Can we chat about fashion Instagrammers/influencers..

[Cherrypie32]

..because I don’t have anyone in real life to carp about it to. So, I follow a few, am addicted to the stories/feeds of some but don’t always know why. The ‘high end’ ones, The Frugality, Dress Like A Mum, Emma Hill etc pop up but quite designer and high end for me. I like the ramblings of Does My Bum but I’m nothing like her body shape so don’t wear her clothes. There are a few more ‘high street’ ones I follow, Steal My Style, What Kathy Did, Forty not Frumpy and more but they tend to be repetitive. Is this because they are so heavily sponsored to flog something? At the moment they are all banging on bout All Saints leather bikers and maxi skirts. And they all copy each other so there’s not much new to look at. There are a few I follow with nowhere near the amount of followers that seem more creative and have different body shapes so I presume that they have more liberty to do this as aren’t under afflilate deals.
I don’t need advice to ‘unfollow’, I enjoy looking at it all, just interested in how it all works really.

@MaryPoppinjay I understand that, but it doesn't make it right that big brands are ripping off influencers by not paying them fairly. If a blogger re-sells gifted items the proceeds are taxable. The proceeds are normally a fraction of the RRP anyway.

Also hate it when they hide which brand aff links are for. If they are clear about the brand and if it is an aff link (so the choice becomes explicitly mine to financially reward then) then I am sure to swipe up if I like. Don’t have an issue with a small financial thanks for them editing (Erica Davies good at this) but otherwise it feels like click bait

Yes I agree @MaryPoppinjay I want it to be my choice. Erica Davies really is good at this side of things and that's what sets aside the real professionals/people with industry experience. Her styling stories are like articles, they've been researched, they fit a brief, plenty of information. No hesitation swiping up there at all.

The only affiliate programme I use is Amazon Smile, where the % of the sale goes to my designated charity.

Just be aware wearsmymoney called MNers a bunch of cunts. Follow away by all means, just as long as its an informed decision!

Mary No I don’t think they will be more discerning. Istagram is, forvthem, a business. They won’t turn down revenue. I think they will have so many hashtags that they will try to hide the #ad. I hope the first hashtag will have to be ad and it won’t be buried.

Did she elspeth?? That’s well harsh!

@PleaseDoNotBend agree. If it is to be considered a ‘proper’ job then they need to get paid properly by brands rather than in clothes (agree it should be fee + loan of clothes for photography then clothes/items returned). Then there is more clarity on the tax position and clearer to followers about the work they are doing.
Suppose it is difficult as so many have morphed from look at my outfit accounts to full time ‘influencers’ without a concrete transition.
The ones who embrace the new rules as evolution are 👌, the ones being deliberately clunky and sniffy about being accountable seem a little ‘caught out’

Wearsmymoney is very pissed off st having to use the word ad. She has a good a/c and in her case, I think her sniping personality will turn followers away quicker than her ad declarations.

What comment did The Frugality make on another Ista influencer a/c ? Anyone? I feel she genuinely is trying to take the Stacey Dooley doc on board and will be disappointed if she is making sniping comments.

Imagine turning up to work on the tills at Topshop and on payday they hand you a gift voucher! You'd tell them where to shove it. I can't believe influencers have been accepting this from the big brands.

Just checked out wearsmy and she seemed funny & nice but just seen above! Stylewise it’s like looking in my wardrobe although she has more Gucci then me. I pretty much live in slogan sweats, jeans & trainers or long dresses with ankle boots & x body bags, fave shops Topshop (got the fake Givenchy boots from there), Gestuz, Ganni, Whistles & Bimba y Lola, Isabel Marant/Maje on sale or Ebay. Thing is I’ve been dressing like this for so long that I need some new looks 🤣

Nooooo!!!!! Elspeth is there really no such thing as a stylish, ad light blogger who doesn’t get swept up in a pile on? #huntingunicorns

@Bloominglovely she told someone who had explained that print journalists always had to disclose gifts that this was "quite false", except the person commenting was a journalist who used to write for Elle . She then went on to say that editors in magazines only shoot product from brands that advertise or provide free trips, the Elle writer said she had seen this happening and didn't agree with it, which is why she felt the new rules were good

I think influencers created their own role including their own terms and conditions. They are not comparable to permanent employees. They are not paying tax.

When they start out and receive gift cards in the post, they are thrilled. Their ‘hobby’ is paying. The bigger they get the more they receive. I have followed two from the beginning. They are still relatively small time with just over 10K followers each. They started as wealthy women who shopped A LOT. They were delighted when they started getting freebies which happened at around the 3-4K followers mark. Now at over 10K followers they receive a vast amount of items from food to furniture to weekend hotel stays.

Now if they want to keep receiving these items, they must state its an ad. To be fair to both of them, they usually declare this anyway.

If the tens of thousands influencers are annoyed that they aren’t getting properly paid, this is an excellent opportunity for them to band together and get paid. And pay tax.

I’m tired of so many of the bigger ones, Quality over quantity anyway.

Surely it all depends on the reason why wearmymoney called MNers a bunch of cunts? A lot of the time, some posters are!

I’m not sure that if you’re in the business of getting people to follow you, it’s ever a good idea to call the whole of Mumsnet a bunch of cunts though superstar. Even if some people were acting like cunts. And I’ve no idea if they were

Avril has written an informative piece on her blog today. As people mentioned back on this thread she’s been around along time and has always been very honest imo
www.alifetostyle.com/2019/01/to-ad-or-not-to-ad-blogging-stuff.html?m=1

The Frugality has put up a mixed message saying she agrees with the new rules, is confused about the term gift and receiving ‘stuff’ does t pay her mortgage.

I like her but honestly feel if she and all these influencers want regular salaries, they need to start looking at getting regular jobs.

Cherrypie wow 3-5% is higher than I thought. I assumed pennies rather than pounds. Also she says “I guess my point is that it's all one big AD....I know that, you know that.” Actually, until this week when the influencers finally opened up about it I didn’t.
I’ve lost trust in the people I followed so unfollowed despite previously liking their content

@Bloominglovely they also need to stop accepting stuff then as once HMRC get their act together and the tax bill for undeclared gifts (could be in the region of 200k over a couple of years) comes they’ll struggle to pay the mortgage!

Big brands have taken advantage of them by not paying them in cash yet writing it off as a marketing expense. We the followers have been misled but so too have the influencers who have taken non-stop gifts without realising the financial implications of this.

I like following frugality (although find her a bit snippy at times) and she has a great eye for styling interiors and fashion. I hope the ones with genuine talent find a way to make it pay them properly.

Wait wait wait! It was bunch of KNOBS!

Not cunts, I repeat, NOT CUNTS!

I was worried I was mixing her up with another influencer who had called us cunts so I advanced searched here and sure enough I was wrong and we're only KNOBS.

My sincere apologies to wearsmymoney, that utter knob.

WMM doesn't come across nice at all and she still isn't properly declaring ads

It's quite eye opening this week to see all the #ad and #gift hashtags appearing

I've also noticed many of the plus size bloggers continue to ignore the new hashtags. They are giving the impression they bought the item, whilst mentioning the shop name, mentioning its in shops NOW and mentioning other bloggers who told them about this fantastic dress / shoes etc. surely that's an ad?

I don’t think so strangerthongs that could just be someone v pleased with something they’ve been recommended and bought. Sure they’re putting the brand out there but the brand has had nothing to do with it so I don’t see that as an
Ad

...... so if you are driving a car that has been gifted, or part of a deal, do you have to declare it as an ad every time you are seen it? Same for gifted household items, tvs, washing machines, dishwashers etc........ Will they become a #ad everytime they appear in a photo? Should be very interesting.

I'm still ridiculously frustrated that these guidelines only apply in the UK. I follow LOTS of US and European accounts who can still punt stuff with zero declarations. In fact some like FIGTNY barely even write anything with their photos but they're all tagged nonetheless and can influence consumers globally to buy. Like to know it links work globally! I just don't get it. It equates to competitive advantage for international accounts or a barrier/tariff for UK accounts.