I think that for a few years, I was more of an island and tuned a lot of people out to stay focused, but now, I find I try to keep one ear to the ground a bit more so I have a better understanding of the community at large. This means, though, that I have more favorites and people I watch out of enjoyment!
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Influencers have helped me to avoid products that never would have worked for me, and introduced me to products and brands that I wouldn’t have known about or considered trying.
No their role hasn’t changed for me but I have stopped watching quite a few and found other favorites. As I mentioned in one of the other questions about influencers, I never buy anything based solely on YT “gurus”. I always do my own research and come to Temptalia for reviews, if Christine has reviewed the item. When I first started watching it was mostly my daughter recommending who to watch and of course as she is just out of college her taste in beauty gurus does not match my taste as a 63 year old. So, occasionally I will watch someone from the “old” days but it is mostly for entertainment. I find the influencers that I watch consistently now are older, more mature and centered more on skin care and a little on makeup. I rely on Temptalia and Jen Luvs Reviews to keep me posted on what is coming out and then I can look for reviews of products that interest me.
Deborah, I feel much as you do. While this site and Christine’s high standards that she’s set here certainly do influence me (more than any other “social media/internet format), I don’t consider her an “influencer” and I guess I have a somewhat negative reaction to that term – I do think of it as people who are trying in a very materialistic way to feather their own nests so they’ll love anything if it’s going to get them a collection or a product in their name or even remuneration (all the while asserting that their opinions are unbiased). I do have the sense that there are some who truly do not allow “patronage” to influence them but lots seem to be looking for both notoriety and remuneration (and I do understand that a site like Temptalia is a “business” – in the same way that Consumer Reports is a business – but this site is run with both professionalism and integrity. So no matter what I see elsewhere, I head straight over here to check out what Christine has to say about it!
Mariella, I *wish* I would have read your comment before writing my own! As you are absolutely right; this site really isn’t run as an “influencer” site in the way that most are. No, not at all. Temptalia is more of a Consumer’s Report type of site; truthful and honest reviews that do not sugar coat or exaggerate brands or collections in order to attain popularity. Christine has this site at a purely professional, yet still personable, friendly site for those who don’t want their ears tickled with “OMG!!, GIRRRL! YOU NEED THIS” and other b.s.
I’ve told you before, Nancy T – separated at birth! And you are being so kind about having ears tickled….it’s at the point now where some of them almost make my ears bleed! I’ve recently watched some of Christine’s old Youtube videos, almost as an antidote to some of the overwrought videos I’d seen and they are so lovely – she’s soft-spoken, clear, calm and informative. No flailing hands and not a single “OMG, GIRRRRL” or “Ride or Die” (seriously, I am so sick of that expression and if you have someone close to you who does, in fact, ride a motorcycle, well, the image…..just makes me want to SLAP someone!)
Yep! I despise that saying, too. 3 of my uncles on my Mom’s side of the family were bikers, as were at *least* half of all my cousins on that side. As someone who saw first-hand the impact that a very serious, near fatal accident had on my one uncle, this “ride or die” saying needs to go bye-bye.
Also, I have watched Christine’s videos awhile ago, and yes, very calm, down to earth persona. The newbies could learn a thing or two about proper comportment while filming a YT video from watching hers!
Yes, Nancy but things like proper comportment and being professional don’t get you the attention that all the over the top behaviour does. Heck, look at the Kartrashians….I don’t understand why Kim doesn’t just leave the house stark naked….I mean, she practically does anyway and we’re all supposed to watch and be amazed, right? So why not just cut to the chase and ditch the clothing entirely. It’s that same sort of mind-set – that attention, any attention, is worth whatever it costs in something like dignity or even privacy to get it (and, of course, they’re the first ones to cry “please give us our privacy at this difficult time” when the sh*t hits the fan and something shaming happens when 2 days earlier, they were grubbing around for media attention for their latest exploit). I think my age is showing!
Since I feel the same way, I’ll just post here in agreement. I couldn’t have said it better. 🙂
Deborah, could you recommend some more mature influencers on Youtube? I find that the majority of beauty gurus there are very young, and while they can be fun to watch, my needs and my style are very different from theirs.
I’ve long been a fan of Pixiwoo, Lisa Eldrige, Monika Blunder, Caroline Hirons
I’m a lot more critical nowadays of reviews & reviewers of products. Especially since I now know that influencers are given ‘gifts’ of $$$’s trips as well as swag.
I suppose if anything, I’m getting turned off by all the self-promotion. I started watching youtube (my only access to “influencers” – youtube and a few blogs, I guess) mostly to get ideas so I’d watch tutorials. But in the past couple of years, all the self-promotion and self indulgence I’ve been seeing has pretty much turned me off. I guess I see a whole lot of people who seem to want to show off – “look at all the stuff I’ve been sent” or “look at the trip I’ve been sent on to……” (fill in the blanks) It’s rare, when listening to any of these, that I hear someone say “and when I went out to volunteer at the food bank” or “the seniors where I volunteer absolutely loved my bright red lipstick” or words like that and it’s much more about “and I decided to take my Balenciaga handbag instead of the Chanel…..”
Yes about the self promotion – I can’t stand that. When did vanity and conceit and ‘I’M AWESOME ALL THE TIME WATCH ME I MADE A VIDEO OF ME COMPLAINING ABOUT MY 8 HOUR TRIPLE UNICORN HAIR JOB” become the new normal, or an abiding virtue at this point? There’s a whole generation out there that has mistaken self-promotion for self-confidence and needing likes and an audience for self assurance. It’s sad and I’m a little worried about the fall out, or at least what the next evolution is.
I’m not much affected by influencers these days, except in the realm of cruelty-free shopping; there are a few internet “personalities” whose ethics in that area I trust to the point that if I see her endorsing a product, I’d feel okay about buying it myself.
Otherwise, I shop according to my own taste and preferences, though I do try to keep my look current.
Carla – does this mean we’ll see you in blue lippie any day soon? 😉 (I sort of shuddered when I read that “I do tr to keep my look current”)
Ha, ha, Mariella! Rest assured, the blue lip won’t grace my face unless I have another lung collapse!
“Current” to me is “lip gloss with a brush instead of a rollerball, no Maybelline aqua eyeshadow (talk about shuddering!), and the occasional liquid lipstick if I really really really really really really love the color.”
First of all, I just want to say I don’t agree with the term “influencer”; I watch videos/read blogs for specific information about a product, and don’t allow myself to be swayed either way about any given product. If I find one of these people to be nothing more than an advertising vessel, I will stop watching/reading. I personally take reviews with a grain of salt, as I find-through experience-lifestyle, skin type, and climate are among several variables that affect a product. That said, I look to videos/blogs for swatches & inspiration, and sometimes application techniques.
There was a time I could search a specific product, and a slew of tutorial videos would pop up, which not only would allow me to see the product(s) in action, but also provide ideas for color combinations with products I may already have. Now, it seems all they’re doing is a “basic” look (often the same they do with every other product), and saying how great it is… The lighting is also so blown out, and camera never zoomed in, so it’s hard to see actual product(s).
I also feel the market is oversaturated with people trying to make a real living off of YouTube/SM, that it becomes a game of cranking out as many videos a week as possible, and many suffer lack of quality content. There are a couple of YTers who I like overall, but I don’t watch them regularly, or subscribe, because they either do the same overall look, or have started to crank out too many uninspired and/or sponsored videos, all the while complaining about how little money they’re making… I want to watch someone who loves makeup, and truly enjoys creating content.
I’ve lost interest and I’ve become jaded. I think the minute they gave themselves or were given a title (beauty influencer) and have since monetized pretty much every part of their lives, I lost respect and interest. I prefer tutorials and a short time frame. I leave the volume down and just watch since they show the product names or they have them listed in the description box. It used to be that you could put you could see the frames when you put your mouse over a spot on the timeline, but I see now that most have taken that feature down so that you can’t fast forward to the important part and you have to suffer them nattering on checking their hair and if their highlighter is still lit or what their best angle is. I have so much second hand embarrassment. The narcissism and vanity is repulsive to me.
There are still a few gems – Lisa Elderidge (always informative and a pleasure to watch and listen to), Wayne Goss (I don’t agree with most of his makeup bests but I like his tips and tricks and he keeps most under 3 minutes – bless him), cflowermakeup (very talented, not full of herself, no muss/no fuss, just there to put up a tutorial). I love the in-depth research Stephanie Nicole does but I have to spread watching her videos out since most are very lengthy, and much like Wayne Goss, I don’t really care for a lot of the makeup she reviews. I used to like Puffins Wife but she has gone to the dark side and is a bit full of herself these days.
I’ve gone completely off “influencers” and try to avoid the latest “Omigawd, you guys, you MUUUUSTTT have this” products. Just– no. Not am I not influenced, I’m really reluctant to look at the product at all.
Maybe 10 years ago I was a big follower of one of the first prominent nail polish blogs. And she had a review of some new polish that Omigawd, you guys, this is the beeesttt evvvveerrrrr. And in the review she highlighted that finally this brand made a polish that dried in a normal amount of time on her. And this was a brand that she’d been pushing, hard, for a while. I asked why she’d never mentioned that these products she’d been “influencing” didn’t, you know, work– and she said that she only said nice things. And that was it for me, both with the brand and the influencer.
Absolutely yes. When I first began looking at beauty blog sites, it was in order to get very specific info or recommendations. For instance; best red lipstick for me or the quality of a brand I was interested in. Now, though, it’s so much more. Now, it’s watching trends evolve, even though I don’t follow trends for the most part. It’s learning about brands in-depth. It’s being a part of an actual community that had the same passion for makeup and skincare as I do. It’s really opened my mind to experiment with colors and formulas that I otherwise wouldn’t have.
Yes. I used to watch “famous” influencers, but over the years I have found a lot that are close to me in style, age and personality and stick to them, no matter which following they have.
I think the “influencers” have changed a lot, so naturally what I expect and get from them has changed too. It used to be that bloggers were the girl next door that I could easily relate to and debate about makeup or skincare with. We all had different tastes and skill levels but our shared love for beauty kept us connected.
Nowadays the big influencers are celebrities that are escorted by bodyguards to glamorous events, get free vacations to tropical islands, and publish sponsored content rather than talking about products they actually enjoy. I watch them for entertainment, and a few of them for swatches and inspiration, certainly not for tips and honest opinions. For that, I come to Temptalia and visit a few other blogs that have been around for ages and haven’t been turned into magazines.
I’m okay with that because I’m aware that big influencers are paid for basically everything they say and I know not to take anything from them without a grain of salt. I’m disturbed to see that they have hordes of followers who have no idea that their beloved gurus can get paid more to mention a product in a video than they will earn throughout the year though. The lack of transparency is a real problem.
Influenscers have always been a source of admiration as they do the research and give thier feed back to the beauty world and Bloggers .I admire all great influencers specially Huda Beauty, Carli byble, Temptelia and ofcourse my favorite Jeferry Star ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I think influencers that do reviews help me not buy things. Before reviews were common and it was just celebs and models seen using or pimping product, I was more curious and would buy something because of it.
Influencers have taught me a (literal) ton about makeup and introduced me to many of my favorite products. At the same time, I’ve drifted away from many of the YTers that I used to watch. It could be a mix of their channels being overrun with sponsored videos or just me being bored with hauls or my preference for non-Instragram brows and highlighting.
I think the role of influencers has definitely changed in the past 10 years. YouTube channels are now brands – and big companies have recognized this. Whether its brushes or highlighters or guest appearances, collaborations are now common in ways that they weren’t before.