Some of my content has a label like this on it:
So I want to discuss my reasons for showing this label, and for creating incentivised content in the first place - particularly given my position on how monetisation has ruined the web.
In short:
- I consider some of my content to be a kind of marketing for brands.
- I want to be open and honest about, so I’m labelling that content as an “ad”. This lets you can make your own mind up.
- I feel OK about making content like this because it’s one of my methods of supporting small businesses I believe in.
Let’s go a bit deeper.
What kinds of posts do I consider to be ads?
Also known as “spon con”, if you don’t hate that phrase, which I do.
I’m talking about posts and projects where I was given a sewing pattern or fabric for free, in exchange for pattern testing or creating content (typically on Instagram).
Let’s speak plainly - when you’re “gifted” a pattern or fabric in exchange for a post on Instagram, or even if there’s “no obligation to post” - we’re talking about doing marketing for that company. With brand ambassadorship (which I’ve done a couple of times), the rules are laid out - X items in return for Y posts. Even when you test a pattern, there’s often an implicit, if not actually explicit, expectation that you’ll post your finished piece on Instagram.
There’s something about sewing that makes this feel like a fuzzy area. It seems different to influencers who are gifted, say, a pair of shoes. When you receive a sewing pattern, you’re receiving an instruction book that takes many hours to follow. You apply your own skills and creativity, you make your own aesthetic choices - you create your own unique piece, using someone else’s instructions. The thing you share on Instagram is what you made, and the pattern you received is a conduit for that creation. It’s similar with fabrics, though you have even more creative freedom as you can choose what to make. Sharing your final piece doesn’t immediately feel like marketing.
But it is marketing. Sewing pattern designers rely heavily on people sharing their finished makes on Instagram. It’s word-of-mouth marketing, it’s social proof, and it’s evidence that the pattern will look good on the customer’s body type. When I buy a new pattern, I always check the hashtags to see how it turned out for other people. The official marketing is a huge part of it, sure - but other people’s work makes a huge difference. Pattern testers and influencers are the first members of the public to post a make from a given pattern, since they had advance access to the pattern. As such, their posts oomph to the initial product launch. It is marketing.
But isn’t the monetisation of the web bad?
There is some conflict between my two positions that “the corporate web is all money driven and marketing and bad” and “I essentially do free influencer work on my personal website”, but it’s not black and white.
Personally, I don’t feel at all dirty about it. In fact, I feel proud to be involved. I do this for small companies that I want to support, whose patterns I like, whose perspectives I agree with. I generally try to live my life that way; I try to shop small, and I donate to content creators whose work I enjoy (podcasters, authors, and sometimes also pattern designers). I feel posting my finished makes is another way of giving back to businesses that I believe in, that I want to see survive.
Does this make my posts inauthentic?
Well, no. I am never dishonest in my commentary. What you read on here - or on my Instagram - is my honest belief at the time of writing. If I don’t like a pattern, I’d generally rather not post about it at all. If you see me absolutely gushing about something, it’s genuine.
This is my own documentation of what I’m making, and that includes when I’ve made things for pattern tests or content creation work.
The “ad” notice
Personally, I’m always sceptical when people say their reviews are honest, so I don’t blame you if you don’t believe me. Instead, I’ll let you decide what to believe. I’m flagging all incentivised content with the little notice that you saw at the top of the screen.
I feel a bit queasy about using the word “ad” to describe content that hasn’t been explicitly created for marketing reasons - such as my gallery, which is simply a visual record of all my projects. But I’d rather err on the side of overdoing it. The word “ad” follows the UK government’s guidance on social media endorsement.