Brand ambassador deals are bad

[mikem]

I've gotten sucked into the funnel and want out. And im sure this has been posted in some version or another... but like what the heck.

Brand Ambassadors. And more specifically the brands. Like why are they making deals that suck the fun out of the skier. You always see the clip drop/posts toward the end of the month. You know they only went up skiing to get those clips (if there are any) and just dipped out. These brands are just using a skier as a medium for shitty sponcon and skiing should be about riding with your homies, not your click-through rate.

If brands think you are cool, they should just give you free shit and move on. All of us growing up that got free good shit were stoked and repped the brand better than any "here you go but give us your deliverables" people. Or if you are going to make that deal, you better god damn be getting paid enough to ski all winter.

buy a fucking billboard, or an instagram add, stop buying skiers.

rant over

 

[lil.Boye]

most sponsored skiers have been in the "flow" or ambassador positions. it's just a part of it.

i'm guessing if you want to earn from skiing you also have to do some work days, i don't think being a pro is just clicking into skis and having a sick day on the hill. you need to get that clip, work for it to get paid. same for an ambassador, they need to grow their name for people to notice and want to see more for both the skier and brand to grow. when the skier proves themselves and the brand sees it, they will get "free skis"

i might have misinterpreted you, but this is answering what i understood

 

[mikem]

most sponsored skiers have been in the "flow" or ambassador positions. it's just a part of it.

i'm guessing if you want to earn from skiing you also have to do some work days, i don't think being a pro is just clicking into skis and having a sick day on the hill. you need to get that clip, work for it to get paid. same for an ambassador, they need to grow their name for people to notice and want to see more for both the skier and brand to grow. when the skier proves themselves and the brand sees it, they will get "free skis"

i might have misinterpreted you, but this is answering what i understood

ya i get that but for pros/semi pros. Companys I feel like will throw a budget at them for long form video, but for just brand ambassadors i feel like its a check in exchange for a couple insta posts.

 

[eheath]

buy a fucking billboard, or an instagram ad

they did buy an instagram ad and you're ranting about it. IG is an advertising platform.

 

[mikem]

they did buy an instagram ad and you're ranting about it. IG is an advertising platform.

sponcon and an ad are different. same goal, but different methods. methods in getting an advertisement should be discussed

 

[eheath]

sponcon and an ad are different. same goal, but different methods. methods in getting an advertisement should be discussed

its all the same thing except the former feels like less of an ad, which is exactly what you are describing and what IG wants you to think. You'll realize one day they are both ads, both cost the brand money, both benefit the platform and sometimes the person posting.

 

[GayWolf420]

Aren't some brands gutting their pro teams in favor of ambassadorship and/or getting rid of them entirely? I've seem blips about that on IG from riders who got dropped by some big names.

 

[mikem]

its all the same thing except the former feels like less of an ad, which is exactly what you are describing and what IG wants you to think. You'll realize one day they are both ads, both cost the brand money, both benefit the platform and sometimes the person posting.

oh i know they are both ads and both cost the brands money. I just don't like the idea that people are being used as advertising vessels. I feel like it will devalue pros, assuming that the company uses pros as a form of advertising, id bet they eat the same budget and I would assume that would kill money for food/gas on filming trips.

 

[mikem]

Aren't some brands gutting their pro teams in favor of ambassadorship and/or getting rid of them entirely? I've seem blips about that on IG from riders who got dropped by some big names.

I could see this happening, instagram metrics prob easy for a company to see, but how well a 20 min video sells some product is def not there.

 

[Christian_Bale]

Aren't some brands gutting their pro teams in favor of ambassadorship and/or getting rid of them entirely? I've seem blips about that on IG from riders who got dropped by some big names.

Would not be surprised. Different companies will be doing different things, but I think the overall trend will be for companies to follow the path of least resistance and do whatever profits them the most. My pessimistic prediction is that increasingly fewer skiers will get paid actual money (generally only the bigger names in skiing) and increasingly more skiers will be some type of brand ambassador who get free gear in exchange for instagram and tiktok posts.

 

[GayWolf420]

Would not be surprised. Different companies will be doing different things, but I think the overall trend will be for companies to follow the path of least resistance and do whatever profits them the most. My pessimistic prediction is that increasingly fewer skiers will get paid actual money (generally only the bigger names in skiing) and increasingly more skiers will be some type of brand ambassador who get free gear in exchange for instagram and tiktok posts.

This industry straight-up just needs some re-tooling or brighter minds running the show. I don't know anything about profits or managing a company, but this all just seems really unsustainable and the outdoor industries get away with murder so often, especially ski resorts and their holding companies. But then again, this sport is still seen as something to do on vacation or a hobby more or less instead of a career field which I totally understand, but they've used people for so long to market and advertise products while big wigs sit back and rake in the cash while their "pro teams" struggle to make ends meet if they don't have the financial backing of a safety net i.e. Generational Wealth or a stable career outside of skiing, which I bet is extremely hard to pursue a ski career when you have a 9-5.

I'm not saying this sport is all trustfund kids but there have been some really rad influences in skiing that left to go pursue other things in life because lets face it: You can't just put food on the table in the ski industry anymore without a necessary degree, connections, and/or parents money, and even then, who wants to make less than 30-60k/year while having to live in areas near the sport with extreme COL like SLC, Teton Valley, etc. I'm on my soapbox here but I hope someone gets my point.

**This post was edited on Mar 13th 2023 at 5:21:42pm

 

[mikem]

This industry straight-up just needs some re-tooling or brighter minds running the show. I don't know anything about profits or managing a company, but this all just seems really unsustainable and the outdoor industries get away with murder so often, especially ski resorts and their holding companies. But then again, this sport is still seen as something to do on vacation or a hobby more or less instead of a career field which I totally understand, but they've used people for so long to market and advertise products while big wigs sit back and rake in the cash while their "pro teams" struggle to make ends meet if they don't have the financial backing of a safety net i.e. Generational Wealth or a stable career outside of skiing, which I bet is extremely hard to pursue a ski career when you have a 9-5.

I'm not saying this sport is all trustfund kids but there have been some really rad influences in skiing that left to go pursue other things in life because lets face it: You can't just put food on the table in the ski industry anymore without a necessary degree, connections, and/or parents money, and even then, who wants to make less than 30-60k/year while having to live in areas near the sport with extreme COL like SLC, Teton Valley, etc. I'm on my soapbox here but I hope someone gets my point.

**This post was edited on Mar 13th 2023 at 5:21:42pm

I mean all us oldheads seem to tell kids to be careful of going into the ski industry. It is supeeeeerrr hard to have career in industry and also support a family.

 

[GayWolf420]

I mean all us oldheads seem to tell kids to be careful of going into the ski industry. It is supeeeeerrr hard to have career in industry and also support a family.

As you should be. They're fun jobs to have when you're young and in-college and want a free pass/gear discounts and/or beer and weed money but the endgoal isn't that, you're going to fall back on your degree or some form of career training. I think the second people besides the "high earners" and execs of resorts/companies, etc. start realizing that you can go off and make a living elsewhere and still be able to pay your bills, maintain relationships, support a family, etc. and also still ski on the side every now and then or find a great setup is when they people start walking, or resort workers start unionizing. Combine that with inconsistent winters/climate change, these places are eventually going to be running at a loss. Look at Vail Resorts for instance: They're reporting lower-than-expected earnings during a historic season out west and a historically-awful season in the east and Europe.