Case in point - I ordered from a QSC promo recently. In the text of the promo, the product prices were listed, and were a bit of a discount off the regular listed price. Below the item list was a list of links to Jano test results. If you look at the wording carefully, there is really no statement that says "you will get a product from the same batch as this test shown here". It's just a list of EXAMPLE test results of the same product, could be from any batch. Makes you THINK these are the tested items, but QSC has made it clear that you get whatever cap color you get. So the tests they post in conjunction with those promos is IMO misleading and should basically just be ignored entirely.
In my case, the listed Jano test result had a cap color shown. When I received my items, the cap color didn't match. A few other people received this item and mentioned that the cap color didn't match the cap color on the test. When questioned about the received item, QSC said that the batch received had never been tested by QSC. A 3rd party person apparently did test the product, it was 'great', but QSC won't release that test result because it was given to them by an individual.
On top of that, people received the same untested item after having purchased it off list (not off promo), and having paid more for it.
So, now there's a bit of confusion. There's no batch number on the packaging for the items I received, no real way to include my items with any other items. There are a FEW people in the Q discords who are interested in joining in a test, but who's to say their items are even the same as mine, since some got the item on promo, and some got it off the list?
At the end of the day, if I'd waited for a real GB that included testing, I'd have a much better assurance that my items were in fact part of a larger batch produced for a group, and then vials randomly selected from that batch and tested by the group wouldn't have to be donate by me. I may not receive my items until after all that happens, but once I get them, I can use them with a reasonable expectation that they are what I paid for.
As it stands, I have several vials of who knows what in my cupboard that I won't use at the moment. Since interest in testing seems low, I'll likely end up just sending in two vials for testing at my own expense. I've never gone through that process, but what the hey, I'll learn all about THAT soon too
Promos are definitely NOT GBs, and any vendor calling a promo a GB is being disingenuous. I'm sure I'll buy items off a promo again, and maybe in the near future even, but when I do, I'll factor in the cost of submitting my own vials for testing at my own expense. If I end up saving a few bucks when others want to jump in, great. But I won't plan on it. For an actual GB, I'm much more confident in the testing results that will be produced being attached to the actual items I'm purchasing.