Hello, everyone! It’s been a hot minute since I’ve done a post for my Thursday Chats series…mostly because I haven’t been able to think of a topic, haha. If you’re not familiar with Thursday Chats, it’s a series where I talk about “issues” within the beauty community in order to get some discussion going. Today’s post is all about using skincare that is really popular on social media – we all know what brands these are, because we see them over and over again! This has been a thing in the beauty industry for years, but has become more prevalent and noticeable in the last few years because of the internet.
As you will see from the pictures in this post, you’ll notice that I own a lot of products from hyped-up brands – and these are only the ones that I currently own. Luckily, the vast majority of them are minis that were purchased in a set, because I didn’t want to invest in a full size without knowing whether it would work well with my skin. Still, the fact that I own these means I’ve been sucked in by continuously seeing them on social media! After trying so many hyped-up products, and I can confirm that while some of these products have quickly become favourites, others have done more damage on my skin than good. After thinking about my buying habits, I’ve thought of a few pros and cons about trying skincare that gets raved about on social media. Are these products worth it, or are they overhyped? Do people actually think they’re good, or are they just raving about them because they got sent PR? I think the answers to these questions are very individual depending on the user!
IT MIGHT MESS WITH YOUR SKIN
Let’s set the scene: lately, you’ve been seeing a ton of people on Instagram talking about a skincare product and how it’s so hydrating, how it has made their skin so glowy and clear, and your interest is piqued. You buy yourself a mini to try, and a week into using it, your skin is all red and you have weird bumps and texture all over your skin…just great! I have to admit that this has happened to me on a few occasions, even though I bought products that were recommended by bloggers I trust.
One of the biggest problems with trying skincare willy-nilly is that you run the risk of damaging your skin. Even if someone has the same skin type or skin issues as you, it’s possible that the ingredients in the product just don’t work well with the unique makeup of your skin. I’ve also purchased hyped-up products that didn’t end up doing anything for me at all. Just because it’s popular on social media doesn’t mean it’s a guarantee that it will solve your skin issues like it does for other people!
YOU SPEND EXTRA MONEY
Buying hyped-up skincare because you see everyone using it on Instagram might mean you’re spending money on things you normally would not have, because you’re trying something out of curiosity to see if it’s really worth the hype. On top of this, a lot of highly raved skincare brands come with a really high price tag. While The Ordinary is popular largely due to how affordable it is, brands like Drunk Elephant, Summer Fridays, Tatcha, and Glossier are really pricey for the average consumer. For some products, you could be spending upwards of $100+ just to see if it’s as good as everyone says it is, at the risk of being disappointed.
IT MAKES YOU THE SAME AS EVERYONE
Something that’s really tough about being a content creator is finding your own voice or standing out in a sea of a million other content creators. If you’re using and taking photos of the same thing highly-hyped products, your product reviews will end up blending in with everyone else’s, and your Instagram feed also ends up looking very similar to all of the other accounts out there.
YOU MIGHT FEEL LEFT OUT
While all of the points so far have talked about the negatives of trying popular skincare, one of the downsides of not trying highly raved-about skincare is feeling like you’re out of the loop. In a way, this is a pretty silly one because we should never waste money and mess with your skincare just for the views, but we all know how fast-paced the beauty industry moves – if you don’t try a product while it’s still trending, you’re out! Whether it’s makeup or skincare, I don’t often try trendy things right after they first release, so I know firsthand how annoying it is when I constantly see the same brands being hyped up on social media when I don’t plan on buying it in the near future, if ever.
YOU MIGHT MISS OUT
If you’re anything like me, you might scroll past all of the IG posts or blog post reviews that feature popular brands because you think people are raving about them just because they received PR from the brands, or that the products are overhyped and not as good as people say. This kind of thinking can also make you miss out on some really high-quality products. For example, I’ve held off on buying a jade roller because the whole idea of it seems a bit ridiculous to me. Am I missing out? Quite possibly, but I guess I’ll never know because I don’t plan on buying one.
YOU MIGHT DISCOVER NEW PRODUCTS THAT YOU LOVE
Putting aside all of the bad aspects about trying hyped-up skincare, one of the major positives is something that I think makes us all continue trying new skincare or makeup: you might discover something you’ll absolutely fall in love with year. In the last year or two, I have tried a bunch of hyped-up skincare, and luckily, I have found my fair share of products that ended up working really well for me; for example, the Farmacy Green Clean Cleansing Balm and the Herbivore Pink Cloud Moisture Creme were clear standouts last year. Other products, not so much (I won’t go into these as they’ll be in future reviews coming up).
Are you a user of skincare products that are highly raved about on social media, and did they work out for you? Share with me your experiences in the comments!
Polished and Inspired 