Reality by Viih Tube and Eliezer will have a prize of more than R$ 20 thousand — Photo: Reproduction/YouTube
Last week, Viih Tube published the first episode of its reality show "As Patroas", in which its employees competed for a prize of R$20,000.
The dynamics of the program generated criticism and an investigation by the Public Ministry of Labor (MPT). The influencer and her husband, Eliezer, said that, in fact, everything was just a kind of act to make viewers aware of the 6x1 scale.
In other words: Viih Tube released an episode of the reality show that hid its real intention from the public.
Hiding, deceiving or lying to get attention on social media is not a new strategy, but it is increasingly less effective.
g1 spoke to experts to understand how the use of these devices impacts the reputation of influencers and artists, the relationship between lies and profit and possible legal barriers.
READ ALSO:
👎Lies and "rage bait"
Influencers and artists who work on social media profit, directly or indirectly, from any post. Whether there, right away, or in the long term, with the accumulation of followers.
This fact is important to understand that, even if innocently, when a person like Viih Tube invents a reality show that intends to provoke, they will have a financial return from it.
Priscila Milk, social media specialist and professor at ESPM College, explains that the algorithm does not differentiate the content of comments, causing intentionally controversial content to inflate metrics and generate revenue anyway.
"Today we talk about 'rage bait' [anger bait, in literal translation, which is engagement through hate. So it's hate that generates interaction. This 'rage bait', it inflates the numbers and that generates money."
Viih Tube hides his reality coin inside the toilet. — Photo: Reproduction
“In relation to Viih Tube, for example, I saw some excerpts of Eliezer trying to defend himself when asked about the financial return, as he knows that this type of content generates something for him”, he explains.
🤑💸 More numbers, more money
Priscila reinforces that some brands only take into account the numbers involved in social networks.
"During these moments of controversy, many influencers have a spike in engagement, some even gain followers. In about three, four months, when they close a pub, they will present an inflated report with these numbers. That's how this strategy works. Some companies care about how that influencer or artist works with their community, others just look at tables", he says.
This financial engineering based on controversy, however, comes up against a public that no longer accepts the same rules as in the past.
At the beginning of the 2010s, many influencers used lies to play with the public – mainly through pranks.
Over time, those who live on the internet stopped seeing the fun in this type of content and began to see this type of behavior as wrong.
Mariana Munis, professor of Marketing and Consumer Behavior at Mackenzie University, highlights that the maturing of the public requires a different attitude from creators, who often try to apply engagement formulas that are now outdated.
"The problem with these big influencers, I realize, is that they often think they are still in 2013, when the internet was not yet so mature and neither was its audience. Nowadays people are tired of people who try to put us behind."
👍Good example
Marketing that lies or deceives to get attention is not always bad and harmful.
The strategy, in the right tone, is praised by those who work in the area. An example used by Priscila is that of singer Luan Santana.
In an action with the Snickers brand, the artist announced that he was leaving his career in country music and would start singing heavy metal. The next day, it was announced that it was all a lie related to the company's slogan.
Unlike blatant commercial actions, the use of lies in everyday dynamics is what breaks the bond of trust
"When you go into the realm of absurdity and reveal what's going on in a reasonable amount of time, it's a strategy that makes sense. In this case, no one was directly affected."
For an action like this to be successful, you need to pay attention to three factors:
Revelation time: after two days, that lie may not reach the same audience and may even become the truth
Transparency: you must make it clear, at some point, that that subject was a way to attract attention.
Sensitivity: there is no joke with sensitive topics.
Mariana reinforces that the wear and tear generated by strategies based on a lack of transparency breaks the bond of trust with the audience and can permanently close doors with the traditional advertising market.
"Once I break that trust, it becomes a little more difficult to return. If you get involved in a lot of controversies for nothing, which brand will want to sign a contract with you?"
Legal implications
Brazilian legislation does not directly address cases in which artists or influencers lie for their own benefit.
And, according to Priscila, this lack of severe punishment and supervision in the digital environment causes people to normalize serious infractions as if they were just marketing ploys.
“There is a loophole in Brazil for what I consider a type of cybercrime. This loophole that exists today in digital is what makes people think that lying and deceiving is a growth strategy – when it is not.”
He highlights that the Consumer Protection Code can be used in some cases, considering false advertising possible.
"It's very common for artists or influencers to say that they are protected by freedom of expression, a constitutional right. Of course they are, we all are. Now, the moment you monetize, your protected right stops being your opinion. It's an opinion that turns into money."
Oops!
