The inevitable commodification of mommy bloggers *UPDATED*
Again this year, I lamented not being able to attend BlogHer ‘o9, *the* conference for women who blog.
Instead, I settled in to read about it from my Twitter feed, as I do for many conferences I can’t attend.
And I found out that BlogHer is not for *all* women who blog.
From the many other tweets that promised great product giveaways and invitations to swag rooms, I knew that I would never lament not being able to attend BlogHer again.
I do get it. I understand the desire to make money while blogging. It’s my dream job. However, my passion and this blog does not lend itself to attracting advertisers. (For example, Webkinz did not send me a free toy.)
But I am so disappointed that women bloggers — or more accurately, mommy bloggers — have become synonymous with product promotion and endorsements.
See, women love to shop! And shopping for their babies! And writing about shopping! That’s what we do! We’re all momfluencers!
It’s a Sarah Haskins’ Target Women in the making.
I attended a BlogHer 09 panel discussion called Sponsored vs. Unsponsored, and one of the moderators asked people to raise their hands if they thought getting paid to write a product review was okay or not. A lot of people voted okay, some weren’t sure and I raised my hand for Not. I was the only one.
I spoke my piece, reassuring the filled-to-capacity room that I had nothing against product reviews (hey, I’ve done a few) or giveaways, but that I felt that basic integrity demands we disclose if a product has been given to us for free. And if a blogger’s been paid to write a post or do a giveaway, it should be treated as an ad. Because that’s what it is.
Honestly, I thought my feelings were pretty mainstream. Not any more. The women in the room were afraid to post negative reviews. Even posting constructive criticism was avoided. They were terrified of pissing off the PR folks and stopping the flow of goodies. And besides, writing a product review or hosting a giveaway was hard work. They deserved to be compensated for their work on behalf of brands. An interesting argument, but if you’re turning yourself into a freelance copywriter, isn’t it a little unfair to your readers to post as just another regular, trustworthy mom?
There’s more from other attendees.
For the record, I support the proposed FTC rules that would require bloggers to disclose their relationships with products and companies, and I was happy to join about 500 others in signing the Blog with Integrity pledge.
And now I’m on the hunt for a conference on blogging. Without the swag.
UPDATE: It’s come to my attention that my Contact form is not working. If you’d like to get in touch, please send an email directly to lisa@parentsforethicalmarketing.org.
July 29th, 2009 at 8:09 pm
The whole thing has been such a fiasco this year. It’s sad. Between the people bitching that “mommies” took over (heaven forbid!) and the much reported stampedes for swag bags. Someone wrote an excellent entry about how the convention needs to define what it’s actually about, as it no longer seems to be about blogging anymore.
July 29th, 2009 at 8:27 pm
V. — Exactly. Would love to see that post. Do you have a link?
July 29th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
Not to be a grinch, but this is where everything is heading. Half the new newsy online startups I know (and half the existing online media) are sliding into advertorials and “sponsored” content. I don’t think this trend can be stopped.
All we can do is insist on consumer education courses. Teach our kids how to spot the phony crap and react accordingly.
And acknowledge that being a feminist/mommyist means you’re a targetable market. Really, you have no idea how alt I had to become before the marketing folks gave up on me, and even then it took a lot of “sorry but I just filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy” lies to get off the lists.
Keep up the good fight. The lesson here is that without you, you wouldn’t have a side to be on.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:43 pm
Mark, I don’t mind sponsored content, as long as I KNOW it is sponsored content. Then I can choose to read it or not.
But there’s more to blogging than sponsored content.
August 6th, 2009 at 12:24 am
I suppose everything evolves eventually for better or for worse. One of my favorite bloggers, waiterrant.net (granted he’s not a “mommy” blogger), never advertised on his blog, but stood out for his excellent writing and eventually got a successful book deal, quit being a waiter, and is living off an advance for another book. I know “mommy” bloggers that get free stuff, but they always mention a huge thanks for the free giveaway and I totally respect that. Hey, why nt, right?
Thank you for an informative post and I loved reading the links to others that had an interesting perspective, too.
August 11th, 2009 at 10:39 pm
You know where I stand on this, Lisa…full disclosure and preferably a badge or widget to identify “this blogger is not for sale, period.”
Even though I don’t do reviews, sometimes a book will come my way (as in the case of this recent HCI Books post where I approved them to go ahead and send ‘em) http://www.shapingyouth.org/?p=7987 and my policy is to donate the freebie to the local library/shelter so it keeps my hands clean. I also have a strict ’send at your own risk’ protocol, because as you well know, I don’t mince words. (in fact w/the teen book series, I tapped a teen who had similar ‘issues’ (and is now my new youth writing intern) to give her feedback…she was brutally honest about the writing being lackluster but the concept being cool.
Not sure if you caught the updated NYT article, “Mommy Bloggers vow to avoid ethical conflicts” http://tinyurl.com/n2kuoq but I was absolutely AMAZED at the comments underneath it that were lambasting these moms, belittling and sniping on a variety of fronts. (BOTH genders were!) I was shocked, really…the commentary was more informative about the (in)civility of our cultural zeitgeist than the newsworthiness of the story itself which was a bit of a snore…as it’s been over-saturated like everything else in the media mix.
Anyway, I miss talking to you on the blog…(can you tell) And hope life’s treating you well. Guess you’re more on Twitter now? I’m still pluggin’ away…
August 17th, 2009 at 8:58 am
Amy, miss you and the blogosphere, too! Twitter’s been a good way to keep up even though I have about 130 percent less time. Someday . . . .