I wasn’t sure if or how I wanted to write about this, but since this is after all a blog albeit mostly about beauty, I thought it quite a relevant question to ask you who read it.
I had a proposal land in my inbox recently, which culminated in an email telling me that I was to refrain from “endorsing” any other brand during the period that I was supposed to be writing about X brand’s products (assuming I accepted). I don’t want to talk about that email here – it left a very bad taste in my mouth. I was essentially told I was to attend events, review products and be 100% exclusive to X brand and no form of remuneration was discussed.
Interestingly also, no time frame was mentioned for when I was to be exclusively blogging for X brand. Essentially, X brand wanted me to use my blog and my voice, as a platform to endorse their products to all of you readers on the assumption you’d all be so enamoured, you’d rush out and buy it just because I said so. Doesn’t say much about their perception of all you intelligent readers either, does it?
Makes me a hell of a sell out if I had been offered half a million buckaroos as a realistic friend suggested. (I cannot lie. I might have done it for half a million bucks 😛 ) But since there was no money talk, I was essentially asked to be a product or brand endorser on my own platform, in my own time, at my own effort, exclusively for Brand X and for free. That also means no discussion posts like this one. Nothing but Brand X bombarded at you day after day (assuming I had enough content to write daily).
The enormity of it blew my mind – and a blood vessel. But I want to know if you readers take product endorsements by bloggers more seriously than if it was a celebrity?
In my case, I read a heck lot of blogs so I’m quite unfazed by product endorsements of any sort. I prefer a blogger who does not “endorse” but who honestly states their view. If they truly love the product, I will know, and I will know also that it is not a mere “endorsement” even if they were given the product. If they are just endorsing it for money, believe me, its quite obvious too.
I prefer reading what bloggers have to say about the products they have tried as opposed to an “endorsement”. Celebrity endorsements do nothing for me anyway (celebrity blindness remember?). But I am also realistic and I don’t buy into hype too often unless I can test it out for myself or unless I’m a right sucker for the product or brand 😛 See, I’m realistic too.
We talked about something like this once before, about whether you find bloggers credible and whether you are influenced by the blogs you read. We also talked about whether you were influenced by celebrity endorsements. Well, lets mesh it together.
Do you take product endorsements by bloggers more seriously than a celebrity endorsement?
Have your say.
Paris B
nicoles mirror says
I prefer blogger endorsement but it depends on how trustworthy a blogger is 🙂 There are certain bloggers I know personally and look up to. If a post is labelled as a advertorial or sponsored the brand name will spread out faster. Buy or not to buy still depends on readers. I do look around for a looooot third party reviews just to confirm as well. Being exclusive without payment is silly.. I will definitely accept if they pay but I must be allowed to label the post as advertorial. Hey, bloggers are entitled to earn some money 😛 and yes honesty please…
ParisB says
Nope, nothing wrong with a blogger earning money. Getting paid for an endorsement request is, I think the least the brand can offer 🙂
Jamilla says
I listen to what my fellow bloggers say – and I always buy my own stuff!
ParisB says
yay Jamilla! I know you do – and boy do you get some really REALLY nice things 😀
gio says
I’m appalled by Brand X behaviour! The nerve of them!…
Celeb endorsements don’t do anything at all for me.. As for blogger endorsements, it depends on the blogger and how much I trust them.. if their reviews have been proven to be reliable, then they’ may influence me to check a product out.
ParisB says
Yep, reliable bloggers really can burn a hole in my wallet, especially when you’re looking for reviews on pricey stuff ! Or even hard to get stuff. Online reviews are priceless 🙂
mess says
I watched the Gucci Envy TV ad recently with the 2 celebs and remarked to my sister that the ad and most others just do not make me want to buy anything at all. In fact some celebrities’ endorsements just turn me off completely. The only ad that managed to persuade me to buy anything was the ad for Wall’s Moo ice cream heh heh.
So celebrities’ endorsement does not do much to persuade me but I do pay attention to bloggers’ review. It’s more towards helping me make an informed decision though, I wouldn’t take anything wholesale. And of course, some are more credible than others – you, among others have caused many holes in my wallet hehe. But if someone carrying thousand dollars handbags and ‘raving’ about a drugstore lipbalm which I know is NOT all that (at the same time that many many other bloggers doing the same), then that really means nothing to me (or rather it means their credibility is shot!)
ParisB says
Haha You know what? I also got suckered into buying the Wall’s Moo ice cream….and I didn’t like it 😛 I hope you liked whatever caused the holes in your wallet though – it would have been tragic if you didn’t hehe… although I gotta say that sometimes, a drugstore lipbalm might be the only reason said blogger is able to afford a thousand dollar bag 😀
electronicfly says
Endorsements won’t make me run out to buy something, but it does give a product/brand a little more reliable feel. If they can afford to pay X celebrity endorsement fees, they should be a registered company/ product which would have gone through testing etc, right?
In the end though, I would still do my research about the product first, and if say the endorser/reviewer who gets paid raves about it, while easily three other people says it sucks, straight away my trust and opinion on that endorser/reviewer will go down the drain. Same thing if I find out that the endorser/reviewer actually don’t use the product/told someone privately the product sucks etc.
ParisB says
The flipside is that if they are paying the celebrity endorsement fees, just think how much of it is tagged onto the product that might otherwise have been better spent on R&D? 😉 Just for the sake of argument 😉 But I do agree that a more familiar or A-list celebrity probably brings the brand credibility. The thing about being paid for reviews is how your hands are tied when the product just doesn’t work for you but you can’t say so because money is involved. Its such a catch-22 situation for many. I can emphatise but at the same time, there has to be a balance between that and personal standards I guess 🙂 Knocking the brand in private when they have publicly endorsed it is I think really crass 😛
Amanda says
I’m more on the bloggers’ side. But I’m quite sensible as to whether I should try a particular product. As I’m reading quite a few blogs on a daily basis, I will know whether they are offering real comments or just endorsing a product.
If I’m really hooked by a product, I would read up on more information before I make any purchase. Just because one singer blogger, no matter how influential she is, raves about it doesn’t mean that product is good for me too.
ParisB says
I’m glad to see from the comments that although most of us will be swayed or at least intrigued by what a blogger says, our heads take over when it comes to plonking down money for it 🙂 And if you’ve read blogs, you’d know just how to discern the different styles 🙂 The thing is, we’re all so different that you can’t expect to say “X loves it and so will I” because I think that’ll be really naive! 🙂
Jo says
I would take a blogger’s endorsement more seriously. Particularly if I can identify with the blogger. I think a large part of why I’m so drawn to your blog and I read it religiously almost every other day (gasp!) is cos of your openness, honesty and down-to-earth writing. Kudos to you for that and never lose that! 🙂
ParisB says
Thank you Jo 🙂 I appreciate it, and well, that’s why I could never do what Brand X asked of me, because I’d lose this camaraderie we have here in the comment box! I love it! 😀
Jo says
Yup! Don’t lose the *ehem* balls of steel! 😛 But seriously, continue to write with integrity! 😉
ParisB says
LOL!! I love this! “Paris B – balls of steel” I sound like a comic book character 😀
Issa says
I don’t believe so much on celebrity endorsements. For all we know, they don’t even use the products. I prefer bloggers who reviews products honestly. You will know who to trust because it will be obvious from their posts if they used the product or not. 🙂
ParisB says
I have heard that many celebrities don’t even use the products. I wonder if J. Lo really uses L’Oreal eh? 😉
Amex says
Celebrity endorsements don’t necessarily make a product better. It would make me notice the product more, but not make me want to buy it.
I do read blogs (like yours Paris!) and tend to take more stock in recommendations from credible sources. What irks me about certain blogs is when the bloggers have obviously been fed product write-ups from the PR company or whichever marketing division, and copy it as their ‘review’ of the product. The same words extolling the virtues of product X are then seen on different blogs but at the same time. Makes me think said blogger is putting it up to as part of a deal to receive free products and event invitations.
ParisB says
Gotta agree with you there. A celebrity endorsement only makes the product visible not better 🙂 I think bloggers have to be a little more careful these days. Readers are showing that they are getting savvier so its easy to turn people away if they aren’t delivering what is expected. Getting to be hard work, blogging 😉
Esther says
I do tend to take bloggers’ opinions into consideration when I shop for beauty products, but I’m a little picky as to whose opinions. C: I consider online opinions much like I would a friend’s suggestion, but if said opinion is clearly an endorsement (not too hard to pick out, actually), then I don’t really take it into stock.
ParisB says
I like your analogy Esther – that an online opinion is like a friend’s suggestion. Some suggestions make more sense than others right? 😀
Lily says
Whoa… the nerve! Totally understand how you feel. Selling out is a one way ticket to kaput. The internet is so convenient nowadays. Who can’t tell if someone is endorsing? Sheesh… what are we, stupid? For a blogger, it takes years to build your reputation but one silly move and you’re gone.
Oh well, from all the comments, I guess you already know you’re on the right track, girl. Thanks for sharing about this sensitive but honest post. Good to know you’re feisty and gutsy enough to put this up. I suppose there would be those who just keep quiet and pretend nothing happened…
ParisB says
Thank you Lily 🙂 I might have trampled heavily on some toes with this one, I’m aware but it just gotta be said 😛 I really don’t know what the PR company was smoking when they made this proposal. My next curious question is whether anyone accepted! LOL 😀
milktea says
Yes, bloggers carry more weight with me! Celebrities are usually paid, or the item they love is out of my price range! Think Olio Lusso oil etc.
ParisB says
True true… they can afford all those pricey stuff I guess, with the proceeds of their endorsements hehe… 😉
Stephanie/Yukaeshi says
In all honesty, celebrities do nothing for me. I won’t be more/less inclined to get something just because some famous celebrity is endorsing it. I don’t know why- I just don’t haha 😛
However, if I’m in the market for something, or have a specific product in mind- first thing I’d do is go online and do a search for it, and I would read the reviews, regardless of whether it’s written by bloggers or on the site (E.g. official site, Sephora), and those do hold more sway for me than any other types of endorsements. But then again what works for some, or even a majority of people, may not work for me for instance, so in the end it’s up to me to decide for myself 😛
But all that said, reading beauty blogs is terrible for my pocket >_< I bought a few stuff because they've been raved on, e.g. Lunasol powder brush, Trilogy Sensitive Skin Very Gentle Calming Fluid (Did not work for me though, boo!) 🙁
ParisB says
Ahh you already got the Lunasol brush? Do you like it? I still haven’t picked mine up – may do so from the salon when I go for my facial so I can collect my rebate points hehe… 😀
Connie De Alwis says
LOL! They certainly e-mailed the wrong blogger for this. Wonder what gave them the idea for doing this? 😉
ParisB says
I think they found out the hard way teehee… I wonder too. Maybe they tried it elsewhere with success?
onnjaejun says
Hi Paris,i’m a new silent reader here.all my thoughts are already written, so all i want say is keep up the good work!!
ParisB says
Thank you so much. Means a lot to me! 😀
giddy tigress says
I don’t buy a product just because it is endorsed by a celebrity. I *know* that they are paid to say they like it. I usually fall on friends’ or blogger friends’ honest opinions, opinions which I know I can trust. See? I didn’t run and buy SKII when everyone else had, because I suspect they test on animals, which is something I feel strongly against.
ParisB says
I fell for the SK2 hype! But to my credit it was a long time ago and it wasn’t due to celebrity endorsements but their ads 😛
Kristine Tang says
Nah. I never get influenced by celebrity endorsement. Bloggers however..do leave an impact on my opinion of a brand/product. It doesn’t make me go “OMG MUST BUY *runs out to buy* ” but I do take more notice of a product that a blogger that I follow, wrote and ‘approves’. If its cheap and/or I feel that it would work on me…I’d buy it when I feel like it. Totally and purely blogging about a single brand would really just kill off your readership. Might as well hire you to be their PR rather than use ur blogspace for their product but ah…its your ‘brand’ that they’re after I suppose. It’s silly…even more so when there wasn’t any talk of money. It would make me pissed as hell too if I were in your shoes!
ParisB says
Yeah, would have been better if they had requested to buy out my blog eh? LOL! I didn’t think about it that way, but yes apparently they wanted the MWS “brand”. Well, they aren’t getting it! Not after what we have planned today 😀
Saphy says
Wow brand X.. I’m speechless at their actions -_-”
I don’t believe in celebrity endorsement (though some do…), IMO they’re just doing it because they get the moolah <_<"
Would rather Google for blogger's reviews on the product itself. As for blogger endorsement… same applies for celebrity endorsement. Reckon its better to do your research better than to buy a product blindly (especially if it costs a lot!)
ParisB says
Definitely better to know what works for us and not just blindly follow trends 🙂 I am a little more influenced by cosmetics but not with skincare. I am much more careful with skincare, whatever any celeb or blogger says 🙂
Saphy says
Yup ^^ I google around mostly for skincare stuff cause I don’t really use cosmetics for now.. still in high school 😡
ParisB says
Ah I see – good skincare is a foundation for good skin so you’re doing the right thing finding the right one 🙂
Vivien says
I do believe blogger more if their site is not too commercialized meaning they are not given free products or invited review without at least mentioning it in their blog post
ParisB says
I guess it comes down to honesty and integrity 🙂 Thanks for sharing your thoughts Vivien.
eve says
Girl you are absolutely right in we not being influenced by celebrity endorsement or endorsement of any kind n if its sm kind of endorsement we will know . I have been reading blogs, searching for any description of products which i wanted to purchase , n mostly those who rant on n on about a particular product we dont even pay any attention to it (me n most of my friends) .
N i dont know how to describe it but there’s smthing bout the way u write , that makes me automatically decide on whether the products is worth buying or not. So me n most of my friends usually come here for search on products we r interested in, n those we havent even think of buying for example the new Lancome Vissionaire (u about to make me spend another few hundreds !) n by reading urs we went n buy it (n though we hate u for it , lol) but really stay the way u r .. we need more bloggers like u which write from the heart ! =)
ParisB says
Aww Eve you made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, thank you so much for the vote of confidence LOL! 😀 I haven’t tried the Visionnaire though – so I hope if you have bought it that it works for you! Thank you again, you just made my day 😀
Eve says
no prob girl , speaking from the heart =) i have a love and hate relationship wif ur blog lol .. its like everytime i click on it i see smthing i wanna buy .. n i hate myself for clicking it after i buy .. LOL . anyway i love ur blog !