Earlier this week, I asked you on stories what your assumptions were about bloggers and influencers. I saw another influencer I follow ask her audience this, and I thought it was really interesting. She said that out of thousands of responses she received, they were mostly all negative. Some of the responses were “it’s not an actual job” a “influencing is WAY easier than a 9-5” (why do we even have to compare?), “it’s all about attention, fame, and money.”

I like to think we have a pretty supportive community around here so I hoped I wouldn’t see a ton of “negative” assumptions, but I was curious on what your thoughts were on influencers and bloggers. Here were some of the responses:

“They got lucky with their job”
“Spending time having fun/pampering/working out/eating then complaining that it’s sooo hard”
“Everything is edited, botoxed, or filtered”
“They live on their phones and neglect their loved ones at times”
“More concerned with posting ads then creating relatable content”
“Always trying to make money by promoting and getting us to buy certain products” /”will promote anything for a price”/ “wouldn’t really use half the products given to them by sponsors”
“They are creative and enjoy sharing with other and are more photogenic than most 😉 “
“They make way more money than I originally thought! I love bloggers! I wish I could be one”
“Definitely think the amount of work is underestimated by people who work a 9-5”
“So much respect and admiration because of how much work is involved. It’s a real job”
“You get a lot of judgement from people not taking your job/content seriously”
“You always have things perfectly together”/” they live perfect and fabulous lives”
“Wish I could do it! Seems hard to start but once you’re there it would be a great gig”
“They get discounts on stuff and a lot of stuff for free”

I first wanted to talk about the assumptions related to ads/sponsored posts because that is where a lot of the assumptions were directed towards. I’ll be honest, part of me agrees that there are some  influencers and bloggers that will promote anything and everything. And yes, that definitely puts a bad taste in my mouth too because it diminishes “believability”.  I totally get that. However, it’s up to you to follow influencers and bloggers that you feel  are trustworthy and will promote and share products that they genuinely use and like. For example, earlier this year I turned down an $18K brand deal because I didn’t think it was the best fit for my brand, and wouldn’t have been 100% authentic. Could I have made it work for the money? Sure. But did I want to? No. So I passed on the collaboration. I just say this to help instill some confidence that not all influencers are accepting every deal thrown at them. I have friend’s in the industry who have turned down deals much larger than this too.

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I think overall it’s important to understand that through ads/sponsored posts, this is HOW most influencers make a living so that they CAN spend time creating their personal content for you to consume for FREE. The other alternative is for a blogger/influencer to come out with their own services or products (but sadly sometimes when people are so used to getting free content, they don’t want to then for it). So my point is, I understand if someone is posting an absurd amount of ads because you’re like, okay, but where is the content that YOU’RE creating, that I started following you for in the first place?” But also understand, when you’re not supportive of ads/sponsored posts that your favorite influencers share, you’re asking them to continue to spend time creating their personal content for free. I mean, how are we supposed to make a living?! I wish I was living that Real Housewives life where I could just create content for free all the time but sadly it doesn’t work that way.

As far as everything being botoxed, perfect, filtered, etc. This is a tricky one to navigate. People SAY they want REAL content but when I’m scrolling through IG, most of the accounts and photos that do the best aren’t of someone taking a selfie eating a pint of ice cream on the couch with a stain on their sweatshirt LOL. With that said, it can be hard to find that balance between having a photo that isn’t overly edited and perfect BUT still relatable. IG is a visual platform and so when people respond well to beautifully curated and edited photos, that’s what people are going to produce more of. I personally try to make my photos as “real” as possible because that is what my brand is about, and the other types of photos just wouldn’t be “me.” But yes, I am still going to put it effort to make it look a certain way because IG is a visual platform. You know though that I will always keep it real, which is why I especially love IG stories. I never want anyone to feel less than or bad about their life after consuming my content. My goal is to help you life YOUR best life (oh and yes, I get botox but who doesnt?! 😉 )

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The last thing I want to touch one is the comparison to a 9-5 job and about bloggers and influencers getting to do fun things for work but complaining then that it’s sooo hard. I have worked a 9-5 job, and I also work a a nurse. That being said, I think I’m qualified to speak on this topic. My thoughts? These jobs are all so different, that you really can’t compare them! l will say this though –that working for yourself and being your own boss has it’s perks but it’s no cake walk. Your income relying on how many brands feel like working with you that month? Your engagement on an app you have no control of? Creating content continuously that is valuable for your audience? Coming up with ways to serve your audience but also make an income stream out of? It’s not easy and can get stressful (like any job!!).  And as far as doing all these fun trips but then “complaining that it’s sooo hard.” Just remember that you only see a glimpse of what is actually going on. If something looks easy that means a person is doing their job well. So yes, are there worse things than going to Mexico for a brand trip? Of course! I’m definitely not complaining. At the same time though, if it were were an easy job everyone would be doing it.

I think it’s important to ask ourselves though why we are comparing our jobs in the first place? Why does it need to be a competition between who has the harder job? We all have different jobs, abilities, talents, etc. We all are unique and bring something different to the table so why do we make judgments about others? I get that sometimes it’s easy to make assumptions about things we don’t fully understand. I am totally guilty of that too. In general though, I think we could all give each other a little more grace!

This blog post wasn’t meant to say that all the “negative” assumptions about bloggers and influencers are wrong. Of course there are people, like with every job, that fall into those categories. But I hope this helped give some insight to why some of those assumptions may be misinformed. And obviously not all the assumptions were “negative”–I loved seeing those positive ones in there too 🙂 Overall, the great thing about social media is that you can choose who you want to follow and engage with. So if you’re following people who perpetuate those negative assumptions, then just unfollow and find some bloggers and influencers that you trust, and bring you good value! 🙂

Anything else you want to talk about below?! Happy to answer questions or continue the conversation!

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