YouTube Sellouts

[suzookus]

Am I the only one that's totally frustrated by the YouTube sellouts? You try to find some good content, but its just one commercial after another. Even vloggers I really like are basically just cheap product whores. Is there any content available that's not a commercial?

They few I watch are pretty clear who sponsored their videos or give them products for free (eg Trail Recon).

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[Stormin’ Moorman]

They few I watch are pretty clear who sponsored their videos or give them products for free (eg Trail Recon).

Oh yeah, Brad is better than most about disclosure.

 

[Lou Bunn]

So what's new? Buyer beware - that has been around forever! When I was young, my dad would point out how someone would be talking up his old truck, saying how good it rode or how reliable it was, then a few weeks later - they would have it for sale and some guy would remember the talk and buy it. It's called "merchanizing" like Yogert said in Space Balls! When I was a detailer and then a moderator on a forum, we knew would the posters were that got freebies from the manufacturers and they would get banned if they didn't disclose that. So somebody is making money showing how to wheel in a new Jeep and all the extras you can add, say LiteBrite - big friggin deal. Did you think that maybe, just maybe some non Jeep owner might watch this and think, hey, that looks like fun, I'll sell that Porshe and go Jeeping. More people supporting Jeep and the aftermarket is a bad thing?? Nope, I don't think so. I like Kevin and Brittany, they are entertaining and definitely do things with their Jeep I would never try. But, good for them and I hope they continue. Ya'll should watch some of the gun channels that get free stuff - although youb tude has tried to ban a lot of them, can't have someone showing how much fun you can have plinking a .22 at the range. But that's another story...

 

[PavementWarrior]

A few need to clearly state it’s a gift from a sponsor so we know it. It’s obviously going to be hand inspected for quality and things that don’t work out kinda poof off jeep later

 

[Stormin’ Moorman]

So what's new? Buyer beware - that has been around forever! When I was young, my dad would point out how someone would be talking up his old truck, saying how good it rode or how reliable it was, then a few weeks later - they would have it for sale and some guy would remember the talk and buy it. It's called "merchanizing" like Yogert said in Space Balls! When I was a detailer and then a moderator on a forum, we knew would the posters were that got freebies from the manufacturers and they would get banned if they didn't disclose that. So somebody is making money showing how to wheel in a new Jeep and all the extras you can add, say LiteBrite - big friggin deal. Did you think that maybe, just maybe some non Jeep owner might watch this and think, hey, that looks like fun, I'll sell that Porshe and go Jeeping. More people supporting Jeep and the aftermarket is a bad thing?? Nope, I don't think so. I like Kevin and Brittany, they are entertaining and definitely do things with their Jeep I would never try. But, good for them and I hope they continue. Ya'll should watch some of the gun channels that get free stuff - although youb tude has tried to ban a lot of them, can't have someone showing how much fun you can have plinking a .22 at the range. But that's another story...

I'm not saying that merchandising is bad. What I don't like is that they are not presented honestly, and Lite Brite is the absolute worst. They present it as a review and it's not. It's a commercial and if you didn't know that they were whores, you might take them at their word and buy the crap they're peddling. I think it's dishonest.

And i know a thing or two about shooting.

 

[suzookus]

I'm not saying that merchandising is bad. What I don't like is that they are not presented honestly, and Lite Brite is the absolute worst. They present it as a review and it's not. It's a commercial and if you didn't know that they were whores, you might take them at their word and buy the crap they're peddling. I think it's dishonest.

And i know a thing or two about shooting.

I don’t think LB was overtly clear at first but in their latest video Brit clearly listed their two sponsors in the first minute of the video. I generally just assume most YTers are getting paid or free products (or trying to get free stuff in the future) so I always have that in mind when I watch a review.

 

[S2k Chris]

...and Lite Brite is the absolute worst. They present it as a review and it's not. It's a commercial and if you didn't know that they were whores, you might take them at their word and buy the crap they're peddling. I think it's dishonest.

Why? You see them using it. If they were putting trash on their Jeep and saying it was good, and then disguising when it blew up that would be one thing. Seems to me they endorse stuff that actually WORKS for them, and then they beat the crap out of it worse than I ever would, and it stands up to the abuse. I don't care if they got it for a discount or got it for free if they are going to torture test it and prove it works. As long as they are honest about their results, that's all that matters.

 

[ViperJon]

I love when you see them doing hardcore rock climbing or such and really battering up their new Jeep and then they are at some shop getting their free more heavy duty part put in because they destroyed the stock one. Emphasis on free. That would seem to be less than an unbiased product review.

 

[irishtim7]

I love when you see them doing hardcore rock climbing or such and really battering up their new Jeep and then they are at some shop getting their free more heavy duty part put in because they destroyed the stock one. Emphasis on free. That would seem to be less than an unbiased product review.

Not saying they don't get free stuff, but not all of it is free. I was at the Windrock event they were at and I'm positive Kevin mentioned they came out of pocket for that ProRock 44. Maybe they got a discount. I don't know. I do wish they were more upfront about that. Just know they are funding some of what they're doing themselves.

 

[Stormin’ Moorman]

Not saying they don't get free stuff, but not all of it is free. I was at the Windrock event they were at and I'm positive Kevin mentioned they came out of pocket for that ProRock 44. Maybe they got a discount. I don't know. I do wish they were more upfront about that. Just know they are funding some of what they're doing themselves.

I'm pretty much in agreement with you. But, they don't have jobs so I don't see how they pay for much themselves.They don't have the subscribers or the views to get paid enough to do what they do (speculation).

And I didn't start this thread to single them out, their content is pretty entertaining. But they're definitely one of the worst about misrepresentation i think.

 

[Sheepjeep]

I have no problem with people making videos like this promoting stuff they get but I wished that they would mention either getting a discount or the item for free. It's not just a Jeep issue it's a YouTuber issue there are some that have integrity and disclaim at the start and it works great for them. And there are some who are the opposite where if you do not give them free stuff they with try to demote your band and try to get their cult of followers to do the same.

For me the value of these videos are to see their fit and process of installation.

As for the companies that market heavily their products this way tends to put a sour taste in my mouth with them. It's just me if you need to use ads to sell your product and not word of mouth of good reputation that tells me that a good portion of my money is going towards paying you to make ads and not into quality materials.

 

[S2k Chris]

I have no problem with people making videos like this promoting stuff they get but I wished that they would mention either getting a discount or the item for free. It's not just a Jeep issue it's a YouTuber issue there are some that have integrity and disclaim at the start and it works great for them. And there are some who are the opposite where if you do not give them free stuff they with try to demote your band and try to get their cult of followers to do the same.

For me the value of these videos are to see their fit and process of installation.

As for the companies that market heavily their products this way tends to put a sour taste in my mouth with them. It's just me if you need to use ads to sell your product and not word of mouth of good reputation that tells me that a good portion of my money is going towards paying you to make ads and not into quality materials.

So you don't do business with anything that advertises? That leaves how many companies, exactly? Does it piss you off when Jeep does a big Super Bowl commercial or two every year?

I am truly curious, this doesn't seem to be a well-thought-out opinion.

 

[RubiRob]

It's not just a Jeep issue it's a YouTuber issue

Pretty much just that. Whether it's vehicle parts or electronics, once they start getting their youtube stardom the free stuff comes (i don't blame them, i'd love free stuff too). I remember watching an Unbox Therapy video (tech youtube) and he mentioned he gets so many shelved worth of free stuff that most of it just sits on a rack and never even gets taken out of the box.

The only way to get totally unbiased feedback from people in my opinion is to ask someone who's paid 100% with their hard earned money. Even partially incentivized items will become harder to be unbiased.

https://reviewmeta.com/blog/analysi...em-much-more-likely-to-write-positive-review/

 

[@OUTDOORTREE]

To be honest I am jealous if they can make a living advertising Jeep parts. That sounds like the dream. I just think of it as a paid commercial or infomercial. Yoga pants and cool jeep rides might of got me interested in Steersmarts but I did many hours of research after and decided to spend my own money on their parts and I couldn't be happier... So, yes I like the parts commercials like litebrite and trailrecon.

 

[S2k Chris]

The only way to get totally unbiased feedback from people in my opinion is to ask someone who's paid 100% with their hard earned money. Even partially incentivized items will become harder to be unbiased.

Eh, there are plenty of people out there who claim what they bought is the best because they bought it, they are now invested emotionally in it, etc. Most people on this board bought Jeeps with their own money, and will argue Jeeps are the best; go to the Toyota board and those guys bought their own Toyotas, will argue those are the best.

My opinion? Watch a bunch of reviews, and ignore the hype "this is the best, etc" and just pay attention to the features and such. Watch reviews of several different products, and then decide which one has the features most useful to you. I also like to go read all the negative reviews on Amazon if possible, you can decide if the beefs matter. Are people saying "this fell apart in three days, it's junk?" Or are they saying "I slammed it into a curb at 50mph and it failed, it's junk" or "man, it just won't let me climb trees it's junk" or "it looked gray in the pictures but it's black in person it's junk". Then decide accordingly.

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