杰斯·比奇/文　王香格/译

Be honest： how often does your social media scrolling lead to shopping？ And how many of those things that TikTok made you buy did you actually need？ Enter de-influencing， the TikTok trend flipping1 influencing on its head—and aiming to save our bank balances in the process.

老实说：你在浏览社交媒体时，有多少次是刷着刷着就去购物了？TikTok促使你买下的东西里，有多少是你真正需要的？“反种草”浪潮应运而生——这是TikTok上的趋势，旨在颠覆“种草”，力图在颠覆的过程中挽救我们的银行存款。

There’s been an influx of TikTok beauty mishaps of late that have fueled a growing frustration at creators promoting products online that are misleading or， to put it bluntly， inconsiderate in light of the ongoing cost of living crisis. Take， for example， the “mascara gate” debacle2. US-based influencer Mikayla Nogueira posted a TikTok using the L’Oréal Telescopic Lash Lift Mascara but was accused of using false eyelashes in her review as part of a paid partnership. Neither Nogueira nor L’Oréal has commented on the post. Tarte Cosmetics was also criticized for treating influencers to a lavish， all-expenses-paid trip to Dubai， which sparked debate among fans as the sponsored posts felt unrelatable to many.

近来，TikTok上的美妆带货博主频繁翻车。他们在线推广具有误导性的产品，或者，说穿了就是在目前的生活成本危机下，无视消费者利益的产品。人们对这类博主的不满情绪加剧。以“睫毛膏门”这一“塌房”事件为例，美国网红米凯拉·诺盖拉在TikTok上发布了一条付费合作的测评视频，测评的产品是欧莱雅的纤长提拉睫毛膏，但观众指责她在视频中贴了假睫毛。诺盖拉和欧莱雅都没有对此作出回应。美妆品牌Tarte还因给网红免费提供奢华的迪拜之旅而受到抨击。此举之所以引发粉丝热议，是因为那群网红发布的付费合作内容令许多人感到无法认同。

As a result， social media users have taken it upon themselves3 to rebel against the wave of mass consumption in a bid to reclaim control over their feeds. This has spread outside of the app， too， with Reddit threads4 popping up where users share the products they don’t think are worth the hype. But what actually is de-influencing， how is it different from influencing， and will it last？ We ask a content creator and marketing expert to break it down.

由此，社交媒体用户开始自发地反抗大规模消费浪潮，试图夺回对推送信息的控制权。这股反击热潮也蔓延到了TikTok之外。Reddit网站上突然涌现出许多相关主题的讨论帖，很多用户分享了他们认为名不副实的商品。那么，“反种草”究竟是什么？与“种草”有什么区别？这股浪潮会持续下去吗？我们请一位内容创作者兼营销专家来解析一下。

What is de-influencing？

“反种草”是什么？

De-influencing is the TikTok trend with hundreds of millions of views that’s challenging the hype around so-called cult products by telling you what you shouldn’t buy， instead of what you should. It’s a response to a few different things， including a general feeling of overconsumption （you don’t need more stuff just because TikTok says you do） and the cost of living crisis.

“反種草”是TikTok上浏览量数以亿计的热门话题，通过告诉你什么不该买而不是什么该买，抨击围绕所谓网红产品进行的炒作。“反种草”还对几种现象作出了回应，比如人们普遍感知到的过度消费（TikTok推荐消费者购买超出实际需求量的商品）和生活成本危机。

“People are experiencing a general social media fatigue at the moment，” says makeup artist and beauty content creator Rose Gallagher. “Originally， user-generated content was so popular because people tended to share thoughts on things that they had purchased themselves with no real connection to the brand. Now， with so much to be gained from giving a rave review， it has become harder to tell the genuine reviews from those influenced by the potential for earning.”

“人们现在普遍对社交媒体感到厌倦。”化妆师兼美妆博主罗丝·加拉格尔表示，“一开始，用户原创的内容之所以如此受欢迎，是因为人们大多分享的是自己对所购商品的主观想法，与品牌本身没有实际的联系。如今，人们能从发表热情洋溢的好评中获得不少收益，于是从受潜在收益影响的评论中分辨出真正的好评已经变得越来越难。”

This isn’t the first time there’s been a backlash against promotional content. “I think de-influencing is in some ways similar to when ’90s magazine editors started to editorialize content and not always write about their advertisers，” says CEO of the British Beauty Council and cofounder of PR agency Brandstand Communications， Millie Kendall. “Content creators with integrity， whether that’s magazine editors or influencers， will always try to set their content apart from what they deem to be lacking in honesty. I think it’s important because it sets a level playing field for brands that can’t afford to convince someone to feature their content without paying for the privilege.”

這已经不是推广内容第一次受到强烈抵制了。英国美容协会首席执行官、公关公司Brandstand Communications联合创始人米莉·肯德尔说：“我觉得‘反种草’在某些方面类似于20世纪90年代杂志编辑开始发表评论，而非总写有关广告商的内容。无论是杂志编辑，还是网红，只要是以诚信为准则的内容创作者，总会尽力将自己的创作与他们认为不够诚实的内容划清界限。我认为这一点很重要，因为如此便为品牌提供了一个公平竞争的环境，让花不起特约费用请人专门为自己推广的品牌也可参与其中。”

How is de-influencing different from influencing？

“反种草”与“种草”有何区别？

It sounds progressive， but once you scratch the surface5， there isn’t a huge difference between influencing and de-influencing. “De-influencing is a bit of a false commodity，” says Kendall. “It’s still influence but it’s telling people what not to buy.” While TikTokers may be warning consumers away from expensive or well-known products， some continue to influence by telling consumers what they should buy instead. For example， buying a heated roller set on Amazon over the Dyson Airwrap—this is still suggesting products with sweeping6 promises.

“反种草”这个概念听起来标新立异，但只要略探究竟，你就会发现它与“种草”并没有多大区别。“‘反种草’有点名不副实。”肯德尔指出，“‘反种草’也是对他人施加影响，只不过是告诉大家什么不该买罢了。”虽然TikTok博主们可能是在“劝退”消费者购买昂贵或热门的商品，但其中一部分人依然在通过推荐替代品来影响消费者。例如，不要购买戴森多功能美发棒，但可以在亚马逊网上购买加热卷发筒套装——此举仍然是用笼统的承诺向消费者推荐商品。

Cynically speaking， de-influencing is a good strategy for influencers and brands. Rising living costs mean consumers are less likely to splurge7 on big-ticket8 items， which means the influencers promoting them are less likely to generate affiliate revenue. Pivoting to promoting cheaper products plays into the so-called “Lipstick Effect9，” where people treat themselves to little luxuries， instead of indulgences， during times of economic uncertainty.

讽刺的是，“反种草”无论对网红还是品牌方都是个不错的策略。生活成本不断增长意味着消费者不太可能在高價商品上挥金如土，进而使为其带货的网红更难获得合作收益。网红们转而推广更便宜的产品，正符合所谓的“口红效应”，即在经济不稳定时期，人们会购入低价奢侈品款待自己，而不是放纵自己大肆消费。

Being honest and authentic has the potential to pay off， too. While criticizing big brands may reduce an influencer’s chances of landing a new deal in the short term， it also may increase their long-term reach as they gain a reputation for being trustworthy. Sparking debates over whether a product works or not can also drive sales for brands， as consumers respond by wanting to try it for themselves. It is also important to remember that not all influencers are financially stable enough to be immune to rocketing bills， and all the influencers will need to adapt their content to these changing and challenging times.

保持诚实可信也有可能得到回报。批评大品牌或许会在短期内减少网红签订新商单的机会，但也会增强他们的长期影响力，因为此举为他们赢得了信誉。引发关于某产品是否有效的争论也可以拉动品牌的销量，因为消费者会想要亲自尝试。同样重要的是，要记住并非所有网红都有稳定的经济实力，能泰然面对飞涨的账单，他们都需要调整自己发布的内容来适应这个不断变化又充满挑战的时代。

What is different about de-influencing is encouraging consumers to take a moment to think about whether they need a product and whether it’s right for them versus whether they’re simply being influenced because it’s new， popular， or exciting. This is part of a bigger movement in beauty. “There is also the paring back10 of regimens， the ingredient diet， the skin minimalism， and the stripping back11 of excess linked to sustainability and overconsumption，” says Kendall. “This is a positive approach to marketing.”

“反种草”的不同之处在于，它鼓励消费者花些时间来思考自己是否真的需要某件商品，这件商品是否适合自己，而不能仅仅因为它新颖、流行、令人激动就被“种草”。“反种草”是美妆行业巨大变革的一部分。“人们还减少了养生的操作，选择单一成分饮食和极简护肤，摒弃了违背可持续性和助长过度消费的无节制行为。”肯德尔表示，“这是一种积极的营销方式。”

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者；单位：上海对外经贸大学）

1 flip翻转，此处指颠覆。  2 debacle大败；垮台；灾祸。

3 take upon oneself主动承担某项任务或责任。  4 thread（互联网留言板上的）系列相关信息，主题帖。

5 scratch the surface of sth作肤浅的探讨；浅尝辄止；触及表面。

6 sweeping笼统的；一概而论的。  7 splurge挥霍。  8 big-ticket昂贵的。  9 lipstick effect口红效应，指因经济萧条而导致口红热卖的一种有趣的经济现象，也叫“低价产品偏爱趋势”。

10 pare back逐步减小（数量或体积）；使缩小。  11 strip back（特指音乐等）回归本质，只保留最简单的形式。