Vloggers Seeking Free Food are Not Welcome at This Café in Bacolod
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A small café in Bacolod City seems to have had enough of content creators asking for free food in exchange for an endorsement. In a post that has since been shared widely on social media, Mr. Bunny Café bluntly stated that it is not in the business of supporting “vloggers” asking for handouts.
“We do not support Vlogger or vlog endorsements, no matter how famous you are in the whole of Negros Occidental, if the exchange is that we pay for your transportation to and from, and then serve you all of our best-sellers from the menu,” the post said. “If you truly want to help small businesses like ours, you should support our business by making a purchase and vlogging about your experience. Instead of taking advantage, we would appreciate Vloggers who willingly spend from their own pockets to buy from us and vlog about us, rather than expecting free food and drinks in exchange for a vlog. Thank you.”
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The theme café, which bills itself as the “first and only rabbit café in the Philippines,” seems to have struck a nerve. People have been sharing the post on social media and voicing their support for the café. The café also expressed its appreciation to content creators who shell out their own money to order from the café and “vlogging” the experience to their followers.
“I hope that in the future, vloggers and influencers will practice ethical blogging,” the café said in a follow-up post. “It's important for the online content creation community to embrace ethical blogging practices to maintain trust with their audience and ensure a positive impact on society.”
This is not the first time that vloggers and other content creators have been called out by private establishments for supposed unethical practices. Earlier this year, an online creator was roasted on social media after requesting for a free stay in a luxury hotel in Tagaytay. His message was shared by someone affiliated with the hotel.
These incidents have sparked discussions about what is and what isn’t proper and ethical within the relatively novel industry of content creation. People who have amassed a significant number of followers on their social media platforms could find themselves being courted by companies and brands to work on projects together, although sometimes, it’s the creators themselves who reach out to brands asking to “collaborate.”
As more and more people become attracted to the idea of becoming celebrities on social media, we might be seeing more of these types of messages of one side expressing exasperation and even disgust at the other’s supposed lack of manners and finesse.
