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[Messofanego]

First, I'm not really interested in the reasonings for makeup. There was a thread yesterday about porn stars and makeup, so plenty of discussion there already. Whether you're doing it for yourself, to satisfy society's expectations, both, whatever, PBS Ideas Channel already did a great video recently to encompass all of that discussion:

Why Makeup Isn't Superficial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alKq-l_J51s

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What I'm interested is the beauty makeup tutorial scene. This is my research on it. I know most won't care, but I like to research stuff I don't have a clue about. I was bored. What I got out of this was fascinating. So, I wondered what's up with so many of them over on Youtube. Just like for guys, how many gaming videos there are. The #1 most subscribed channel is gaming. For women, I'm guessing makeup tutorials are equally as hot. How did amateur beauty makeup gurus become so big? Untapped market for girl viewers browsing Youtube?

Then I wonder, since big companies are all up into Youtube now with product placement and sponsorships, I'm sure maybe a few Youtube makeup gurus partake in that. For gaming, very few gaming Youtubers partake in those brand deals or advertorials cause it becomes a controversy and it blows up in the gaming press or forums like here (XB1M13, Battlefield 4 launch, Shadow of Mordor brand deals).

Turns out actually, A LOT of well-known Youtube beauty gurus are sponsored.

www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-youtube-stars-20140808-story.html

First came the fans. Then came the brands — then the money. Between her cut of YouTube advertising and various side deals, Phan said she will pull in more than $1 million this year.

"I'm no longer just talent," the 27-year-old said while applying makeup recently in a Santa Monica studio, a pile of beauty products strewn across a table in front of her. "It's a business.

That has upended the way viewers, particularly those in the prized younger demographic, watch content: YouTube now reaches more U.S. adults ages 18 to 34 than any cable network, according to Nielsen.

With those massive online followings comes influence and a shot at serious wealth.

Soon Lancome was asking Phan to create and star in videos for the makeup brand's YouTube channel. Over three years, four of Lancome's top five YouTube videos that drove the most new subscribers to the channel featured Phan.

A couple of years later, Lancome's parent company, L'Oreal, decided to offer Phan the chance to create her own makeup brand: em michelle phan. It was Phan's "one of us" approach that sold L'Oreal on working with her, said

Roseanne Fama, vice president of brand and product development for em michelle phan.

"She talks to you like a big sister, your BFF, someone who is more approachable than a professional makeup artist," she said.

Viewers often relate better to YouTubers than A-list Hollywood megastars.

That's not all. Phan also founded Ipsy, a $10-a-month beauty bag membership subscription. She's writing a beauty book, "Make Up: Your Life Guide to Beauty, Style and Success — Online and Off," which will go on sale in October.

She has also worked with Beats, Audible, Toyota, SanDisk and other companies. A Dr Pepper commercial she filmed is now running on national TV. She has her eye on bringing the Michelle Phan brand international, and is looking to first take on the Asia market.

But Phan, who grew up on food stamps, is quick to stress that she isn't chasing money.

"It's about building an audience that is loyal," she said. "And if you want to be loyal to them, you can't just sell them everything. They're not stupid."

As her star has risen, the YouTube videos that made her famous have become a smaller part of her life. She tries to post one new video a week, but concedes "it's been really tough."

"When you're becoming more of a businessperson or an entrepreneur, you really have less free time," she said.

http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/st...designed-by-youtube-beauty-guru-michelle-phan

"YouTube content creators like Michelle Phan have completely transformed the way people learn about and shop for makeup today," said Jim Lecinski, vice president, sales, Google. "A few years ago, people primarily shopped by going to the beauty counter at a mall. Now, they go first to YouTube and search for tutorials and reviews. By developing a line of products with one of our most prolific creators, L'Oreal is tapping into the core of what YouTube is for consumers today - the place where people learn, share, and engage with the products and brands they love."

Do girls care about that kind of stuff? These are just technical products much like gadgets and other stuff is for guys. Who cares about honest reviews or opinions, it's not like it's art or anything.

Actually, it's about ethics in the youtube makeup scene

Reddit MakeupAddiction: Which beauty bloggers/youtubers do you avoid because you know them to be biased or sponsered?

Reddit users:

Who do you guys know is sponsered by certain companies or gives biased reviews due to being paid off etc??

I used to really love her too but I feel like with all of these "gurus," they start out with high quality, honest reviews and tutorials, then as they get sponsored it just turns into BS videos I don't want to waste my time watching. I want to lnow what's good at the drugstore, not how great your Neutrogena skin regimen is!

I just unsubscribe from secretlifeofabionerd after a 10 minute long 'daily routine' that was literally a huluPlus commercial. 'while brushing my teeth, I catch up on Doctor Who. Then, I go eat breakfast and watch some Breaking Bad.' etc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UViuJz3ucnQ (HAHA she mentions Hulu PLUS so many times I lost count, and she even fucks up her disclaimer making it sound like she just only really likes Hulu and yet has a sponsorship link with her name on it)

Couple of insiders:
1)

Full disclosure before I continue: I'm a beauty blogger who is friends with a lot of the (mostly Australian) beauty blogger community. My blog is pr-free now but it's previous incarnation wasn't.

Basically, bloggers/vloggers/online publishers in the US have to disclose not only when they are paid to write a post, but also when they review, use or mention a product they were sent as a gift or for review. If they don't, technically they're breaking the law. My understanding is that these laws should apply to any content seen by viewers in the US, which is why a lot of international bloggers disclose now, but I don't know know how this would be policed. Even without the laws though, bloggers should disclose because it's ethical. But... Zanita (one of the FELT) bloggers wrote an article last year about why she doesn't disclose. So there's a lot of opinions.

My old blog wasn't huge compared to some of the others out there but I was getting so much stuff sent to me that I was really overwhelmed. It was also tough not to make every post a review of something gifted, particularly because I also wanted to maintain good relationships with the PR companies/brands who were sending me stuff.

As soon as you realise a blogger is being dishonest and posting positive reviews of bad products, or mentioning things they wouldn't actually use though, you should absolutely unsubscribe.

2)

I just came in here to ask why there is so much hate for people having sponsored posts? Full disclosure, I work for a company which helps these YouTubers work with brands. This sort of thing is my everyday so I am pretty well versed in how this works on their end. I happen to know that all the YouTube channels that my company represents only take brand deals on products they like themselves. Most of the YouTubers turn down WAY more than they accept. All of them are very aware of their fan feedback on branded content and want to remain authentic to who they are. They never want to promote something they themselves aren't keen on. That said, brand deals are how they make their money and give them a lot of really cool opportunities such as Michelle Phan's Dr. Pepper commerical or Bethany Mota's clothing line. It seems they get hate from their fans for disclosing the brands they are paid to promote or who have given them free product and it seems they get hate when they try to integrate the products seamlessly. I'm just trying to understand why there is so much negative feedback like the comments in the post around these. Thanks!

How to spot out the sponsorships:
http://www.reddit.com/r/MakeupAddiction/comments/1weuz0/which_beauty_bloggersyoutubers_do_you_avoid/

Personally, it's when they DON'T disclose that it annoys me, and many barely acknowledge it in the "about" section. I get that that's how they make money, but they can at least say when it's a free product. By not doing so, it makes me feel like they are just trying to sell a product and might not genuinely like it. In that case I might as well watch a commercial or flip through magazine ads.

Michelle Phan. Her videos are nothing more than commercials for her overpriced cosmetics. I watched a recent video of hers and found that something like 13 items she used in the video were all Em products and the rest were products used in that months ipsy bag ( in which she's part owner).

If someone is pushing the Sigma brush line, I assume they are sponsored. I remember when they first came out at the company sent out their brushes, and so many people were comparing them to MAC (also they had the same MAC numbers).

I do watch most of the bigger gurus but I usually take what they say with a grain of salt. Most of them are sponsored. If you see any Youtuber that shows a product and then says "I have a promo code for you guys!" it is sponsored and I usually stay far away. Famous Youtubers are sent tons of products each month. That's why they are always doing "skincare routine" or "get ready with me" videos every month, so they can include as many products but make it seem realistic. If a lot of Youtubers are talking about the same random brand I have never heard of, its probably sponsored and I will never buy into it.

It's really insane how many products these YouTube gurus squeeze in to their videos trying to make it seem believable. The one who comes to mind is Missglamorazzi. She will film a "get ready with me" video that easily has 30 products in it, and she'll act like she really does use each product every day. Then a month later she'll have a new one for her bedtime routine with an almost entirely different set of products. Even more than how expensive it would be to keep up with that volume of product, how on earth would anyone have time to keep all of it up?

Yeah she is exactly who I meant, and a lot of other gurus do it too, like a new "Foundation Routine" or "Morning Routine" every month or so. Then they do "Getting ready for a date" "Nighttime routine" and you realise that they aren't using ANY of the same products they raved about only a few videos before it.

I just watched her latest; what really sets me off that products could be sponsored is her lack of viable information; "it's just so awesome!" uh huh..but why is it awesome? "I love it, it's awesome". Using the same term to describe something vaguely = sponsored for me lol.

Wow, I feel silly now that I've never even questioned frequent "routine" or "get ready with me" videos. That makes so much sense.

As a rule of thumb I always look up reviews because Youtubers can be biased. It's very easy to believe what they say because they do advertise/promote products in a realistic way by including them in routines or explaining how the products worked for them. I'm sure most of the products are good products but just be careful if they ever mention a special deal, promo code, or a new brand you have never heard of. Make sure you research beyond Youtube

THEN when Shaan's fans commented on the video explaining the price difference of makeup in NZ and how it made no sense for Shaan to spend so much on stuff Jen could get herself for cheaper... and that the NZ brands Shaan had sent were good quality... Jen deleted / didn't publish any of these comments. Any comment that made her look bad was deleted. So the video is full of comments saying how Shaan gave her shit stuff, probably products she got for free, etc. Comments from NZers are kept when they say things like, "I'm from NZ and those are crap brands and she didn't spend $400 on you" (which isn't true) but comments saying they are good brands are deleted ALSO MissJenFABULOUS also steals people's nail art and doesn't give them credit / claims she created it herself. Google it.

I think by some FCC (?) rule, people have to disclose if they paid for a product or if it was sent to them. That is often helpful. That and a willingness to say negative things about a product they clearly didn't purchase (michael todd, benefit, tarte, sigma).

I was subscribed to Blair [Fowler aka Juicystar07] years and years ago when she was 15 and doing makeup tutorials and hauls in her bedroom. It was kind of sad to see that fade into a once-a-month sponsored video. It's nice that she became extremely successful, but her Youtube content got straight up lazy.

UGH this is why I've been watching lesser known gurus, just because of this. I hate the sponsorships and such. I'm a big reader of gurugossiper.net to check out which guru's are more "credible" than others.

gurugossiper is site for bullies, one day they will drive someone to kill themselves. I just couldn't believe that they actually harassed family members of beauty bloggers and they even contacted their own family members who work at bank to find out how many money dulcecandy has.

Amongst all the Youtube makeup gurus, don't even think of comparing Michelle Phan to the "supreme" "deity" Lisa Eldridge:

The thought that Lisa Eldridge and Michelle Phan in the same sentence. Lol. I can't believe MP put up an "organic" skincare advice on rubbing Lemon and Sugar on face to exfoliate. Guess we've all gone through the phase of falling in and out of love with MP over the course of her YT career.

Lisa Eldridge is so supreme, total admiration for her. Especially I love her simplicity in sometimes just a layer or eyeshadow + mascara, no harsh rules on 2-3 eyeshadows, tight lining + eyeliner. No emphasis on the trendy "contouring" as we now associate with and just pretty blush to bring youth and vitality to a look.

I agree about Michelle Phan. On the other side is Lisa Eldridge, a long time professional who has stated many times she gets every week a van full of products for free, but she shows and tries only the ones she really like. But she's another level and definitely not a typical youtuber.

Lisa Eldridge lives on another plane of existence far above most youtubers and mere mortals.

I also respect Lisa Eldridge for not opting for the YouTube partnership. I like that she spares us the trouble of sitting/skipping through commercials.

Yep, I don't really consider Lisa a youtuber like the rest- she is an awesome makeup applying deity who happens to grace youtube with her videos

Michelle Phan signing autographs

I'd like to jump on Michelle Phan hate bandwagon. Once, she told her viewers that she will do a meet and greet at Sephora Times Square. I was ecstatic since I live so close. I got there and there was a line. As I was walking to the line, one of the Sephora/lacome staff told me I had to purchase a lancome product to actually meet her. I don't even like Lancome. If you go in you'll see Michelle signing autograph and heavily guarded by Lancome staff. You can't even get up close and take a photo of her. When I left, there was a group of young women who looked to be middle schoolers looking through the glass just to see her. They all wanted to meet her but they didn't have any money to purchase Lancome products. I felt sad for them. She never mentioned you needed to purchase Lancome products to meet her on her statuses and video. That night, I checked her Facebook wall. Everyone was complaining about how they did not know they had to buy something in order to meet her, take a photo with her and get her signature. She replies and says no that's not true and she said she didn't know about all of this either. She also dismissed the complains by saying something like 'Don't worry guys I will do more meet and greets soon'.

http://www.makeuptalk.com/f/topic/96869-which-youtube-gurus-have-you-unsusbscribed-from/
Makeup Talk Forum Users:

I am just curious as to how people feel now about the gurus they once liked. YouTube has become saturated with them, and unfortunately many (though not all) have been swayed by freebies and paid advertisements.

I usually skip out on Michelle's make up videos (they're only Lancome now, but whatever.)

I've unsubbed from Michelle Phan, TiffanyD, and the Fowlers, it was just too much advertisement

Theres more but for the most part I unsubscribed because their a walking commercial, they are not doing it for the fun anymore their doing it for the money and fame. They give good reviews to things they know aren't good or things that they would never buy or touch with a ten inch pole.

The annoying product pushers...

A lot of YT gurus are advertising but fafinette sounds incredibly fake - you can clearly tell which of her videos are promoted. My faves are: Enkore (amazing technique), Andreaschoice (fun to watch), pixiwoo, pixi2woo, gossmakeupartist and lollipop26 (To me these two seem like the most honest when it comes to reviews)

I'm on my way to unsubscribing from Panacea81, Michelle Phan, Marlena (Makeupgeek), Lisasz09. They just aren't real. They aren't doing it for the love, but for the perks and free shit and as a spring board to launch their own ideas. That's wack.

I don't really follow any tubers. They're not in it for the heart of it.

It's all about dem amateur haul vids

But lets face it - its all a bit commercial now with all these girls. Lisa, Pixiwoo and Pancea81 etc. I still am personally drawn to the amateur videos

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TL;DR What I've come away with from this bit of research is that most big Youtube beauty tutorial videos are just infomercials complete with product placement, promo codes, and giveaways. Girls/women are quick to pick up on this especially when it's not disclosed, so they seek out smaller amateur beauty tutorial channels that go on "hauls" and are less likely to be given free products to advertorial for. But then, once that channel becomes bigger and has to review more products at a time, the companies will send them products and it's the whole thing over again.

 

[Earthstrike]

Pretty interesting. Insofar as I can tell you can start with MP's much older videos that shot her into fame in the first place. My understanding is that a ton of people learned to do their own makeup from that.

 

[studyguy]

My girlfriend watches Phan's videos religiously along with her sister(cousin?) Promise Phan.
Most of it is just for the benefit of seeing new products in use, or small tips along with those weird transformative makeup tutorials.

She equates makeup as a hobby more than anything. Playing with it like I mess with my PC

 

[Akuun]

One MILLION a year!? Christ.

 

[Messofanego]

I told my sister about the fact that if a girl says this product is her favourite thing that she uses all the time but changes it next month is a sign of being sponsored, she was shocked and then was like "oh wow, that makes total sense! how did I not notice that before?!". Cause apparently, if you're just a regular person, you don't change favourite products that quick.

 

[Ayumi]

My girlfriend watches Phan's videos religiously along with her sister(cousin?) Promise Phan.
Most of it is just for the benefit of seeing new products in use, or small tips along with those weird transformative makeup tutorials.

She equates makeup as a hobby more than anything. Playing with it like I mess with my PC

I wonder if your girlfriend is aware of Phan's fakeness. She's been promoting natural beauty since day 1, but then she started photoshopping and after that, she got injections. In the end she ended up getting her chin done. So much for a make-up guru. lol

 

[scotcheggz]

As a hairstylist, I'll tell you straight up, a lot, I mean A LOT of the women who do hair as well as beauty are purely hyping a product for some company. Unfortunately the hair and beauty industry is saturated with selling product, so it's really no surprise honestly. In fact, if you work in the industry, you'll probably be to the point where meeting other industry types, even if they're just shaking your hand and saying hi, you're waiting for them to hawk you some fuckin hand moisturiser.

The thing that often chuffs me off though is that whilst some of them are alright at doing their own hair, they really aren't experts. They often give advice which is straight up wrong and present it as fact, they often hype up some piss poor product most wouldn't use on their arse hair if they knew what was in it and what good it does. I'm not bitter about this, it's just shitty for the consumers and frustrating for myself when I'm trying to look for a quality review or product introduction on the net, I just want some sembalance of integrity.

As an aside, in the hair industry there is a mounting charge for independant, quality products/websites/shows/podcasts etc. that actively shun the companies and their overbearing advertising and sales which has really started gaining traction over the past few years. Hair and beauty industries are really closely linked so I'd hope it will or maybe even has started to bleed over.

 

[Jimrpg]

This is my friend's makeup blog/personal blog.

http://www.theperfectximperfection.com/

She's good at what she does but I think she jumped on the bandwagon a bit late!

 

[Messofanego]

I'm just surprised there isn't any wider controversy about Youtubers doing product placement outside of forums.

 

[Mohonky]

One MILLION a year!? Christ.

Dude youtube if you can have a smash hit channel is lucrative. Pewdiepie would be rolling in the cash and all he does is scream high pitched annoying shit into a microphone.

 

[shira]

One MILLION a year!? Christ.

She's actually really good look at this Ajolie transformation: http://youtu.be/rNQ2oDEyVNw
- perfect integration of sponsors
- lovely voice
- easy to follow instructions

 

[Messofanego]

I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of women buy products advertised in these makeup videos. Cause if she can look so good, must be those products helping, right? I don't think there has been a study on how much transfer there is between these advertorials and sales of those products. Is there?

As a hairstylist, I'll tell you straight up, a lot, I mean A LOT of the women who do hair as well as beauty are purely hyping a product for some company. Unfortunately the hair and beauty industry is saturated with selling product, so it's really no surprise honestly. In fact, if you work in the industry, you'll probably be to the point where meeting other industry types, even if they're just shaking your hand and saying hi, you're waiting for them to hawk you some fuckin hand moisturiser.

The thing that often chuffs me off though is that whilst some of them are alright at doing their own hair, they really aren't experts. They often give advice which is straight up wrong and present it as fact, they often hype up some piss poor product most wouldn't use on their arse hair if they knew what was in it and what good it does. I'm not bitter about this, it's just shitty for the consumers and frustrating for myself when I'm trying to look for a quality review or product introduction on the net, I just want some sembalance of integrity.

As an aside, in the hair industry there is a mounting charge for independant, quality products/websites/shows/podcasts etc. that actively shun the companies and their overbearing advertising and sales which has really started gaining traction over the past few years. Hair and beauty industries are really closely linked so I'd hope it will or maybe even has started to bleed over.

Insightful post, thanks for this. Can understand the frustration from professionals. Plenty of women in those forums I mention highlight how bad some of the products are but they had to buy it to figure that out since they're pushed by big youtube celebrities. It's probably hard to find trustworthy sources in such a field where it's big business.

 

[chicagocubsfan]

I interned for a company that did a lot of stuff for celebrity branding. And the makeup youtubers like Phan were becoming the next big thing for that industry.

 

[ponpo]

She's actually really good look at this Ajolie transformation: http://youtu.be/rNQ2oDEyVNw
- perfect integration of sponsors
- lovely voice
- easy to follow instructions

The stuff in the OP seems to say otherwise?

 

[bjork]

I had a friend who was doing this and she got a bit of a following going, then just stopped. Kinda makes me wonder how it would've went, I think she could've done well for herself for sure.

 

[Shuggananas]

Disgusting way of advertising

Also I had a guy friend who watched those. Creepy as fuck.

 

[N0VAM0D]

Super interesting! Thank you for the read.

I'm a girl, but I rarely watch makeup tutorials on YouTube, sort of just figured it out for myself and watched my Mum as I was growing up (she was a makeup artist for a while). I can definitely see why people watch the videos, but I they're not for me. I really do enjoy makeup, though!

 

[Bomber Bob]

looks better before

 

[red731]

looks better before

Agree. I wanted to joke about eyelid and lips botox. But.. joke

 

[BPoole]

My sister is OBSESSED with makeup tutorial videos. She probably spends $200/month buying makeup, acne, and skin care products. I assumed it was just like popular gaming personalities that are getting mad money for plugging products, but after reading some of those examples, it's even more egregious than I thought

 

[freeofgreed]

Good post OP. I pretty much did the same research you did a while back and the whole situation is fucked. This is just a huge problem with the rise of youtubers as celebrities in general. Most of them are just regular people trying to make a buck so they don't have the same ethical and moral obligations when reviewing products that traditional journalist do.

 

[Chuckie]

She's actually really good look at this Ajolie transformation: http://youtu.be/rNQ2oDEyVNw
- perfect integration of sponsors
- lovely voice
- easy to follow instructions

Lol. She looks fucking ridiculous in that second picture.
Unless the object of the video was 'How to go from pretty to scary' I think it failed spectacularly.

 

[Shuggananas]

Lol. She looks fucking ridiculous in that second picture.
Unless the object of the video was 'How to go from pretty to scary' I think it failed spectacularly.

Angelina jolie "cosplay" so yeah, from pretty to scary.

 

[Chuckie]

Angelina jolie "cosplay" so yeah, from pretty to scary.

Lol.
Well I wouldn't say she looks like Angelina Jolie, but she does look around 40, so I guess the make-up does half the job.

 

[BPoole]

Disgusting way of advertising

Also I had a guy friend who watched those. Creepy as fuck.

I can understand the appeal. The girls are pretty attractive and speak in a friendly way. A guy that doesn't get attention from girls probably finds it comforting/relaxing. It's kind of the same as those ASMR videos where the girls read scripts of everyday life scenarios. Some people are just really lonely and that kind of virtual interaction is stimulating

 

[scotcheggz]

Good post OP. I pretty much did the same research you did a while back and the whole situation is fucked. This is just a huge problem with the rise of youtubers as celebrities in general. Most of them are just regular people trying to make a buck so they don't have the same ethical and moral obligations when reviewing products that traditional journalist do.

The problem with the H&B industry is that it's absolutely saturated becuase product is the No1 money earner for any business. The advertising is on hypermode eternally, even 'traditional journalists' can't and shouldn't be trusted. Remember the fuss that came about a few years back when gaming websites started coming under fire for their review practices? That doesn't have a patch on what is accepted wholesale in hair and beauty. Take the average consumer mag, cosmo or vogue or whatever and count the ads to articles ratio and maybe take note of what companies they're both for too and you might get a shock, but it doesn't end there. Even the mags aimed at the industry which are otherwise rock solid are full of promotional guff from companies we all know are shit. It's almost like we're supposed to overlook it, like the decent industry mags are giving us a cheeky wink going 'buy this it's really good *snigger* brb going to the bank.' But there's the problem, average Jane or Joe, whoever, might rely on this shit to spend hard earned cash.

It makes my job harder, most people hate salons trying to push them on product, I hate doing it myself, but often times I think people are perhaps like me. If I am reccommending a product it's because I genuinely think it will benefit you. Sometimes I wish I could say what I want and just yell that if you're going to spend so much money on product you probably don't need, at least buy something that's worth the cash you're paying. Granted that only applies to a decent salon selling good product though and the way salons profit margins work and the sheer amount of marketing, how is a consumer supposed to know what is a good product and what is bad? This is made even more messy with Youtube girl #5684937 flapping her lips about crap to a million viewers.

It makes consumers life a struggle, always looking for the next wonder product which turns into some kind of sick, insecurity preying treadmill that you have to pay out the arse to use. For industry professionals, it's a a ballache. Even if I pay big money for education, I have to make sure to filter the marketing from the sessions because that's really what the companies gain from it, my sign up fee is just a bonus. Industry forums are equally bad, with viral marketers posing as posters so much, that I'd say in any given thread, chances are its at least 50% marketers replying. Plant the sales pitch into me so I can regurgitate it to my clientbase.

From my perspective it's easy to see that youtube is shite, like I said, H&B is marketing hypermode, so if you want to see sketchy review practices on youtube, then this is the industry which will highlight it most obviously. Honestly, if you're looking up a product, find the most amateur video you can and you'll be better off for it.

As an aside, I'd say Asia is slightly better. I have some experience working within the Asian industry and I subscribe to a few Korean and Japanese mags, since my city is multicultural and I like to keep my inspiration rounded (style trends can be crazy different east to west, see: perming) and the level of marketing is a tiny bit better, but then H&B in Asia is treated very differently and I think is much more valued and respected by consumers than here in the west. Anyway, going slightly off topic..

What I've written comes from the hair perspective, but the beauty industry is tied alongside it and there's so much crossover it's practically the same thing. Sorry if it sounds like ranting lol.

 

[entremet]

I'm just surprised there isn't any wider controversy about Youtubers doing product placement outside of forums.

Why?

 

[Messofanego]

Why?

Without disclosing. That's pretty unethical.

 

[Red Liquorice]

Disgusting way of advertising

Also I had a guy friend who watched those. Creepy as fuck.

What's creepy about it?

 

[Messofanego]

The problem with the H&B industry is that it's absolutely saturated becuase product is the No1 money earner for any business. The advertising is on hypermode eternally, even 'traditional journalists' can't and shouldn't be trusted. Remember the fuss that came about a few years back when gaming websites started coming under fire for their review practices? That doesn't have a patch on what is accepted wholesale in hair and beauty. Take the average consumer mag, cosmo or vogue or whatever and count the ads to articles ratio and maybe take note of what companies they're both for too and you might get a shock, but it doesn't end there. Even the mags aimed at the industry which are otherwise rock solid are full of promotional guff from companies we all know are shit. It's almost like we're supposed to overlook it, like the decent industry mags are giving us a cheeky wink going 'buy this it's really good *snigger* brb going to the bank.' But there's the problem, average Jane or Joe, whoever, might rely on this shit to spend hard earned cash.

It makes my job harder, most people hate salons trying to push them on product, I hate doing it myself, but often times I think people are perhaps like me. If I am reccommending a product it's because I genuinely think it will benefit you. Sometimes I wish I could say what I want and just yell that if you're going to spend so much money on product you probably don't need, at least buy something that's worth the cash you're paying. Granted that only applies to a decent salon selling good product though and the way salons profit margins work and the sheer amount of marketing, how is a consumer supposed to know what is a good product and what is bad? This is made even more messy with Youtube girl #5684937 flapping her lips about crap to a million viewers.

It makes consumers life a struggle, always looking for the next wonder product which turns into some kind of sick, insecurity preying treadmill that you have to pay out the arse to use. For industry professionals, it's a a ballache. Even if I pay big money for education, I have to make sure to filter the marketing from the sessions because that's really what the companies gain from it, my sign up fee is just a bonus. Industry forums are equally bad, with viral marketers posing as posters so much, that I'd say in any given thread, chances are its at least 50% marketers replying. Plant the sales pitch into me so I can regurgitate it to my clientbase.

From my perspective it's easy to see that youtube is shite, like I said, H&B is marketing hypermode, so if you want to see sketchy review practices on youtube, then this is the industry which will highlight it most obviously. Honestly, if you're looking up a product, find the most amateur video you can and you'll be better off for it.

As an aside, I'd say Asia is slightly better. I have some experience working within the Asian industry and I subscribe to a few Korean and Japanese mags, since my city is multicultural and I like to keep my inspiration rounded (style trends can be crazy different east to west, see: perming) and the level of marketing is a tiny bit better, but then H&B in Asia is treated very differently and I think is much more valued and respected by consumers than here in the west. Anyway, going slightly off topic..

What I've written comes from the hair perspective, but the beauty industry is tied alongside it and there's so much crossover it's practically the same thing. Sorry if it sounds like ranting lol.

Ranting is good. Great to hear from different perspectives.

 

[Rookje]

I'm a guy and even I watched her videos 5 years ago. She was hot/cute and had good music. Actually the first time I heard Late Night Alumni.

 

[ClosingADoor]

Good post OP. I pretty much did the same research you did a while back and the whole situation is fucked. This is just a huge problem with the rise of youtubers as celebrities in general. Most of them are just regular people trying to make a buck so they don't have the same ethical and moral obligations when reviewing products that traditional journalist do.

The whole Youtube celebrity thing is just wierd to me. From the pranksters to let's plays to these. I really wonder if Youtube is going to step in in the near future and demand a cut of these sponsorships where they are left out. I think they did away with sponsorship logos recently, not sure about the details there.

But well, the whole beauty stuff is worth $250+ billion (video games is not even $100 billion). No surprise there is big money involved if you have an audience. Certainly one that will buy the things you say to use.

Which is the tricky part, since most people don't notice it is advertising. Of course that is also going on in different media (TV, magazines) but here it is even less transparent, since the personalities involved set themselves up as 'I'm just like you'.

I wonder how long that is sustainable when people do catch on and the trust is gone. Once you got an 'us vs them' scenario (like you see in the games industry with traditional media more) these channels are suddenly worth a lot less to advertisers.

 

[Messofanego]

The whole Youtube celebrity thing is just wierd to me. From the pranksters to let's plays to these. I really wonder if Youtube is going to step in in the near future and demand a cut of these sponsorships where they are left out. I think they did away with sponsorship logos recently, not sure about the details there.

But well, the whole beauty stuff is worth $250+ billion (video games is not even $100 billion). No surprise there is big money involved if you have an audience. Certainly one that will buy the things you say to use.

Which is the tricky part, since most people don't notice it is advertising. Of course that is also going on in different media (TV, magazines) but here it is even less transparent, since the personalities involved set themselves up as 'I'm just like you'.

I wonder how long that is sustainable when people do catch on and the trust is gone. Once you got an 'us vs them' scenario (like you see in the games industry with traditional media more) these channels are suddenly worth a lot less to advertisers.

Considering gaming Youtubers have been trying to get a cut of the revenue of the games that they showcase (1, 2, 3), I wouldn't be surprised if that's in the making or already happening for makeup Youtubers. Especially now that many Youtubers are part of companies like Maker Studios and other businesses than just working off ad money.

 

[entremet]

Without disclosing. That's pretty unethical.

I thought they had to via FTC regulations?

 

[Samara]

I thought they had to via FTC regulations?

In most sponsored videos they do disclose that the products were given to them. Maybe not not paid to boast about it, but given for free. Same goes for hair, detox the and all that makeup.

a makeup swatch like this is sponsored.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=w_n36NIHyak

Maybelline NZ reimbursed me for my time to do this video however all talking points and opinions are my own of course x

Other girls do buy the entire swatches either their own money and I prefer to watch these, but the video quality is not always great.

 

[ClosingADoor]

Considering gaming Youtubers have been trying to get a cut of the revenue of the games that they showcase (1, 2, 3), I wouldn't be surprised if that's in the making or already happening for makeup Youtubers. Especially now that many Youtubers are part of companies like Maker Studios and other businesses than just working off ad money.

That is... something. Didn't even know about that. That's taking things way too far if you ask me. You're basically just a salesperson for a game then, not even a media outlet anymore in my view. You're the same as the PlayStation Blog then or Major Nelson.

I actually meant Youtube / Google taking more of a cut of the money Youtubers make of those sponsor deals. So Company X pays Youtuber Y, but Youtube / Google wants a cut because they are hosting the whole thing.

 

[GRW810]

Holy shit, that is the longest OP I have ever seen.

 

[studyguy]

I wonder if your girlfriend is aware of Phan's fakeness. She's been promoting natural beauty since day 1, but then she started photoshopping and after that, she got injections. In the end she ended up getting her chin done. So much for a make-up guru. lol

I don't think she cares tbh. I only notice it since she watches it on her phone every so often between a bunch of other cosmetic videos. There's probably more people she watches, but I just remember her specifically.

Didn't even know she was big or anything.