unfortunately the skin lightening form has an absurd amount of scammers/advertisers. We find it hard to determine who is legitimate and who is not at times.

We rely on you all to report inappropriate posts and advertising. Without doing so, you all leave it up to us to make a decision as to what is advertising and what is not.

Nikki, unfortunately the skin lightening form has an absurd amount of scammers/advertisers. We find it hard to determine who is legitimate and who is not at times.We rely on you all to report inappropriate posts and advertising. Without doing so, you all leave it up to us to make a decision as to what is advertising and what is not.

I understand about the scammers and advertisers that come here but I'm just going back to Synnen telling us not to suggest specific sites when we've always done that here and now he's saying that we can't share website information with each other, take it private.

I have used the inappropriate link many times when things got out of hand but I never used it when someone suggested a site!
Now what do we do when asked about where we bought a product:confused:

I understand about the scammers and advertisers that come here but I'm just going back to Synnen telling us not to suggest specific sites when we've always done that here and now he's saying that we can't share website information with each other, take it private.

I have used the inappropriate link many times when things got out of hand but I never used it when someone suggested a site!!
Now what do we do when asked about where we bought a product:confused:

Maybe this post should be put in forum help or some other forum where all the mods are likely to read it.

I do think you bring up a good point Nickki and I do think that you have to discuss this with Ben and the other mods and come up with a solution. I don't think that's going to happen here though.

Oh, fyi, Synnen is a she. :)

Ooops! :p I thought Synnen was a guy for some odd reason.
Just wanted to know what she meant by all of that private message business. Oh well... I'll just go on as usual.

ooops!!:p I thought Synnen was a guy for some odd reason.
oh well...just wanted to know what she meant by all of that private message business. I'll just go on as usual.

Nope, she's all female. :)

I don't think you should let it go. You did bring up a good point and I do think that some sort of concrete way of handling all of this needs to be worked out. I just don't have any ideas, and I definitely don't have any say in the matter.

Like I said, jut my 2 cents plus tax. :)

Does she have any real say in the matter?
She came in here like "There's a New Sheriff in Town".
Guns blazing tumble weed and all:p

Like she was going to delete every thread where someone mentioned they purchased their skin lightening cream from, at least that's how I saw it. Perhaps I read her post wrong?
Or took it in the wrong way? She was talking to someone who may have been talking about purchasing a lightener illegally and I thought she meant everyone in general, I don't even know anymore! Lol

Most of this is covered here: https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/skin-lightening/read-before-posting-30185.html
Of all your examples, only #2 is borderline and worthy of closer inspection, but linking to specific products isn't, especially if it's on a sales site. (you know what I mean)
Linking to information has always been acceptable.

I tasked Synnen with keeping an eye on the board, as I felt a specific mod presence was needed. The quote you used was concerning a specific case where Chinese product was being personally imported into the UK. You does make a very valid point.
Some of the ingredients used in these products are controlled or banned in some countries, so personal importation could be an issue.

Now I know you don't do this, but a number of other SL members seem to think that this is their very own personal board. Well, no, it's simply part of a much larger site, so the normal etiquette and decorum is expected.

Yeppy it's Curlyben!! :D lol
Thanks! I'll stick with examples #1 and #3 then.
And thanks to everyone else as well. OK!

Hey I'm confused... so you can't post a link... stating whether... anyone had tried this product and if they saw results...

e.g... anyone tried... so and so...

www.soandso...

#1 and #3 are fine, but #2 is borderline as it's selling on the front page.
Links to sales sites are a definite NO.

Ohhhh... so you can't say that you can purchase it from so and so... I got you :D

You can generalise with a Google search, but that's it.

You know--I'm sorry if I offended. I wasn't trying to do so.

However--the amount of spam on the skin lightening boards it amazing. I'm trying to keep it legit without stepping too hard on the toes of our regular members.

For the first month I was watching the skin lightening boards, I was doing NOTHING but deleting the obvious spam, pointing out that chat speak is not allowed, and learning who the regular posters are. I was also trying to learn about the different products that you talk about, and the different methods used--I'm still asking questions for clarification there, honestly, and I appreciate all of the help the regular posters have given me so that I can learn.

I agree with Curlyben--1 and 3 are fine, but 2 really borders on advertising.

And you're right--keeping answers on the boards is the way we should do it. And suggesting that people try websites isn't against the rules--we suggest legal websites all the time on the law boards, for instance. The thing is, there's a fine line between suggesting a place where someone can get more information, and suggesting a place where someone should buy from. Using the law boards again as an example--it's good to link to a state's legislation site, but not good to link a specific lawyer to use in a trial.

Again--sorry if I came across hard. I DO try to keep in consideration those who are regular posters and those who are fly-by-night spammers (and those in between).

What can be done about the few long-term spammers who have been members here in the skin lightening forum for years yet who have been advertising? And are also responsible of numerous counts of name calling, insults due to the product being mentioned and not personal, verbal & forceful attempts of trying to literally push other member(s) away from the forum due to them not liking what is being stated about their brand, and pm messages being sent?

Are you using the Report Inappropriate Post feature?

I do try to catch as much as I can, but I'm only one person, and I have multiple things going on in my life as well. If you use the RIP feature, that brings it to the attention of ALL of the moderators.

As to the insulting PMs---forward those to any moderator.

Abuse of other members isn't tolerated, but we need to know about it in order to do something. Same with advertising, spam, or insults/inappropriate behavior in threads.

I'd LOVE to have the Skin Lightening forums be a place of decorum and helpfulness, especially since you seem to know your stuff and are intent on helping others. We need your help as much as possible to do that, though.

Are you using the Report Inappropriate Post feature?

I do try to catch as much as I can, but I'm only one person, and I have multiple things going on in my life as well. If you use the RIP feature, that brings it to the attention of ALL of the moderators.

As to the insulting PMs---forward those to any moderator.

Abuse of other members isn't tolerated, but we need to know about it in order to do something. Same with advertising, spam, or insults/inappropriate behavior in threads.

I'd LOVE to have the Skin Lightening forums be a place of decorum and helpfulness, especially since ya'll seem to know your stuff and are intent on helping others. We need your help as much as possible to do that, though.


Yes, I do use the Report Inappropriate Post feature and sometimes it is quite efective, and other times it hasn't been as effective unfortunately. Ok, so the RIP feature is just short for Report Inappropriate Post?
Thanks Synnen

Yup... RIP is short for "report inappropriate post".

All of the moderators are in different time zones, but we volunteer our time too. Sometimes if there is only one of us around or awake, it takes longer to respond to reported posts.

For example---because I'm online at work most days, I can only check when I get a lull in the craziness here. I started typing this post 45 minutes ago. We do our best, but it's always helpful if you report something as inappropriate and then give us a chance to fix it.

You know--I'm sorry if I offended. I wasn't trying to do so.However--the amount of spam on the skin lightening boards it amazing. I'm trying to keep it legit without stepping too hard on the toes of our regular members. For the first month I was watching the skin lightening boards, I was doing NOTHING but deleting the obvious spam, pointing out that chat speak is not allowed, and learning who the regular posters are. I was also trying to learn about the different products that ya'll talk about, and the different methods used--I'm still asking questions for clarification there, honestly, and I appreciate all of the help the regular posters have given me so that I can learn.I agree with Curlyben--1 and 3 are fine, but 2 really borders on advertising. And you're right--keeping answers on the boards is the way we should do it. And suggesting that people try websites isn't against the rules--we suggest legal websites all the time on the law boards, for instance. The thing is, there's a fine line between suggesting a place where someone can get more information, and suggesting a place where someone should buy from. Using the law boards again as an example--it's good to link to a state's legislation site, but not good to link a specific lawyer to use in a trial. Again--sorry if I came across hard. I DO try to keep in consideration those who are regular posters and those who are fly-by-night spammers (and those in between).

Oh there is no need to apologize!! And you didn't offend me at all, I just wanted some clarification on what we can and cannot do as far as sharing website information as it has kept changing through the years and the threads you were in closed so fast I didn't get a chance to ask you any questions, that's why I started this thread and gave three examples and asked which is the appropriate way to post.

Nice to meet you:) I'm one of the regular posters here on askmehelpdesk and am willing to you help you in anyway I can. Thanks!

Thanks!

Let's stay on topic, hmmm?

Yes ma'am!! :)

@ Synnen, OK.

Since no one seems to understand "keep it on topic" and moderators fingers are getting tired from deleting posts, this thread is closed

And for the poster wanting to quote the rules you forgot the one main one

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