Affiliate Disclosure
We believe honesty is the foundation of trust. This page explains exactly how ShamimGuide earns money, and why it never compromises our editorial integrity.
Our Commitment to You
ShamimGuide was built on trust. We earn affiliate commissions on some products, but we promise this has never and will never influence our editorial ratings, verdicts, or recommendations. Our readers come first — always.
Overview
ShamimGuide is a free, independent health and wellness content platform. To keep this website running — covering hosting, research tools, editorial work, and content production — we participate in affiliate marketing programs.
This means that some links on ShamimGuide are affiliate links. If you click one of these links and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission from the retailer or brand — at absolutely no extra cost to you.
This Affiliate Disclosure page is designed to be completely transparent about how this works, which affiliate programs we participate in, and how we guarantee our editorial independence despite these financial relationships.
What Is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a standard and legal method of monetizing content websites. Here's how it works in simple terms:
We Research & Review a Product
Our team independently researches, evaluates, and reviews health products using our evidence-based methodology — before any affiliate relationship exists.
We Publish Our Honest Review
We publish our findings — including strengths, weaknesses, side effects, and an overall verdict — regardless of whether we have an affiliate link for the product.
We Include an Affiliate Link (Where Available)
If a product we've reviewed has an affiliate program, we may include a tracked link to the product's official website or retail page.
You Click the Link (Optional)
If you choose to click the link, a cookie is placed on your device that identifies ShamimGuide as the referring source. You are not charged anything extra.
We Earn a Commission (If You Purchase)
If you make a qualifying purchase within the affiliate cookie window, we receive a small commission from the brand or retailer — typically 5–30% of the sale price. This comes from the merchant's budget, not from you.
How We Earn Commissions
ShamimGuide may earn revenue through the following means:
| Revenue Source | How It Works | Disclosed? |
|---|---|---|
| Affiliate Links | Commission earned when you click a tracked link and make a purchase from the retailer | ✅ Yes — on every article |
| Amazon Associates | Commission on Amazon purchases made through our links (typically 1–10%) | ✅ Yes — per Amazon policy |
| Supplement Brand Programs | Direct affiliate programs with health supplement brands we review | ✅ Yes — on relevant articles |
| Newsletter Sponsorship | Occasionally, newsletter editions may include a sponsored mention (clearly labelled "Sponsored") | ✅ Yes — labelled clearly |
What We Do NOT Do
ShamimGuide does not accept display advertising (banner ads), pay-per-click ads from ad networks, or payment for article placement or positive reviews. Our income is limited to the affiliate and sponsorship sources listed above.
Our Editorial Promise
These are the six non-negotiable commitments we make to every reader of ShamimGuide:
Reviews Written Before Affiliate Links
We always evaluate a product on its merits first. We never start with a commission opportunity and work backwards to justify it.
Commission Rate Never Affects Rating
A product that pays 30% commission receives the same objective score as one that pays 5% — or zero. Our rating formula is blind to financial incentives.
We Review Products We Don't Like
If a product fails our evaluation, we publish a negative or mixed review — even if we lose affiliate income as a result.
No Paid-For Positive Reviews
No brand, PR agency, or individual can pay ShamimGuide for a positive review, top ranking, or editorial placement. This policy is absolute.
Brands Cannot Edit Our Reviews
Once published, brands have no right to request edits, removals, or changes to our reviews. Our editorial is entirely ours.
Reviews Updated When Facts Change
If a product changes its formula, a brand gets complaints, or new research emerges, we update our review to reflect the current reality.
Does Affiliate Income Affect Our Reviews?
No. Here's exactly how our scoring system is structured to prevent financial bias:
Example: How We Score Two Competing Products
✅ What Affects Our Ratings
- Ingredient quality and dosages
- Clinical evidence for each ingredient
- Third-party testing / certifications
- Transparency of label
- Real user reviews and complaints
- Price-to-value ratio
- Side effect profile and safety
- Brand reputation and trust
✗ What Never Affects Our Ratings
- Affiliate commission rate
- Whether a brand has an affiliate program
- Payment or gifts from brands
- PR relationships or media access
- Brand advertising spend
- Threats of legal action from brands
- Positive or negative emails from brands
- Personal relationships with brands
Our Review Process
To understand why our affiliate relationships do not compromise our reviews, it helps to understand how we select and evaluate products:
- Product Selection: We select products based on reader requests, market prominence, and editorial relevance — not based on which products offer affiliate programs or highest commissions.
- Ingredient Research: We analyze each ingredient using PubMed, NIH databases, and peer-reviewed clinical literature — before looking at affiliate opportunities.
- Scoring Criteria: Products are scored on ingredient quality, dosing accuracy, transparency, safety, user feedback, and value. Commission potential is not a scoring variable.
- Negative Reviews Published: If a product scores poorly, we publish the negative review. We currently have published multiple negative and mixed reviews of products that have affiliate programs — losing us commission income.
- Complaints Tracked: We actively monitor consumer complaint forums, Reddit, Better Business Bureau, and Trustpilot to include real user experience in our evaluations.
For full details of our editorial process, see our Editorial Policy.
Our Affiliate Partners
ShamimGuide may currently participate in affiliate programs with the following types of companies and networks. This list is not exhaustive, as affiliate relationships may change over time:
Amazon Associates
Health, fitness & supplement products
Supplement Brands
Direct brand affiliate programs
Fitness Equipment
Treadmills, bikes, accessories
Health Apps & Wearables
Fitness trackers & wellness apps
Natural Health Retailers
Online health & wellness stores
Skin & Oral Care Brands
Natural beauty & dental products
If you would like to know whether a specific product link is an affiliate link, please contact us and we will confirm immediately.
How We Disclose Affiliate Links on the Site
We disclose affiliate relationships clearly and consistently throughout the website. Here's where you will see disclosures:
- Article-Level Disclosure: Every article containing affiliate links includes a disclosure notice at or near the top of the page, before any affiliate links appear.
- Inline Tags: Where possible, affiliate links are tagged with a small label to make them identifiable at a glance.
- Footer Disclosure: The website footer on every page includes a brief affiliate disclosure statement.
- This Dedicated Page: This full Affiliate Disclosure page is linked from the footer, About Us page, and all major editorial pages.
- Newsletter Disclosures: Newsletter emails containing affiliate links include a disclosure statement near the beginning of the email.
What We Never Do
To protect the integrity of our platform and the trust of our readers, ShamimGuide maintains an absolute list of practices we will never engage in:
- ✗ Never accept payment for positive reviews — no brand can buy a favorable rating, score, or editorial recommendation from us.
- ✗ Never hide affiliate relationships — all material connections are disclosed clearly and conspicuously.
- ✗ Never recommend products we don't genuinely believe in — we would rather link to nothing than link to a product we'd warn our own family against.
- ✗ Never suppress negative reviews due to affiliate relationships — a poor product gets a poor review, regardless of commission potential.
- ✗ Never allow brands to review or approve content before publication — our editorial is entirely independent.
- ✗ Never rank products based on commission rate — our "Top Picks" and rankings are based solely on our review scores.
- ✗ Never use misleading affiliate link labelling — we don't disguise affiliate links as non-affiliate links.
- ✗ Never create fake urgency or pressure tactics — countdown timers, false scarcity claims, or manufactured urgency around affiliate links are against our editorial standards.
Sponsored Content Policy
Occasionally, ShamimGuide may publish content that has been partially or fully funded by a brand or company. This is rare, and we apply strict rules when it occurs:
- Always clearly labelled: Sponsored content is labelled "Sponsored," "Paid Partnership," or "Advertisement" — prominently, at the top of the content.
- Same editorial standards apply: Even sponsored content must meet our accuracy and evidence-based standards. We do not publish factually misleading sponsored content.
- Opinion remains ours: While a brand may fund the production of an article, they cannot dictate our opinions, conclusions, or the inclusion of warnings or caveats.
- No disguising as organic content: Sponsored content is never presented as if it were an independent, organic ShamimGuide review.
- Medical accuracy reviewed: Sponsored health content is subject to the same medical accuracy review as all other content on the site.
Note on Frequency
As of the date of this disclosure, sponsored content on ShamimGuide is extremely rare. The vast majority of our content is entirely self-funded through affiliate commissions, with no brand involvement in our editorial decisions.
No Extra Cost to You — Ever
We want to be absolutely clear about this point:
In fact, using our affiliate links is one of the best ways to support ShamimGuide's continued operation — it costs you nothing, but it helps us keep publishing free, independent health content.
Occasionally, our affiliate links may even give you access to exclusive discounts or bonus offers that are not available through the retailer's main website. When this is the case, we will note it clearly in the article.
FTC Compliance & Legal Basis
ShamimGuide's affiliate disclosure practices are designed to comply with:
| Regulation | Region | Requirement | Our Compliance |
|---|---|---|---|
| FTC Guidelines (16 CFR Part 255) | United States | Clear and conspicuous disclosure of material connections | ✅ Disclosed on every article, footer, and this page |
| ASA/CAP Code | United Kingdom | Clearly identify affiliate and paid content | ✅ Labelled as per guidance |
| EU Consumer Rights Directive | European Union | Transparency in commercial communications | ✅ Disclosed before affiliate links appear |
| GDPR / ePrivacy | EU / UK | Cookie consent for affiliate tracking cookies | ✅ Cookie consent mechanism in place |
| Amazon Associates Policy | Global | Disclosure statement required on site | ✅ Amazon disclosure included in footer |
Amazon Associates Disclosure: ShamimGuide is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated Amazon sites.
Questions About Our Affiliate Relationships
We welcome questions about our affiliate relationships, editorial process, or any specific product review. Transparency is not just a legal requirement for us — it is a core value.
| General Email | hello@shamimguide.com |
| Editorial Questions | editorial@shamimguide.com |
| Partnership Inquiries | partnerships@shamimguide.com |
| Contact Form | shamimguide.com/contact-us |
| Response Time | Within 48 hours on business days |
If you believe a specific product review on ShamimGuide is biased or undisclosed, we urge you to report it to us at the editorial email above. We take all such concerns seriously and will investigate promptly.
Related Legal Documents
Have a Question About Our Disclosures?
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