I get annoyed when influencers try to make me buy expensive stuff, but they didn't pay for the stuff themselves.

I complimented one influencer on how her sponsored content featuring freebies was good because it still functioned as styling inspo without having to buy those specific pieces. She thanked me for the compliment but said that the items were merely gifted, that the video wasn’t sponsored. I think that’s a distinction without a difference. It’s payment in kind. The item was sent to function as an ad if featured and she wouldn’t have featured it if it hadn’t been sent. I understand that it’s a matter of object vs money with regard to her finances, but it usually functions pretty much the same as an ad to the audience. Most influencers are not as adept as the lady I commented to and are usually clumsy and transparent with the set up to their sponsored/gifted post. I think gifted items are also a prelude to money-changing-hands fully sponsored posts; the brand sees how complimentary and elegant the influencer is in featuring the gift before they decide to pay for a full infomercial. Brands have also gotten pushier. In the past, influencers could do a mix of brands in a styling post, for instance, but now it’s a 'summer basics' title but then the video is all about one brand. Immediately apparent that it’s fake and a con, and personally I click off. There’s no personal style there, just a home shopping network level of 'check out this clothing tupperware'. This is especially true since I’ve seen influencers talk about having to submit videos to brands to review and approve before posting, which just shows how you’re just doing cheap gig marketing for them and don’t even have independence as a creator. The styling is usually very bland and boring, because the brand will have a brief of what image they want to project - elevated, expensive, classic - all the bourgeois, upwardly mobile, usually caucasian signifiers. I think the only honest reviews are of those things one has paid for with one’s own money (and even then it can be tax deductible if you’re set up as a business doing this which the audience can’t do) so one can be fully honest and as negative as appropriate. And no 'review budgets', lol, what a shopping addict joke. I also appreciate creators who encourage people if they’re interested in the item or brand, to look for it secondhand or to describe its features in a way that encourages casting the thrifting net wider. For example, for your mary janes: to look for shoes that are knit, recycled, with a padded sole and arch support, rather than that specific brand necessarily.

The line about people spending money in hopes to become an influencer! When I was a teen/ young adult around 2012-2015 I would buy things I didn't need just for a photo for Instagram! Even stuff like food, magazines and cosmetics. Lush was a massive money dump for me, I liked the products but tbh I bought more than I could use in hopes of taking an aesthetic photo. This was before being an 'influencer' really was a viable way to make money. Can not imagine the amount people would justify now. Also one of my favourite things you've said is that influencers are essentially sales people. I'd never heard it framed that way and it is so accurate. Now when I watch content on tiktok I remind myself some things are essentially ads. Thank you for all the amazing, down to earth content. I also appreciate the humour you inject into everything.

I've been lurking on your channel for months and finally had to comment -- I feel like you are spot on with this. PR reviews are just ads. Generally speaking, why would I seek advice about whether I should spend my money on a product from someone who...hasn't spent their money on that product? And who has an interest in me spending my money on the product... I do see a value-add in PR reviews for small brands who are looking to expand their reach / audience outside of just repeat customers. Lots of these companies have tiny margins and even tinier marketing budgets, and the influencers they partner with usually have some strong ethics at the core of their channel (whether sustainability, slow or mindful living, veganism, whatever it is). I feel like this is the best-case scenario -- you get to learn about a brand doing something in a way that you can get behind, so you spend your money there. Even if I overbuy from the handful of ethical fashion companies I like to support (which I absolutely do), that's so much less harmful than impulse buying Halara or Amazon or Temu. Side note, I have been disappointed by influencers I like jumping on the greens powder train. Like I get that if there's pie to be had there and you're an influencer, you want to get your piece, but seriously...you couldn't find one product that could actually be useful or add value to someone's life? I think there are plenty of influencers who engage in both types of influencing, sometimes even in the same piece of content. In the same video, an influencer can show me clothing brand with great supply and labor chain transparency that quickly becomes a favorite, and in the same breath, try to sell me AG1.

Congratulations....you are ALMOST half way through your "No Buy" year! Regarding your question on sponsorships, once your "no buy year" commitment has been completed and if you then become more of an advocate for simply being very conscientious about the things you do buy, then I believe there are opportunities for sponsoring products that you already have/use and believe your subscribers may also benefit from, such as items from sustainable brands. I also believe sponsorships for services rather than physical goods could be a good fit. Right now, though, I'm guessing many of your subscribers are here for your "No Buy" content and therefore, any influencing of them to buy things (even from sustainable brands) or services wouldn't make sense.

I think accepting PR from brands you have a collection of can be a bit questionable, because if you already have, say, a collection of bags, getting one more can feed to the idea that what you have is never enough, and you need to be constantly updating and shopping for more. It's a different issue if you actually wear something out, want to replace it and get a new one as PR.

I’ve never bought something from a “real ad” also. ALWAYS an influencer. I almost don’t even see why companies use “real ads.” They cost millions to the business at times and I would imagine they are becoming less and less effective.

My experience has been opposite to yours when it comes to influencer marketing. I’ve liked Polene cyme bag for a while and I have read good reviews about it on quality/ craftsmanship but what put me off of buying it was exactly their marketing strategy to send the bag for free to every influencer and their cousin. And then they go on and increase prices even more and I felt like it’s us, regular customers that end up “paying” for the bags that those with big following got for free. Influencer marketing is clearly effective in general but I wonder if other people have had experiences similar to mine with other products

Good points. What I find even more problematic is that brands like Polene are giving away expensive bags. In the long run this is an awful business policy. It makes their products cheap (and therefore less desirable).

Reviews are genuine when the reviewer has a history of being 100% honest about products. I watch a channel called My Great Challenge and she reviews products occasionally and she has bad and good. She treats the product like she bought it and is fully transparent on her thoughts. I trust her reviews (inasmuch as I do ANY opinion 🤷🏼‍♀️) to be honest. She only accepts offers for things she has interest in, and often gives them away afterward. There is a way you can do this and still have an untarnished reputation. I value a real person trying out a product and picking it apart for flaws before I purchase something. Honestly, I watch very few videos for reviews if it’s a product I didn’t already have in mind.

Accepting PR is a slippery slope. Think about the purpose of sending PR to influencers. It is for the influencers to review and sell products to their viewers. Regardless of if an influencer had brand loyalty previously or not, receiving PR will skew their opinion. It’s just that simple. It will happen, no matter how pure your intentions are in the beginning.

As an influencer and someone who’s offered PR all the time, I only accept PR and gifted products if it’s something I genuinely love and would share with my audience for free. I only share things I actually wear and use!

This is your first video I stumbled on, and on top of what I learned, I’m so happy to know you’re a classical musician too! Subscribing from now on!😊

Very insightful. Thank you for opening my mind to these important concerns.

Well! We are in a mess that part is for sure! Plastic especially is out of control! The pictures of the waste in the oceans and rivers is tragic! We must do better! There are some bright hopeful activities making at least a slight difference. But it seems that even our better ideas( wind, solar, recycling) come with their own problems? Still if we ARE buying (maybe even due to need ( my five year pocketbook IS falling apart!!) might it not be better to have a product vouched for by someone we trust? I do not think that the harm is ALL one way? But most of all I think you are 99.99 % correct! 😎

This was a really thoughtful video and a great discussion in the context of overconsumption. What a great watch! But I also think "influencing" is kind of like being a "movie star" or "rock star". People fantasize about those careers as well and often think that they're a glamorous, easy job. But it's work with upsides and downsides, just like any other job. I think this is just society's newest iteration of that. I realize it's a little different, because an actor or musician is making "art", while influencers are often making undercover commercials. But many people in marketing firms are artists or writers who wanted a steady income - the best commercials are art, in and of themselves. The issue for me is more that we build parasocial relationships with people online, and then it's weird when you are a source of income for your "para-friend". I personally have never had an issue with influencers receiving PR, but I am relatively picky in who I watch. (Probably why YT suggested your video to me!) I like to watch people who are mindful of what they buy and put things into context. When those people receive PR, I feel like they try to align those items with their attitude and speak about it within that context. I feel like if a creator like you were to accept PR and discuss it in the right context, it could be quite helpful. As someone who just started receiving PR this year, I have been wrestling with these issues, and watching videos like these helps me gather my thoughts. I'm glad I discovered you - you have a new sub!

really similar is when influencers are selling an online course to learn how to do what they do...but the online course is how they actually make all their money.

I think sponsorships for 'things' sounds a bit off for me, even after a no buy year. It just feeds into the consumerism side and it doesnt make much sense to recommend a product, while we understand that influencers and influencing people to buy stuff is an issue in itself. I think sponsorships for experiences or services could be interesting, but I'm just not sure services like 'Hello fresh' are actually sustainable. So it's a slippery slope.

This is great content. I also wonder all the time how no one talks about the glamorous jet-setting life some of these young fashion influencers live.. It's so unrealistic. Perhaps an idea for another video?

Initially the beautysphere on KZfaq was helpful to sift through all the beauty products to find the products that worked well. I personally used reviews in order to get an idea about whether a product would work for me. But you’re right, what a mess we have made! Now it is about accumulating more and more things by selling something in every video. I now do not like watching large creators who push out sponsorships on every video. I believe PR can be ethical but I can see how difficult that would be for someone who does this as a full time job. In my opinion, if a brand is known to send a lot of PR and organizes brand trips, I’m instantly turned off by that. I won’t even consider those brands when I am in the market to buy a product. I’m still interested in reviews about products and I understand that PR is part of that marketing process but it has gotten to the point where excessive PR influences me to NOT buy a product 😂 which is great for me!

The way you describe the effects on people who aspire to be influencers, it sounds eerily like an MLM. People being duped into spending their own money in the vain hope they can live the life they see. Pretty disturbing.

One of my favorite things influencers say is it doesn't cost you anything extra to buy the item they are promoting. The cost has been already figured in to the purchase price. Do they honestly think that we are stupid. Also how many people that are influenced end up in bankruptcy or default on their credit cards because they are influenced.

They would 100% not buy the item w their own money

I don’t think we connect the cost of living crisis and influencing enough. As a broke 27 year old, influencing furnished my apartment. It’s the reason I have a savings account. Most people are underpaid and/or overworked, so it makes total sense that they’re drawn to a career that feels low effort and all reward.

On the topic of PR, I think you could eventually talk about PR unbiasedly if you took the time to see the items and review them for a period of time (like a month or more). This would be similar to when someone gets you a birthday gift, you don't pay for this item and it may become your favourite or over time you might find it wears out, fits weird, is too snug, etc. Just my thoughts!

I can see the argument for you fx being sponsored by some of the brands you already like if you really need a new thing (fx a bed), however many people will not have watched earlier videos and might not know about your own purchases from the brand. I'm always a little sceptic when people says they are only sponsored by brands the genuinely like, cause how can I really know if that's true, because as you said, the dynamic changes, when you get something for free. I saw a video with someone, who said something about needing a cup of coffee to stay focused on a task, but when the sponsored section comes around, the person says something like "what I should have done, was drinking AG1 instead of coffee". But she didn't in the moment, so the love for, in this case, AG1 doesn't come across as super real. I think it's a very difficult area to navigate 😅

PR isn’t a new concept. I worked in a bookstore and we got books for free to inform us and to be able to sell them. Of course, it was a benefit. BUT we got books from different publisher and actually didn’t chose that much from wich (of course, everyone has their favorites). But the reality is we were payed for being a salesperson. Everybody going into a bookstore knows that the employees want to sell books. Ok, also to read them, but we’re payed to sell. With influencers they come into YOUR home and seem to be genuinely interested in making content. You don’t want to buy - you’re not in a shop. The content is probably advertising mixed with other stuff. And that’s how it works. You actively have to redirect your brain to see they’re salespersons and make their living advertising. PR itself is OK. But then you are not a content creator (at least in these videos) but a salesperson.

❤ for the algorithm

I do not know if it would be unethical for you to receive PR but I would think it goes against your goals of using what you have and trying to do better by the planet by consuming less……

I feel if there’s a need then organic pr works 😊❤

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