Bloggers and Brands 3

[CookingUpAStormTonight]

New thread I hope.

It's Annaelerihart @DottyDotts

Being a 'digital marketer', I think she's seen the kerfuffle over the Dublin Hotel thing and tried to grab a slice of the pie.

I honestly can't believe a grown woman, who has deliberately put herself in the public eye, would get herself in such a tizz over someone saying she's 'unlikeable'.

It doesn't compare to some of the (downright nasty) stuff that's been said about other bloggers and igers on this and the instamums thread.

If Anna was truly devastated by being called unlikeable to the point she felt she was defamed and needed to get hold of commentator's real names...

Why did she then share a screenshot with her 30k of followers?

Ahhh The Welsh lady , thanks AnnaP

Sorry PavlovaP 😊

It’s all baffling to me to be honest. Her thinly veiled threats are acceptable. But saying someone is unlikeable isn’t. I don’t like the idea I may have made someone cry though.

I think (although I might be wrong) that she hadn't been mentioned in these threads until she herself drew attention to MN (and the previous threads) on her insta.

I'd certainly never heard of her til then.

No me neither

@ABuckToothedGirlinLuxembourg No-one likes to think they’ve made anyone cry but honestly I wouldn’t think too much about it in this case. AH made it pretty clear what she thought of Mumsnetters a month or so ago, so I very much doubt she actually cried because one called her unlikeable.
In her IG video yesterday, she said she was posting at that time because there wouldn’t be many people around to see it and yet it was up for hours afterwards - didn’t make sense at all, bizarre really.

I'm not worried for one second that MN would actually hand over personal data to a bunch of influencers including AEH. But I am genuinely puzzled as to why AEH would make such an insinuation. By her own admission she is very media savvy so surely she would appreciate the data protection issues? If MN have invited somebody who is bandying such threats about, they should take position on the issue so MN users know where they stand.

And anya thanks so much for being brave and professional enough to join in the thread. I think you set a benchmark for other bloggers to work towards. I think the bloggers with longevity will be the ones who deal with criticism professionally rather than just inviting their followers into a counter attack. I can understand it must be awful when people are making nasty personal comments, but I really respect the way you look for the constructive criticism and try to take it into account. Incidentally I really loved reading your blog - it's a shame you don't have enough time for it any more but I understand something has to give!

I think the best thing we could all do is just stop talking about her and giving her the attention she obviously craves.

MN aren't going to hand over any data, bucktooth has apologised for her comment, that should be an end to it.

Clemmie has got a thick skin and can take the ribbing and criticism on the chin.

She’s running a business and now knows she has to stand up ( with grace) to those who disagree with her on her platform.

What did Esther C actually say that she had to delete??

Yes I was talking about AH not Mod btw.

I really appreciate the bloggers who've shown up on this thread. It's been interesting to hear both sides of the debate. It's difficult to hear criticism about oneself but I think the ones that have commented on here have taken it mostly in good grace.

Esther C said she didn’t want to be on instastories talking about Mumsnet - but ... she doesn’t normally do procut placement or ads apart from a couple she’s done lately, and she’d seen a thread where she was called out for selling out by someone “can’t remember the name and I won’t go to check but it was you ...” It then cut out as they do, not sure if there was another one but they were deleted 5 mins later.

@pavlovaprincess Much respect to MOD, DMBL40 and I think Mother Pukka on one of the threads. These will be the influencers who will last I suspect.

I’m a big fan of Kat, thought she’d lost her way a few months ago but back on form imo. She’s been blogging for years and it’s actually interesting thinking back to how it’s grown into a career for her and evolved. Her blog layout is pretty basic but it does the job and she puts great effort into writing them, doesn’t hire a photographer to take her everyday shots. No posing in interesting doorways/walls/whatever - I love the natural, grab a child to take a photo in the kitchen style. And she’s not afraid to embrace and try new styles. No blandness there! I loved her outfit the other day - green trench and skirt, Bella Freud jumper and white boots - and it was an outfit totally of her own, no items gifted - Kat at her best. And she’s really stuck to her word with using the #gifted.

Agree the hiring of photographers take it to a different level.

I've followed the 3 blogger threads and also follow most of the bloggers on Instagram that have been discussed / slagged off on here.

I don't really understand why anyone cares so much if something shown on Instagram is a #gift #ad #sponsored etc. If I see DMBL40 in a nice dress as I'm scrolling through insta then I click to see where it's from, I might order it (depending on price). I don't give a shit if it was gifted to her or she bought it herself.

I've enjoyed following Alex (The Frugality) doing up her flat and now her house, I've clicked on the links to tiles, rugs, tables etc and bought stuff I've liked (also clothes). Again it makes no difference to my decision to buy if the item has been gifted or is an ad.

Re advertising of cereals, washing machines, holidays etc. Seeing MOD or whoever promoting something like a holiday is not going to make me suddenly book to go to Disneyland, neither is an ad on TV but if we were already planning to go then her posts & stories could be helpful.

Surely anyone only ever buys something because they like or need it and can afford it. If an item is bought by the blogger themselves or they're being paid to promote it doesn't make a difference to my decision to buy it.

Re Anna Eleri Hart, I wouldn't have thought she'd post about Mumsnet just for attention. I've followed her blog for years and she's obviously very successful at what she does (her business, blog & Insta). I like her, if you don't then why follow her (or anyone else).

My view is that if someone on Insta starts promoting everything and anything and so strays from their original style (whether that be fashion or interiors) then they will most likely lose followers. But if they are showing stuff they would wear or buy anyway then what is the problem? If they don't want to disclose that something is an ad or was gifted I personally don't care. Rant over (I've name changed).

Hello @chloechloe thanks for getting in touch, and sorry for the delay. We're hosting a breakfast next month involving several influencers, but at no stage would we divulge any information about our users to outside parties. We will not disclose any details we hold on a user unless in the very rare circumstances we are compelled to do so by a Court Order- we hope that sets your mind at ease.

Thanks @YetAnotherBeckyMumsnet can you clarify why Anna Hart implied she would be getting user names? Misunderstanding on her part?

Hello @WipsGlitter, without seeing the original comments, it's difficult to say exactly. We can only confirm that we've not offered user data to anyone!

I would assume she implied she could get usernames as an attempt at a scare tactic.

Years ago I posted on a very long thread about a fairly well known tv personality and one of their fans signposted them to the thread. There were a lot of nasty replies but for whatever reason she took issue with something that I said (which wasn't bad!) and I was shocked that she had screenshot all of my posts on every thread and put them on FB in order to 'find the bitch' . The fans were going buck mad, calling me names such as child abuser and paedophile and were trying to work out who I was from my posts and 'take me to court'.

She said on FB that she was going to contact MN for my details as she knew people who worked there, which I can only assume felt she was trying regain a bit of control of the situation.

Due to that though I regularly NC!

Many thanks for the reply YetAnotherBeckyMumsnet, it's much appreciated. I was confident that MN would never disclose such information and I'm glad you've confirmed it. I'd be interested to hear from AEH personally what she meant by the comment. Until then I'll just have to draw my own conclusions which, on the basis of other comments she has made in the past, are not particularly positive. I'll leave it at that.

SofiaLemon you seem to be somewhat naive in understanding how influencers work. The fact that retailers can pretty much use it as a direct sales channel is hugely beneficial/effective for them. When done right probably a zillion times cheaper than normal advertising when you consider there're only giving away free samples/product. So to say it has no effect on you is completely disingenuous. I think if you like/respect the influencer it has a huge sway. But I think the whole thing will swing the other way and increasingly people will see it for what it is.