Who doesn’t like a good deal, especially during the holidays and when it seems everything is costing so much more? Honey is known for finding you the best deal possible on a desired product. However, a YouTuber published a video over the weekend stating that Honey is a scam, is responsible for stealing from influencers, and that it promotes its own coupons over better deals.
YouTuber Blows Up Honey Extension
The time it takes to find good deals can be lengthy, but the Honey browser extension can reduce that time significantly. Since you’re trying to save time by using it, you’re unlikely to check to be sure it’s the best deal. But maybe you should be – or just not use it at all.
A YouTuber claims that while Honey’s job is to interrupt your deal search to offer you coupon codes while you’re shopping, it’s known to not find codes. It’s also known for offering you a Honey deal at the time you’re searching. While Honey claims it will “find every working promo code on the Internet,” the YouTuber claims it ignores good deals and subs in deals from Honey’s partnerships that are actually lesser deals.
Even more disturbing, the YouTuber claims that the Honey browser extension has been stealing money from the influencers who are paid to promote it. While influencers have affiliate links that are supposed to pay them if you click on the link, Honey puts its own tracking link in instead – even if it doesn’t find you a coupon code. It gets the affiliate credit for the sale instead of the influencer.
FYI: check out these other tricks online sellers use to manipulate the sales process.
Reactions to YouTuber’s Claims
Honey is a product of PayPal. The VP of PayPal’s corporate communications, Josh Criscoe, said that industry rules and practices are followed with the Honey business. He added that those rules and practices include last-click attribution, which is a model that has all the credit for that clicked link going to the company responsible for the last click before the sale.
In fact, a tweet from 2021 suggested that if you open the Honey discount code in a different browser, you can get the affiliate click instead of Honey. Additionally, Linus Tech Tips reportedly stopped using Honey as a sponsor, as it didn’t agree with how it conducted its business with affiliates.
There are many affiliates who may have been affected. There are 1,000 YouTube channels that recommend Honey in nearly 5,000 videos. And now those influencers are questioning their affiliation with Honey – or at least they should be. And you may want to consider a different browser extension to save money.
If you’re on the lookout for more deals, check out the daily deals at Make Tech Easier, such as this one on a large smart TV.
All screenshots and images by Laura Tucker.
