Have you been contacted by one of those brands on Instagram, asking you to collab? It probably looks a little something like this: someone comments on your photo, “hey lovely! dm us to collab,” you get your hopes up, check their account, meh looks kind of promising, follow their instructions to DM them, and then boom: you’re hit with a discount code.
Now…don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with a discount code; however, that’s not exactly a “collaboration” in my eyes. A collaboration is typically when a brand wants to utilize your audience to promote a product and hence, offers you a product free of charge in order for you to organically promote it to your audience.
A legitimate brand wanting to work together will ALWAYS email you, especially if you have your email linked to your profile. Also, if you happen to be reaching out to brands through Instagram, nine times out of ten, he or she will instruct you to email them. Nothing good really goes down in the DMs to be honest.
Personally, companies these fake Instagram brands comment on my photos all the time telling me to DM them to collab, then they just offer me some sort of discount code for 20-50 percent off. Normally, this would be awesome; however, many if not ALL of these online retailers reaching out for people to join their “influencer ambassador programs” are just Shopify stores run by people who are dropshipping their products from China and grossly inflating their prices just to make it look like a great deal.
For example, the site will showcase $60 t-shirts that look completely average, but with your shiny 50 percent off code, it seems as if you’re getting an awesome deal….when in reality, you’re still spending $30 on a t-shirt
…from an online store you don’t know, recognize or trust.
Side note: dropshipping is when an online store uses photos of product they do not actually have in inventory, then order the product after you have purchased it from the photo on their site. Typically, these items are produced in mass quantity and can be imported to a Shopify site from AliExpress, a Chinese version of Amazon pretty much.
If you genuinely like this company who approaches you and would like to put time and effort into becoming an ambassador for them, then all power to you. I just wanted to share my thoughts, since a few people have asked me what to do in this situation and how to respond to these brands. If you are considering joining an affiliate program however, make sure to watch out for the red flags so you don’t get scammed.
- Look at their Instagram content. If it’s solely other people wearing their products with absolutely no branding of their own, this means that it is not really an established brand.
- If the items are very expensive, b e w a r e. Most of these items are probably very poor quality and are not even worth the price you are about to pay WITH that discount code applied.
- If you don’t like many items on the online store, but feel as though you have to purchase something to be featured on their page and join the network, take caution. Because once you promote your affiliate code, chances are no one is going to use it because your audience is not interested in any the products either.
Coming from personal experience, I thought that these brands were somewhat legit at some point and found some cute, affordable items and thought hey, why not?! But, I actually ended up getting screwed over a couple of times by either receiving a product of extremely poor quality, or never receiving the product at all.
These companies are taking advantage of people and these shitty Shopify stores need to be stopped. They aren’t even worth any of our time; however, if you ever aren’t sure of what to say, I’d try this:
“Hey! Thanks so much for the offer; however, I’m only interested in collabs right now, not affiliate programs.”
This way, HOPEFULLY these brands start to take the hint and stop spamming us 1230984 times a day and using the word collab when it’s clearly just their tactic of making money for their shit products.
Let me know if this continuously happens to you to and what your response typically is! I’d love to get a conversation going about this and hear other opinions, even if they conflict with mine. Thanks guys!
Xx
Great article! I had no idea about dropshops! And I’m stating to get the DMs to “work with us”. No I know what to do!!
Thanks!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Stacy!! By all means, if you like the products from one of these stores you can still purchase. Just beware!! Thanks for reading.
Thanks Tori on the behalf of all newbies like me who recently made fool by a company. I paid shipment and bought item 40%off only expense. Thanks for making it clear for us that we dont gave to purchase for collab n that company should have budget for that.
Exactly!! I’m so happy that this could shine light on these issues that so many people are having. A true “collab” benefits both the brand AND the influencer.
Thank you for the terrific post
Thank you for the terrific article
Yeah they spam my pictures with comments all the time luckily my boyfriends mom warned me about the scam and i didnt fall for it.
Good!! They are so annoying!
I had a few email me personally but now I understand because when some one is sponsoring you they will supply for you
I posted ONE picture of me running a half marathon and got hit up by two IG accounts within a few hours. Both told me they had a proposition for me. The comments were identical and so were both DMs. They’d give me 50% off as an “ambassador” and a 15% commission on any referral sales. No thanks.
Exactly!! And the clothing is grossly inflated in price so that the 50% off actually just makes it normal price. Ridiculous!!
I literally just got this type of comment on my posts on IG and I barely have 100 followers. I was wondering why the heck is this company contacting me? Glad to know it’s a scam. I’m not even going to respond to them. Thanks for the article.
Yup. They do it as a way to get you to buy their products. It’s getting ridiculous!!
Thanks for the excellent article
Would you happen to know if Tilt Pretty Active Wear is legit? Or maybe you can look into it for me-since you seem to have the eye for it. I have received emails from them- based on my instagram status (THEY TAG ME IN THEIR POSTS). They want me to purchase items at a discount with free shipping.(INTERNATIONALLY) They have a website (very small – not too many items but very cute) payment is through paypal only. (i found this odd) Can’t find them anywhere on social media other than insta. Basically they are offering features for their magazine after posting a photo in their active wear. I don’t want to fall into a trap. Being a brand ambassador is something I’d really like.
Not sure what to do…
Hi Helene! I definitely would NOT purchase anything from this company. They sound like they’re spamming you and under no circumstances should a brand ever be tagging YOU in their posts. This sounds like a case of someone utilizing drop-shipping to run an online store. If a brand is reaching out to you for your content and services, they should AT LEAST be providing you the product/item they’d like promoted.
Trust me, if it seems sketchy, it most likely is!
Hope this helped! Xx
What if they have given me the items to promote for free but only charged me the shipping charges?
Hi there! I personally wouldn’t take a collab if they required that I pay for shipping costs because if anything goes wrong and the clothes don’t end up showing up, then I still lost out on money. If it is a reputable brand, they should never ask you to pay for shipping; however, if you’re just starting out and need clothes / collabs to get you started, then either ask for more product or ask them to pay for the shipping if you provide them with 20 photos for their social media/website/etc.
Hello! They gave me a code that was 100% off and I get to choose 3 items. I’ll only pay for shipping. What do you think?
Great article indeed, I have recently received more than 5 comments asking for a collab offering me a 25% discount and others offering me 100% discount but I have to pay for my own shipment. At first I was very excited about being an ambassador. But on second thought, I thought it was too good to be true. So I decided to do some research about it. And I’m glad I found your article. You really helped me.
Thank you so much for the kind words!
Heyyy I just made this mistake, what do I do know? 🙁 can you help me pleaseee
Ahhh I’m so sorry to hear that! Feel free to follow up with me on Instagram (@tori.nucci) where I will be able to reply faster and help you out!
Thanks for all this wonderful and useful information!
I got another one this week – they seem to be proliferating lately.
On Jun 24, 2020, at 3:31 AM, Olivia Read wrote:
My name is Olivia and I am the Head of PR at the International brand, Bliss Body
We came across your Instagram profile and LOVE your style. We’d love to have you as one of our Brand Ambassadors. To celebrate our new Sportivo collection, we want to give you a FREE pair of leggings so you can post a picture of you wearing them and drive more exposure to our brand.
Being an Ambassador will also get you commission from the sponsored post(s)! An easy way of making money with Instagram! I’ll leave below some key points
– You will get a discount code so you earn 25% commission per sale
– Our IG page is @myblissbody
– Ambassadors only have to cover shipping, which depends on their country
– Ambassadors have 40% off store wide!
– Meet amazing new friends!
– If this first collab goes well we can setup another 🙂
– Chance to be featured on Bliss Body Instagram
How does that sound? Let me know if you’re interested so we can move forward with this and I’ll send all the details + show the leggings!
I look forward in hearing from you!
Bliss Body
London, United Kingdom
Amazing! I’ll send below all the details 🙂
*****
and when I said ok:
Here is our new Sportivo Leggings, you can go ahead and order your favourite color to officially become an Ambassador:
ð https://www.blissbodyshop.com/products/sportivo-leggings
Once you´ve ordered your FREE pair (just cover shipping) please send me:
· Your Paypal email so you can receive 25% commission per sale (paid every Friday)
· You will also get a welcome email containing our ambassador perks
· And this is your unique ambassador code to place on your post caption: xxxx your followers get 15% off by using it
Looking forward to have you on our team!
Olivia (Head of PR)
Bliss Body
London, UK
Hey love! 40 percent off is NOT good! Do not support a brand that is not valuing you or your content. Feel free to DM me over on Instagram if you have any other questions! (@tori.nucci)
Hey! Here because I just got one of these comments/dms at only 200ish followers. I already filled out their “form” and got a code. My next step is supposed to be ordering one of their items with 50% off. Thats when I started getting slightly spammed with overbearing messages to “order quickly so we can enter you into this epic ambassador’s raffle,” that seem rather bot-like.
Wondering how you would suggest proceeding? Definitely feels like a scam. I already filled out the form, but with no money spent yet, I haven’t risked getting too screwed over I don’t think. Other than spam messages and potential emails lol
Ugh sounds about right! If it feels like a scam, it most likely is! Trust your gut and don’t go through with ordering. Even with the 50 percent off code, it is just a marketing tactic – they overprice their items so it seems like you are getting a deal!
Hi Tori!
Would you happen to know if ACTA is a scam? I really think they are because I also fell into the trap of buying in order to become an ambassador and I’m still waiting for my clothing! It’s a month already!
Ahhhh I’m so sorry to hear that! They actually look pretty legit to me and I haven’t heard anything negative about them! I hope that your items reach you, love!
Hey Tori! This is such a great article, thank you. I was recently dmed on Instagram by a Brand Supervisor of Cuzette, a jewelry shop. She said I would be able to choose and receive 3 items for free. Was wondering if you know about this brand and if it seems legit?
hmmm im not sure about Cuzette! As long as you don’t have to pay for anything (including shipping) then you should be fine!
Thank you so much for this article. I recently came across something like this with a makeup company Sopfeel cosmetics. I was really sceptical with the whole 50% off, i feel miserable for falling for it.
Hello. Please is Sopfeel a scam? I just got in contact with them and came to do my research. Did u already start?
I have an offer from them too, would you please tell me if this company is legit? I live in Peru and I’m not sure of what to do. Their make up looks good
The company that reached out to me had the same phrasing but they gave me 100% discount. I only had to pay shipping then they posted me on their story. However, right after i had 2 other companies “randomly” message me about DM’n them. That’s what made me suspicious. Do you think this was a scam?
I had a company comment about the same thing on a post of mine. They did offer 100% off. I just had to pay shipping. However, after that i had like 2 other companies comment on the same post which made me suspicious. Do you think this was a scam?
I had a company comment about the same thing on a post of mine. They did offer 100% off. I just had to pay shipping. They also posted my page on their story. However, after that i had like 2 other companies comment on the same post which made me suspicious. Do you think this was a scam?
I would never pay for shipping!! I think that they use the shipping costs as a way to make money somehow… I don’t trust brands that make you pay for shipping!
I posted once and then had NINE msgs from random people searching for people to rep their brand. Not a coincidence.
I got a comment and I dmed them within 5 minutes I had 6 other accounts that had commented so I searched for articles and found yours most of them seem legit but I’m not sure thanks the article is very helpful I’ve deleted the comments and moved on
can youo also discuss those brands that give you the products for “free” but makes you pay for shipping fee. (the worst i have encountered so far was charging me for over $60 for shipping) good thing i do not have money, i have nothing to spend.
yes!! omg $60 in shipping?! that’s insane. these brands definitely pocket the money you pay for shipping
How would you suggest opting out AFTER paying the shipping for the “free” products and given the generic ambassador discount code? Their page has every red flag you just listed.
opting out of posting? you don’t have to post anything at all if you don’t want to! hopefully you receive what you ordered!!
Thanks for the great info. The exact experience I got today!
I have been falling for this lately unfortunately, while trying to build a new IG page for a certain purpose (not just my own private page). I will only do it if I only have to pay for shipping, and I’ve found that some companies immediately give me a place where I can sign in and track my referrals, times my code is used, and my commissions. Other companies say that when I receive the products I’ll get my discount code for my followers. The companies which provided me a way to track my commissions, are they legit, or not? And it’s all on the same website goaffpro. Then there are some which give me the promo code for my followers right after I pay for the shipping. Please let me know what you think!
I have been receiving comments and DMs on my Instagram page every time I post a new “bikini” photo. I like to reply back to them just to see what they say, & it’s literally all the same wording & process as the next. I actually did sign up and get “free” items through a brand ambassador company just yesterday to see if it’s legit or not for my own eyes.
Hi Tori! I recently reached out to Sopfeel out of my impulsiveness hahaha they say to be an ambassador I have to buy a product from them and they’ll give me 50% off+Free Shipping as well as 30% comission on my promo code. What do you think?? Do you have any news on Sopfeel? Thanks!!
I just started my Instagram so I only have 30 followers. I was looking for a way to increase my following. I’m so mad I fell for this scam
I just can’t believe this mess exists today! I can also relate with the commenter who received the “Bliss Body” email and to be honest, I only accepted it because I’m really happy to get leggings to add to my collection and thank god they arrived, albeit months late. Now, is it possible if you could see if “Wrun Fit” is legitimate? I just ordered about three leggings that were worth about $80 and free shipping and I now just encountered your article several hours after buying them.
So, some random instagram user without a profile picture messaged me that @wrun wants to collab with me and I initially logged a discount code for 30% off. So I contacted them and they sent me this long message about you know, growing with the brand and making sure that I’m not after free clothing and that I’ll be receiving fre clothing every month I really should have listened to my gut and abandoned my cart items after seeing that one message that said that I hadn’t placed my order yet and I’ve been given a 50% off code instead, and that led me to actually buying the leggings. Ugh, I should have bought from a more legit small business site like The Great North that I have known for months.
I got the same messages from Wrun, so did MANY others, take a look: https://www.scampulse.com/wrun-fit-reviews
Don’t be fooled!
So glad I found this, I’ve been approached by a zillion companies overnight after tagging a legit clothing brand I was wearing in my IG pic. I signed up with “crescent treasures” and after seeing this have just emailed them asking for a refund. I paid shipping only but was $60, I should of done some research before but I guess we’ll see if I get a refund or not.
SO HAPPY THIS HELPED YOU!! 💜 💜
I have only 200 followers and a brand approached me and followed me 😂 A danger bell rang in my mind and i searched about it and i found this article.. Thank you so much sister ❤ that’s what exactly happened with me. .how to give a thumbs up to an article 👍👍👍👍
Awww so happy this helped you!!
Hi, I don’t know if Dibawears is a legit brand? They just commented on my photo that still shocked me a little bit. They said that I should DM them on insta because they have a surprise. And I think I just got overwhelmed and really did the DM. And they were asking me to be a model and ambassador. Well, I have checked their website and haven’t purchase anything yet. I just want to know if you know this brand anyway. Thank you.
I wouldn’t trust a lot of companies that you have to question their legitimacy to be honest!
Hey,
Nice article. What view do you have about Acta wear? I received an email from them to be an ambassador. Do you think that this company is legit?
Their website seems legit, but you never know! Just def don’t pay for anything!
A brand reached out to me today, they’re a black lives matter company with quite a bit of followers but the fact that’s it’s in my dms doesn’t sit right with me. they hit me with a code and said they’d feature anything me on their instagram. I would love to support blm like that but don’t want to get scammed. Help! Company is Made with Melanin and co
Omg the same thing happened to me! Unfortunately some people use movements like this to scam people :/ I definitely didn’t think it seemed legit either!!
The same exact company reached to me. I’m glad I made some research before I decided to follow through!
Hay, just wanted to share something funny from my experience. Just got emailed by https://brightswimwear.com/ asking me to do a collab with them because they love my content and vibe on Instagram. 😀
They obviously are a company for female bathing suits, whereas I’m a man with an Instagram account about fishing 🙂 https://www.instagram.com/vboriyanov_fishing/
Seems like a legit request, huh?! 😀
I actually found this post while researching this scam, to see how many people have joined their ambassador programme. 😀
hahaha oh my god. that is so funny
Happened to me a week ago. Just got emailed by https://brightswimwear.com/ asking me to do a collab with them because they love the vibe on Instagram.
They are a female swimsuits brand and im a man and my content is about electronic music…..
https://www.instagram.com/richthebeat
So strange and suspicious that i had to google it if it was a scam… now you solve my doubt
Thank you for the info.
Peace out ✌🏻
So I think I just for scammed, bummer. I did research all over and all I saw was good reviews (except a few negative). Now I’m afraid I was scammed out of $90.
Hey, Is it legit if they are saying they want me to put there product to make sure i’m committed but they are giving me a code to get a discount code for that and free shipping then commission on sales with the codes they give me and monthly boxes of free clothes I have never really done this and I just want to make sure and I saw your article so I thought I would leave a comment and maybe I would get a comment back! Thank you for all the information thus far though!
Hi Mary! I’m not sure I totally understand the deliverables; however, if you’re questioning their authenticity, it’s best not to work with the brand. Trust your gut!!
Thankyou so much ,I was about to do this mistake by collaboration this article is really really helpful for newbies like me
Thanks again ❤️
Hi! I just got this dm and wanted to hear from you if it sounded like a scam;
This person with 0 followers and 0 followings just texted me and said : “Hey! We are looking for brand ambassadors and models,please send a message to our main account, @******************, ASAP! We love your account!”
it doesn’t have anything referring to discounts or anything and the official account has 299k followers, it’s just that the messages that sent me that message seems a little sketchy seeing how they have no followers or anything.
It would really help to hear your opinion on this!
Thanks.
Hii! Yes this definitely sounds like a scam because they use the words “ASAP” and are contacting you through a separate account. No bueno!!
Hey, I have been getting some Dms too. I smelled the fishy brands and deleted them..But one of these looked legit though. could you look into this brand Monteza …….they say that i can have any 3 items and will have to pay $20 one time shipping. They will even give me a 60% code + featured in their page + Free gift cards up to $100.
they say ,”the reason why we are not covering the first shipping fee so that we could make sure that the ambassador is serious about this offer. Some of our ambassador before do not contact us after they receive the items that’s why as first time ambassador we would only ask you to pay for the first shipping fee.”…………..and “As first time ambassador we are asking you to pay for one-time shipping fee because we are a starting company and we are shipping it outside countries. We hope you’d understand. You will not regret it because the items you will receive cost around $100 or sometimes much higher but you will get it for free. Anyway the next time we send you new products it will be free of any charges.”
is ACTA wear for a purpose legit? I had to apply then was accepted..
I’m still waiting to see when I will get commission