You come to RealSelf to see real treatment experiences and results from people like you. That’s why we firmly believe all constructive reviews (positive, negative, or just so-so) have a place on our site.
You also need to be able to trust that the reviews you see on RealSelf are authentic—without a conflict of interest. Our Content Moderation team takes our responsibility to you very seriously, and we’re working hard every day to ensure you can trust all RealSelf reviews.
We moderate all reviews using a multi-step process that leverages both technology and human analysis.
We require all reviewers to register as a RealSelf member with a valid email address. When they include a doctor or other provider in their review, we also require their phone number. We then text this phone number and require the reviewer to enter a code before they can proceed.
We can’t give away our secrets, but our highly trained moderation team reviews each piece of content to ensure that the reviewer:
- has a valid email address and phone number
- has provided enough information, including the treatment received, that other people will find it helpful.
- doesn't have a conflict of interest with the doctor or practice (including being a family member or employee).
- wasn’t compensated for their review
We also ensure that each review meets our Terms of Service.
Once they’ve been approved and published, reviews are only removed from RealSelf if:
- we determine that the review violates our Terms of Service
- we discover that the reviewer has connections to a brand, practice, or provider.
- the reviewer asks us to take it down.
We will not remove reviews:
- if a provider asks us to, regardless of whether they advertise on RealSelf
- because the review is negative (as long as it meets our Terms of Service)
If you ever think a review isn't authentic or needs a second look, please email us, and our dedicated team of moderators will look into it.