Why are beauty creators treated differently | Chatty GRWM

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[misha-zeegrant]

I can remember buying make up before YouTube and it was a MINEFIELD, you would have no idea what the product was actually like until you got home and it was too late. I remember in around 2005 Loreal advertising a gloss, and in the adverts they edited sparkles onto the lips, and I REALLY wanted my lips to look that sparkly, so I bought around 4 shades, and of course there was no where near the level of sparkle I expected... now I use youtubers I trust to FULLY research a product before buying, and can honestly say, my collection is full of products I genuinely love.

[halcyonmoon]

i think some part of why having content creators advertise products makes people so angry has to do with parasocial relationships-
no one thinks that a celebrity is their friend but they might feel that way about their fav content creator...
but ultimately it's the viewer's job to realize that parasocial relationship is going on & to act accordingly.
it's weird that it doesn't apply more broadly across genres though
but all the other factors are likely the reason i guess

i strongly believe that if people reviewing new products is a trigger for spending money then it's your own responsibility to not purposefully expose yourself to that content all the time

[courtneyburgess]

I trust certain ones of you that I watch. I watch you, Amy and Angelica. And I love and trust you instincts.

[anjeesorge]

I think so much of the mistrust comes from years of bigger beauty YTers pushing their codes on sub-par products. I really think we can blame the Morphe machine for a lot of it.

[MiaRBeauty]

It always boils down to misoginy and daring to be "vain" 🙄🙄 it's also jealousy because I've often seen the narrative of "brands should send pr to loyal customers not to influencers!!!"

[StevenForditude]

So many thoughts… First, I agree with you 1, 000%. I think you’re on the right track here, and I’m glad you shared your thoughts. I think this will help start important conversations.

I am subscribed to and watch a lot of creators in a lot of niches. Everything from tech to beauty to puzzling to books. This is absolutely a beauty creator issue. (Not to say unfair criticism isn’t leveled at creators in other niches, but I definitely see this mostly in the beauty space.)

I wish I knew what caused this. I always want to know why people do things, but in this regard, I’m clueless. I can wager some guesses (sexism, jealousy, etc…), but I know I can’t possibly grasp the full extent of WHY people have such unrealistic expectations for beauty creators.

On gaming channels, it isn’t just accepted, but it is EXPECTED that the creators get early access codes to the new games (i.e., PR) so they can give thorough reviews before the games launch. No one says these creators are frauds or cheats or sell outs. But once that same thing happens in the beauty space, creators are immediately called biased, inauthentic, untrustworthy. It’s a double standard and it’s unfair.

It is valid to make YouTube videos with the express purpose of making money. It’s valid to make sponsored content. When our friends get monetized on the platform, we celebrate and throw special live streams to congratulate them. But we can’t have the same grace for other creators who we don’t know personally?

[defectiveshark]

I'm happy for YTers I like when they get sponsorships. Almost everyone I follow is small to medium on YT, and if their content makes me happy and keeps me from imploding from stress and boredom, I'm damn happy if it helps them pay their rent. Part of being a Youtuber IS being an entertainer especially in the past few years because you're now expected to have expensive lighting and good cameras, backdrops, etc. I don't see a problem with paying people for that kind of work.

[TheAudraReins]

Frfr, like I never thought Beyonce and Halle Berry were using BOXED HAIR DYE just because they were in the commercial. Also, it seems being beauty adjacent also shields one from criticism about ads/sponsorships/PR

[misha-zeegrant]

I am going to be controversial here, and I am generalising, I definitely don't think this is everyone... BUT beauty YouTube is definitely going to attract more of a 'bitchy' audience. Not saying everyone into beauty is bitchy, but I doubt there is as much bitchiness and bitterness between plant lovers than make up lovers. However FROM the perspective of OUTSIDERS commenting these things about beauty creators, i think there is an element of sexism in there.

[alexwoolard]

I feel like we talked about this a lil bit the other day, but I think this is another instance of the uncomfortable intersection of art and business and people have this notion that the moment you do something artistic for money, you're not as passionate as you say you are or you're selling out. And I think you hit the nail on the head, when it's a product or a type of thing where you're altering your appearance, I feel like people are going to respond more negatively to a "vain" art form, if that makes sense. that's just how it seems to me at least. like people deserve to get paid, even for vanity and it's weird to me to get up in arms about different people being on Youtube or Instagram for reasons other than the love of a hobby. Some people want to get paid for something they already do, some are okay with making arrangements with brands for store credit or something. both are valid and one is not more committed to the art form than another. it's just different priorities.

[MaggiesMakeupMedley]

Oh man, this resonates. Lots of women-led professions are historically low paid. Teachers, nurses, day care attendees, etc. We as a society really look down on so-called "women's work." Why pay someone a living wage when it's just a woman's job? I think the same applies to beauty. Why should you make money over something so frivolous when those men with their manly hobbies deserve every cent. Basically that sort of mentality.

I've also noticed women are conditioned to be more welcoming in their roles as opposed to men. That's why you hear so many horror stories of harassment in the workplace for women who go into male-dominated spaces. But, has any woman ever harassed the men in the beauty sphere to that extent?

If anything, the glass ceiling applies here too. Many CEOs of beauty brands are male. Male influencers in the beauty space rise astronomically compared to their female counterparts. And when a male beauty guru gets a sponsorship, collab or brand... my god, the praise is relentless. Look at Hyram for example. He's not an esthetician or a dermatologist, but he has millions of subscribers and a soon-to-be-launched skin care brand. Based on what exactly? Because it's certainly not his experience or expertise. He's a guy whose engaging and dominates in a female-led space. What if a female esthetician or derm were to do the same? I don't think the same level of praise or fandom would be there.

It's frustrating to have something you enjoy be looked down upon based on factors beyond your control. I wish we could all look at the very valuable work being done by women and praise it with the same fervor we give to men.

(Anyways thanks for coming to my TEd talk)

[lolamurder]

I think a lot also has to do with people's experiences with a brand. I've seen videos (sadly) where they have an issue with a brand, so creators who like the brand or collab with that brand are 'shills'.

And, it's something I really only see in the beauty space. My husband watches a lot of cooking shows and they do sponsored videos and some people get angry, but it's not at the same level as beauty channels. It would be an interesting sociological experiment or study, honestly.

[ByHerHand]

I love and trust the opinion of a certain creator, so I used to buy everything she recommended as working for her. After awhile I realised that most of those recommendations did not work for me - likely because we have different colouring, skin types and ages 😂. Hahahaha. I still love her tho.

[deenajones]

I feel like you should be compensated for a the time and effort you put in to the videos which save me a lot of money as I can avoid buying the crap and go straight for the good products! Makeup is what I love and often how I express myself and that is true of most females and those who identify as females. I think to criticize beauty videos while being tolerant of male dominated videos is blatant sexism.

[YadiBeauty]

I totally agree with all you said…I wonder if we’re just in transition..people trusting us might take a while, but I feel like we just have to keep doing what we do. We all started this because of a passion for beauty. Over time and with constant engagement, they will eventually feel comfortable going to you for product advice and to use your affiliate links without reproach.
I personally feel like celebrity endorsement is phasing out. Great topic tho! And the eye look was bomb!!

[TheEtherny]

The thing is makeup channels are way more open than other channels, they talk with familiarity and are anecdotal to the point many can feel like they're friends, like "come and get ready with me", this is not unique to beauty, family channels thrive from parasocial relationships as well as animation (the anecdotal ones) gaming and tbh lots of other niches, but makeup channels are rarely here just to entertain, they're mostly about selling something, whether it's intentional or not, and audiences who have gotten attached can feel betrayed if they see it's mostly about the money (even tho that's 98% of YT).

Tech and others can get away with it because tech is way less subjective than makeup and you're rarely there for the person. Like sure, there's some tech reviewers I trust more than others, but I don't know if they're married, if they have jobs, if they have a family, if they have a problem they're going through, etc. I guess it's more prominent in women cause we're not afraid to be vulnerable, but of course, this comes with ups and downs.

[valerijao]

Try mixing flakies with mixing liquid on plate and sort of crush them first

[KendraMorgan]

A. I love plant youtubers.
B. I envy camera/lens/photography channels. All the ones that I'm subscribed to are fantastic spaces and very positive.
C. Now I want to use flakies and ruin my face makeup too.

[teresachick]

I started off watching big YouTubers when I first got into beauty YouTube (just easiest to find/most recommended by the algorithm), but started noticing some sketchy stuff going on. Then I discovered small YouTubers and it was a breath of fresh air. I guess just being burned right off the bat made me resistant to sponsored content, and it took a while for me to become accepting of it. In other words, I think the law of primacy played a huge role in my thoughts/feeling towards PR, sponsored content, etc.

ETA: I fully support creators being paid for their work, and I have simply realized it's on me to choose wisely. Thanks for the thoughtful video! 😃

[courtneyburgess]

And honestly people should be happy for you guys receiving pr. I’m happy you get products to test for us and not have to use your money. Bc that means you can try more products for us. There’s always going to be jealous people and honestly I feel like that’s in any job. I wait tables and there are people at my job get mad bc I have a lot of regulars. It’s just jealous unhappy people. Just ignore them.