Dear Anonymous,

Dear Anonymous, 

        I would love to respond directly to your comment "(brand name) experimenting with lil bloggers to push product. Cute.", but sadly you seemed to have forgotten to leave your name.  First I would like to say thank you so much for taking the time to visit Cathy Thinking Out Loud and for leaving a comment. I always like to take the time to thank both people and brands that provide me an opportunity, or take the time to comment. We all have busy lives, and therefore must be discriminating with how we choose to use our time. Clearly sharing this opinion was important to you since you took the time to share it.

        Having said that, I am struggling a bit, trying to understand the purpose of your comment. Was it a sarcastic jab at the brand? If so I am not at all sure it was successful, especially since it is unlikely they will ever see the comment. If your comment was to take a jab at me and "lil" bloggers, here again I think you have failed. I am proud to represent the "lil" people and bloggers and to call them my colleagues and friends. Also, I feel that your comment lacks the research required to make such a call about me, or my blog.

        So to set the record straight, and to save you some time, I will fill in some of the details for you. First, in regards to size, if you mean the number of followers, then I will give you that. I have been blogging for less than a year, and have not amassed a huge following. This takes time, and kudos to those bloggers who have accomplished this through hard work and dedication. I raise a glass to all of them! As far as content, I believe I am "big" on providing my readers with exactly what I claim to be "I'm Cathy thinking out loud about things that matter to me. Sharing is in my nature, and at Cathy Thinking Out Loud I share and link, information, ideas, and people." I am big on engagement, and interaction. I am big on travel, giving back, paying it forward, and green ideas.

        I "push" very few products for brands on my blog in exchange for product or compensation, although I have no issue with that. My experience is I am under no obligation to give a positive review, just an honest review of my personal experience with the brand or product. I am always happy to share an idea or product that I think my readers would like, especially if it addresses or solves a problem. Most times I purchase a product and like it so much I want to share. Occasionally I am lucky enough to have the opportunity to review a product, and be compensated for my honest feedback, and the considerable amount of time it takes to do the review, or post.

        My first reaction to your comment was to point out I was pushing nothing, but instead sharing information, and giving my readers an opportunity to win a giveaway. I wanted to respond that I bring to my blog years of education, work, and life experience that is anything but "lil". I wanted to suggest that people are free to read or not read my blog. That is the beauty of it. Then I realized you really don't care about such things, and maybe you need to make others feel "lil" in order for you to feel big. In the end I deleted your comment Anonymous, not because of what you said, but because I put myself out there and sign my name to it, and I have a policy of deleting comments when the person commenting does not do the same. On that note I wish you all the best in your big life.

Sincerely

Cathy Canton