To think that this 'influencer' should pay me for my work, not ask for freebies?

[Megatron]

I'm a bit flummoxed. I have a side business (cookies) which ticks along nicely in normal circumstances, although it's going ok during lockdown, luckily.

I had a message from someone this morning saying that it is her mum's birthday soon and can I make her two dozen cookies and deliver them to her this weekend. She lives about 30 miles away from me and 'as payment' she is willing to 'put photos on my insta page and say how great they are. I have a large following and this would be good business for you'. Now, I don't know how these things work, but I think she's absolutely taking the piss? Her 'large following' is less than 500 people and even aside from that, I don't want to work for free then do a 60 mile round trip to deliver (I normally only deliver within 5 mile radius, it's just a tiny sideline for me). I'm not some big shot looking for tonnes of business, I just like enough for a bit extra. They're also quite detailed cookies and each one takes a while to decorate - she clearly thinks they look ok but not enough to actually pay me for them.

Am I hopelessly out of date and this is just how it's done or is she absolutely taking the piss. What the fuck even is an 'influencer' anyway?

My friend runs a food van - does festivals, carnivals etc. She has said the last 3 years or so she is suddenly getting people approach, order whatever they like, then at the point of paying state “ I’ve got x amount of influencers on Instagram, can I tag you on my page and do a story and have my food for free?”. She always says no. She never hands over the food until money is in now!

Google “over entitled influencers” for a laugh. Or the influencers who tried to get a free stay in a Dublin hotel and how badly it backfired....

It’s funny as fuck that she tried and is such a pathetic beggar 😂

Take it as a compliment that she would like your product, laugh and then move on. 100% don’t make any kind of post about it or referencing it, you would only damage your own image that way xx

Hilarious!!

I have had a couple of influencers do stories on me during lock down but they bought items and I have three in a couple of freebies (I have done that for everyone who has ordered to say thank you), they both have over 40k followers. 500 pffft

No No No.
Like venues that offer ''exposure'' in return for services in lieu of cash.
Get fucked.
If she had 200,000+, some of them famous, she would be an influencer.

I do stories and posts of products on my Instagram but I’d never try and ‘exchange’ for free like your CF did!

My daughter has 2000 followers as do loads of her friends.
Tell her to get lost cheeky mare.

Tell her the minimum number of followers you require to make freebies worth your while is 10,000 general audience or 5,000 if their audience is more skewed towards people who might actually buy your product.

My local bakery has recently had a similar request and replied we would prefer to spend our time making cookies and cakes for our actual customers. Dreadful grabby behaviour, don’t take it as an insult just marvel at the audacity!

It’s definitely not personal, this is what these Cfs do.

The brass neck of some people!

Get on Instagram OP! Loads do well on there and you’d probably get more than 500 followers.
I’ve got 790... could you send me some cookies 😜

Grabby sod, tell her to do one. 500 is a pathetic amount of followers for an 'influencer' and most of those won't live anywhere near you, so you won't get any extra business. She's chancing her mitt, tell her to get on her bike!

You can't pay rent with exposures.

YANBU, she’s a CF.

However, for actual influencers (ones with hundreds of thousands of followers), this is a thing; businesses will give them freebies simply for the advertisement.

But this one at only 500 followers is most certainly just chancing her arm.

I’ve got ten times her following and I’d never ask anyone for a freebie.

But here’s the thing, 500 super involved followers are more valuable than 500,000 in terms of ability to influence. Unless you’re Kylie Jenner. It’s not all about numbers when you’re looking for an influencers to work with. A lot of the time it’s quality over quantity.

And it's worth shaming these dickheads, pour encourager les autres.
Free publicity for you if you do it publicly on a local FB group
People love nothing better than entitled arseholes getting their come-uppance.

Actually - if I saw someone publicly name and shame an "influencer", I'd be so impressed that I'd be tempted to try their product. I'd be thinking "Well, if that CF thinks they're worth trying to blag for nothing, they must be pretty good".

there are a few stories like the below out there, businesses had enough of influencer beggars:

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/life-style/hotel-bans-influencers-instagram-social-media-stars-elle-darby-the-white-moose-cafe-a8166926.html%3famp

Glad you maintained your boundaries/pay.

I am in the creative industry and there are many chancers of the sort. They would not dream of trying to pay their supermarket bill/council tax/car maintenance with "exposure".

Somehow think creatives live on likes and emojis and don't need to pay their own bills.

I was going to suggest r/ChoosingBeggars but another poster got their first. When you say no they sometimes give you a scathing review, so many sure you screenshot any messages and prepare some good comebacks

Just say 'Thanks but I'm busy enough through word of mouth and Zoella paid me for the ones she ordered.'

I can’t wait for the whole influencer thing to die a death. It makes me sick why people who already have plenty of money are given stuff for free!!

Make sure you block. I'd not have responded at all and then blocked.

Excellent CF. I have x10 more followers then her (never intended to -just post about something very niche!). I have never ever asked for a freebie ever.

She's a CF, and she can't even do THAT properly. You can buy programs that auto follow/unfollow for around £20. Follow a bunch of people and it's etiquette that a % will follow you back. Unfollow them a few days later later and boom, you look like an influencer with thousands of "followers" in less that a week. Followers have NO value. If you want to check if someone is an influencer, check their post engagement in ratio to their follower count. 10k followers and one like on their latest post = not an influencer.

Offer her influencer rates - 1% discount per thousand followers.