Almost everyone has seen a YouTube video in which influencers promote something. This often includes affiliated marketing. You click on a link, in the best case scenario you save and the influencer receives a small contribution from the purchase. But one of the largest companies for this is not supposed to be what it promises. A YouTuber shows how a subsidiary of PayPal is even supposed to defraud the influencers who promote the product.
Which company is it about? Honey is a browser extension designed to help you shop. If you want to buy something in an online store, Honey offers you suitable coupons or discount codes with which you can save something. At least that’s the promise. In 2019, PayPal bought the company behind Honey for $4 billion (via techcrunch.com).
Honey is known to many viewers in the English YouTube area, because big YouTubers like Mr.Beast or Linus Tech Tips often advertised the company and even had a link that you could use to shop.
The YouTuber MegaLag explained in a recent YouTube video that Honey does not treat its customers and influencers who promote it the way it appears to the outside world.
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Influencers are probably promoting something that doesn’t help them but harms them
What explains MegaLag? MegaLag’s current company-critical video is about Honey and how affiliated marketing doesn’t help influencers at all.
In addition to classic advertising parts within videos, there are also YouTubers like Linus Tech Tips who offer an affiliate link for stores. If you click on the link and buy something, the influencer receives a commission at no additional cost to the viewer. Amazon, for example, offers such a program.
The commission usually goes to the person whose link you switched to Amazon’s offer.
However, as MegaLag shows, if you use Honey as a browser extension and click on a possible coupon, Honey will probably simply change the link during checkout.
If you click on a button on the Honey extension before checking out, Honey changes the cookie by opening a website, whereby Honey masquerades as the source that brought the customer to the site when purchasing.
: The influencer or website that actually sent you to the offer comes away empty-handed. Honey takes the commission.
According to his video, MegLag tested this with links from several YouTubers and Honey is said to have changed the cookies each time. He wrote to Honey and they are said to have replied that if you use Honey as the last page when you buy something, Honey also gets the credit for the purchase.
You can see the entire video from MegaLag here:
Few influencers have probably noticed that the service puts them at a disadvantage
Where is the problem? In effect, influencers are promoting a browser extension that renders their own affiliate links useless.
MegaLag criticizes the fact that it is not transparent what is happening in the background in the cookies and links.
Did the influencers notice? It seems that only a few people have noticed it publicly, as MegaLag explains in his video. Linus Tech Tips confirmed in a response on its forum that it had broken off the collaboration, but that this only happened after over 100 videos.
He also asked Linus Tech Tips for an opinion. She explained that they approached Honey about changing the system, but Honey didn’t seem to want it. Now, according to MegaLag, Linus Tech Tips is working with a similar company.
A clip on the topic is currently going viral on x.com, in which the great YouTuber Markiplier had an uneasy feeling towards Honey years ago.
It probably also has disadvantages for customers
At first glance, there are no disadvantages to using it for customers, unless they really want to support their favorite YouTuber. However, MegaLag explains that Honey probably doesn’t always show the best coupon available.
How plausible are MegaLag’s criticisms? In his video, MegaLag shows several examples and statements that can be officially linked to Honey, which makes his criticism quite plausible. In addition, the video is only intended to be the 1st part of 3 videos that deal with Honey and critical aspects of it.
German video creators also like to try to feature large companies or events. This was also the case at the European Football Championship, where the YouTuber Marvin even got into real trouble: YouTuber Marvin Wildhage usually tricks German influencers: At the European Football Championship he achieved his masterpiece