When ambassadors stop being ambassadors... Locked

Raist3d wrote:

To be clear, they gave it as "indefinite loan"- once the ambassadorship was over, that had to go back.

There's psychological studies done hat getting any kind of freebies/special favor will influence your objectivity. And as one of. your article mentions, saying something negative can put you in a black list.

Look at Robin in the video above saying he likes the Pentax K-01 colors better than his Olympuses. That would have never ever happened before

I realize this all has its variances- as you very well pointed it out, but it's pretty straightforward why companies will keep track of who's saying what that may put them in a negative light.

Yes, 'Indefinite loan' is the specific language used, otherwise it might sound like the recipient was being incentivised. If the person is long established with the brand, and therefore credible, then a long term loan makes a good deal of sense (especially if they blog a lot about their equipment).

And indeed it is often a loan, though loans tend to be two weeks if you're lucky.

Yep, objectivity can be skewed where gifts are concerned. Influencers are in the category which concerns me the most in that regard (though there are one or two good ones).

Overall, camera companies will look for several types of associate. The already-user with an established professional presence, industry credentials, an educator, with a large audience - this group is the hardest to find and arguably the most valuable to a brand. Next are photographers who work in specific genres, which might be a target market for the brand. Lastly companies will approach influencers and bloggers with a gift (this is more of a numbers game, and is a short term shot). All have to be good talkers, obviously.