March 8, 2024

Are Beauty Brand Trips Tone Deaf?

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As you may know Tarte just launched their brand new Maracuja Juicy Lip Vinyl. Maracuja Juicy anything is the next Shape Tape. Tarte’s been riding the Shape Tape train since 2016 and created an empire of products out of the name. Their new viral moment is Maracuja Lip anything and I’m here for it because I do think the formula is amazing but at some point, we all know we’ll get a little sick of it. But right now? I’m loving this formula.

To celebrate their new launch Tarte did a Trippin’ with Tarte promotion and marketing trip featuring a slew of different influencers that don’t only have backgrounds in makeup but also, ones that focus on home and fashion life. I think everyone is fairly familiar with the Trippin’ with Tarte campaign but if not I’ll explain a little. Tarte rounds up a bunch of influencers and brings them on luxurious, elaborate trips. One their favorite destinations is Bora Bora which is where they went this time but they’ve also had trips to exotic locations like Dubai. Do these trips sell products to consumers is the question everyone wants to know. If we see a bunch of influencers in the wild squealing and screaming on a beautiful beach does it make us want to purchase product more?

Not if Tiktok has anything to say about it. There are a slew of videos circulating regarding the recent Trippin’ with Tarte and none of them are good. A lot of people are calling the recent trip tone-deaf due to the current issues with the economy. Others are saying that seeing a bunch of influencers traveling to exotic locations leaves a bad taste in their mouths and makes them want to boycott the brand. Whereas others are saying Tarte’s intent is to make people rant about these trips in an “any publicity is a good publicity” stunt.

Negativity like this isn’t new by any means as Tarte got a bit of grief after their Dubai trip last Spring as well. Brand trips have been happening for years so why is the world suddenly grumpy about them? We can only blame the current challenges many people are facing in a poor economy. When you’re out there working hard and trying to feed your family the last thing you want to see is a bunch of people receiving free products and trips. But also, we have to realize that’s all part of influencer culture and if you follow brands or influencers at some point you’re going to run into lavish displays of marketing. Is it tone-deaf? That question is a double-edged sword. Yes, on some level it is but also, these are brands that are trying to remain relevant and on top of their game and they know exactly how and who to tap into to get the word out of their latest launch out there. They invite influencers who have millions of followers and yeah, they may get some hate but there are also a ton of people who love the people they follow and will buy anything they are willing to endorse. The good outweighs the bad in many cases as Tarte, for example, is thriving after all these years where as brands like Urban Decay are struggling to stay relevant. Parasocial relationships are a real thing and I’ve seen a lot of it on TikTok where people are willing to send money, gifts, and more to their favorite Tiktokers. And of course, they’ll purchase anything that the influencer is willing to endorse.

I think what people tend to forget is we all have a choice. If Brand Trips are annoying or you feel they’re tone deaf (I personally can’t take the squealing and screaming and drunken Instagram stories!) you can always not follow, block, or just silence notifications from brands like Tarte.

What’s your take on lavish brand trips? Are they tone-deaf? Or do you just ignore them and move on? I stay in my lane so I just tend to ignore and move on. Although I do have moments where I’m like wow, Tarte is dropping a lot of money on these trips but also, I have to remind myself they are likely getting good deals on these trips due to the exposure they are bringing to these locations! What’s your take? Do share!

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About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Kimmwc03

    It feels a little out-of-touch but Tarte is a private business so they can do whatever they want with their marketing money. If they feel these trips help their bottom line in the long-run then okay. I’m probably still going to buy the products I like from them and I don’t really follow many influencers anymore.

    • Isabella Muse

      That’s how I feel. I’m not sure I care what they do or how they drive sales. If I don’t like something I just block it or not watch. I don’t follow many influencers either, many are a little too annoying for my personal preferences and trippin’ with tarte isn’t really going to influence what I do or don’t buy from the brand.

  • Robyn

    Most of these influencers lives have been changed by putting themselves out there on Tik Tok. They’ve helped many people with their tips & information too. The dark side is how they have to be thick skinned to do that & deal with all of the nasty & spite-filled messages often directed at them. If Tarte wants to reward them for selling more products then I am happy for them. Why can’t we all celebrate with them while wishing we were in Bora Bora too?

  • MimiBee

    Influencer culture needs to go. It’s insulting and manipulative. They try to appeal to us that they’re just like us only…. They’re not. They’re being paid to peddle a narrative. It’s dishonest. It’s all artificial and aren’t we smarter not with access to information at our fingertips? Why do we need to be “influenced” to? Why do they think we are too lacking in intelligence to decide for ourselves what we want or should buy? Influencers are not your friends. And they are not looking out for your best interest. They are seeking clicks, likes, social media validation, attention and most of all money. That all interferes with their honesty and integrity. It’s as sincere as a greasy used car salesman. In fact, in many cases car salesmen are more genuine because we know that’s what we’re getting into. We know their deal. These influencers manipulate by trying to make us think they’re our friends, but they simply put on the fakest of personalities to do this. It’s a high commission transactional relationship at best. I have friends who have destroyed interpersonal relationships with their long time friends, family to go all in on trying to be/stay an influencer. It’s a fake life and they get addicted to feeling like a big shot. They aren’t specialists for the brands. They aren’t loyal. They simply use people for clicks and ad dollars. It felt more honest when celebrities did the product endorsements because at least we knew it was a paid relationship. It wasn’t as manipulative. Let’s stop feeding these attention desperate, manipulative wanna be fame hustlers that call themselves influencers. Let’s own our own buying power. We’re smart. If brands pull these obnoxious marketing budgets, they wouldn’t have to charge as high a price point to make their margins. And they would appear to retain more integrity and loyalty and confidence in their product by giving us the product info and letting us decide where to spend our money.

  • CL

    Technically we’re not in a “poor economy.” What we’re in is a very strange economy. “Inflation” that is mostly just price-gouging because they can (the corporate oligarchs have been waiting for the best opportunity to do this for quite some time). But great employment numbers and a great stock market at the same time. The aluminum tariff is still in place for some reason. Consumers are spending (when frankly, they should throttle back on any unnecessary spending to force prices down). I lived through the horrible economy of 1970-1986. You ain’t seen nothing yet if they don’t get the price-gougers reined in.