This post is something that I started writing a long time ago. First, it started off as a joke, but now, its contents gained on importance and became much more serious. Today, I want to share my look at the beauty community and things that beauty bloggers – myself included – should not be doing – at all.
1) Making snap reviews of products
Opening a PR package on Monday and posts on social media on Friday? If we’re talking about a liquid lipstick or a bronzer, I’m game – I think you only need to wear a lipstick a couple of times to know if you like it or not. But what about skincare? I cannot even count all possible brand collaborations I lost because I wasn’t prepared to play their game and write reviews in a matter of weeks. I think thank it takes me a couple of weeks to form a proper opinion on make-up removers, perhaps certain masks, but every else takes months. I know that brands prefer quick reviews, but I believe that quick and sloppy reviews harm both bloggers and readers alike.
2) Non-stop spamming with paid posts / advertisements
Let’s get one thing straight first – I have nothing against paid posts, as long as the brand is paying for the blogger to review the product, and doesn’t influence the opinion. If the brand is paying for a blogger to give a positive review about a brand – well, that’s a whole other story. InstaStories so full of tagged brands that I can’t even click right, blogs where I can’t find a single negative review, fake product placements… these things come in all shapes and sizes. It used to get me really angry, but right now, I tend to look away and just distrust the person from then on. Quite simple, really.
3) “You need this”
I am totally guilty of this, but then one day last year I stopped, thought about what I was saying and I really try not to repeat it at all. Sometimes, I really get excited about a certain product and at times like that, I want everyone to try it out and see for themselves how great it is. But – do you “need it”? Besides basic needs, like food, water,shelter and such – people don’t really “need” a lot. And a new liquid lipstick is really, really low down the list.
4) “Don’t buy that”
The alternative to “you need this” is the “don’t buy it” sentence. Everyone comes with their own skin, tastes, needs and wants. If I don’t like something – better be sure I’ll be telling you about it. I will also tell you why I don’t like it. But if you think that this would be a good purchase for you, then go for it! I’m not the one that should be telling you not to do it. My opinion is my own and you have a good head on your shoulders to think for yourself. A certain shampoo may not be good for my ggreasy scalp, but will be great for your dry one. If I don’t enjoy the vanilla smell of a lipstick, then perhaps you’ll love it if you enjoy that fragrance. If you want to buy a product just because your favorite YouTuber uses it, you have every right to do so – and no beauty blogger should be telling you not to buy it.
5) Concealing facts
There are quite a few things that fit into this category but I’ll try to make things short. If the only thing a blogger has to say about a 50 € serum is that it smells nice and the bottle is pretty, I can’t shake the feeling that there is something missing, don’t you agree? Perhaps something that the blogger doesn’t want to talk about? I find this the exact same thing as lying about a product in general. The same goes for brand collaborations. Abroad, there are already laws for influencers and marking paid advertisements, but over here, everyone deals with it in his own way. In my blogs, you’ll always be able to tell if I bought the product, was sent the product or if it’s a paid post. I think that’s only fair to the readers.
Sure, all bloggers make mistakes, me included. We’re only people and I hope we learn something from these mistakes. But I think that our relationship with readers and followers should be fair and honest and following the rules above would help a lot! What’s your opinion on this topic? Until next time, stay beautiful!
*Photos were chosen randomly from archives and are not connected to the content in any way*
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