The Relatable Influencer Marketing Trap
We've all seen it. Scroll through Instagram and you'll find someone who looks just like you, talks just like you, has experienced exactly what you're going through. They're relatable. They're authentic. They "get it."
And then they discovered Supplement A, and it changed their life—so obviously, it will change yours too, right?
So you buy it. You wait for the miracle. And inevitably, you're disappointed.
Here's what's really happening: you've just experienced one of the most effective marketing hacks in sales. Find a niche, appeal to a need, sell the solution. Rinse and repeat.
The most frustrating part? These people are often selling complete bullshit.
Let me explain why, as a scientist and the founder of Straight Up Performance, I refuse to operate this way.
The Problem with "It Worked for Me" Evidence
Frustration #1: Individual Experience ≠ Scientific Evidence
When someone tells you "this supplement changed my life," what they're really saying is: "I tried this thing and something happened." But correlation is not causation, and individual experience is not evidence.
Here's what most people don't understand: anything that has legitimate scientific evidence to support it needs to be tested in more than a single person. In fact, it needs to be tested in hundreds of people, with proper controls, randomisation, and statistical analysis.
As a scientist, I can tell you something fundamental about human biology: we are all individuals. No matter how large the sample size in any clinical trial, you will always see significant variation in response. You will have outliers who respond completely differently to everyone else. Some people will have dramatic results. Others will have no response at all.
This is normal. This is expected. This is how biology works.
When someone builds their entire supplement brand around their personal experience, they're essentially asking you to gamble that you'll be the same outlier they were. Without a complete study that looks at an overall effect across a diverse population, you're literally just doing something because it maybe worked for one other person.
That's not science. That's hope. And hope is not a strategy for optimising your performance or health.
The Mouse Study Deception
Frustration #2: Petri Dishes and Mice Are Not Humans
This one drives me absolutely crazy, and I see it constantly: self-proclaimed experts talking about "all the evidence" for their miracle ingredient—except not a single study was performed as a clinical trial in humans.
Here's a recent example from my own experience:
A company approached me recently with a supplement ingredient that was supposedly superior to anything currently available. They suggested I replace one of my existing ingredients with theirs. They even did some of the legwork for me, supplying numerous research papers showing that their ingredient was "better."
I'm always looking for ways to improve my formulations and give my customers the absolute best, so I took a serious look at their research.
Every. Single. Study. Was. A. Cell. Study.
Not one was conducted in an actual human being. Not even in whole animals—just isolated cells in petri dishes.
That is not evidence we can rely on.
Why Cell Studies and Animal Studies Don't Translate
Let me explain why this matters so profoundly:
Most things that work in a sterile single-cell environment or even in a mouse do not translate to outcomes in humans.
We are fundamentally different. Humans are incredibly complicated biological systems with:
- Multiple interconnected organ systems
- Complex metabolic pathways
- Individual genetic variations
- Gut microbiomes that influence everything
- Lifestyle factors that affect responses
- Psychological components that matter
- Environmental influences we can't control
When you test an ingredient on isolated cells in a petri dish:
- There's no digestive system to break it down
- There's no liver to metabolise it
- There's no excretion through kidneys
- There's no interaction with other nutrients
- There's no real-world dosing considerations
- There's no individual variation
- There's no complexity of an actual living organism
It's a completely artificial environment that tells us very little about what will happen when you, a complex human being, consume that ingredient.
Similarly, mouse studies are often misleading because:
- Mice metabolise substances differently than humans
- Dosing in mice doesn't scale linearly to humans
- Mice live in controlled laboratory conditions (you don't)
- Genetic differences mean different biological responses
- What's toxic or beneficial to a mouse may not be for humans
Simply put: it doesn't work like that.
The Straight Up Performance Difference: Science Over Stories
This is why Straight Up Performance operates fundamentally differently than most supplement companies.
Our Non-Negotiable Standards:
1. Human Clinical Trials or We Don't Make Claims
If there isn't solid evidence from human clinical trials showing efficacy, we don't claim benefits. Period. We're not interested in "maybes" or "promising preliminary research." We want to see actual results in actual people.
2. Proper Dosing Based on Research
When studies show that X grams of an ingredient produces results, we include X grams—not some underdosed amount that fits better on a label or improves profit margins. If the research says 3g of creatine daily, you get 3g of creatine daily. Not 1g. Not "a proprietary blend containing creatine." The full, effective dose.
3. No Proprietary Blends Hiding Subpar Ingredients
Proprietary blends are the supplement industry's favourite trick for including tiny, ineffective amounts of expensive ingredients while claiming their product contains "a unique blend of performance enhancers." We list every ingredient with exact amounts. You deserve to know exactly what you're putting in your body.
4. Formulated by a Scientist Who Actually Reads Research
I have a PhD in nutrition. I read research papers—lots of them. When I formulate products, I'm not relying on marketing claims from ingredient suppliers or what's trending on Instagram. I'm diving into the actual studies, examining methodologies, looking at effect sizes, and determining what actually works based on evidence.
5. Every Batch Banned Substance Tested
Because your career, reputation, and health matter more than our profit margins. We test every single batch before it reaches you. Not random sampling. Not "trust us." Every batch, every time.
6. Australian Made with Pharmaceutical-Grade Quality Control
We manufacture locally with the same quality standards required for pharmaceuticals. Why? Because your body deserves supplements made with the same care and precision as medicine, not processed in facilities with minimal oversight.
What This Actually Means for You
When you choose Straight Up Performance, you're not gambling on:
- Whether my personal experience will translate to you
- Whether a mouse study will work in humans
- Whether there's actually an effective dose in the product
- Whether the testing certificates are legitimate
You're getting:
- Formulations based on human clinical evidence
- Proper, effective dosing of every ingredient
- Complete transparency about what's in the product
- Third-party verification that it's safe and clean
- A nutritionist who actually understands the science
Why This Matters More Than You Think
The supplement industry is largely unregulated. Companies can make outrageous claims based on virtually no evidence. They can underdose ingredients. They can hide behind proprietary blends. They can sell you hope in a bottle and face minimal consequences when it doesn't work.
Most supplement companies are run by marketers, not scientists.
There's nothing wrong with good marketing—but when marketing replaces science, you end up with expensive disappointment. You end up taking products that don't work, might not be safe, and definitely aren't worth what you paid for them.
Worse, you lose trust in supplements entirely. And that's a shame, because when done correctly—when formulated based on actual evidence with proper dosing—supplements can genuinely support performance, recovery, and health.
Our Commitment to You
At Straight Up Performance, we make this promise:
We will never:
- Make claims not supported by human clinical evidence
- Underdose ingredients to save money
- Hide behind proprietary blends
- Use my story as a substitute for science
- Compromise on quality or testing
- Put profits before your health and performance
We will always:
- Base formulations on peer-reviewed human research
- Include effective, properly-dosed ingredients
- Be completely transparent about what's in every product
- Test every batch independently
- Manufacture to pharmaceutical standards
- Tell you the truth, even when it's less marketable
The Bottom Line
Yes, I have personal experiences with supplements. Yes, I use our products myself. Yes, I'm passionate about performance nutrition.
But none of that matters if the science doesn't back it up.
What matters is whether there's legitimate evidence that something works. What matters is whether it's properly dosed. What matters is whether it's safe, tested, and manufactured to the highest standards.
That's the Straight Up Performance difference.
We're not here to sell you on a story. We're here to provide supplements that actually work, based on actual science, manufactured to standards that actually matter.
Because your performance deserves better than marketing hype.
It deserves science. It deserves transparency. It deserves quality you can trust completely.
