An influencer on TikTok went viral for claiming that a brand — many are assuming to be the vacuum brand Tineco — asks creators to lie about their product.
In the viral video posted Monday afternoon, creator Hannah (@hanzcakess) talked about her experience with the brand from a kitchen, while a Tineco vacuum sat on the counter behind her. The video had around one million views as of Tuesday afternoon.
@hanzcakess All for a measly 300 bucks. #momtok ♬ original sound – Hannah
In the video, Hannah said she will not specify the brand name, but she will “leave quite a large hint” about what brand it is. She said this while moving to the side to show a vacuum behind her.
Hannah explains that the brand reached out to her and asked her to post a video for them.
“They sent over a contract and posting guidelines. I agreed and signed the contract,” she said.
Next, she refered to other brand deals she’s done before and said normally when brands send posting guidelines they are not directly telling you to post a certain way.
“It’s just kind of like, here’s a posting idea,” she added. “…No creator is the same and no creator can put out the same exact content.”
Hannah suggested that if you’re a brand like this that wants creators to post in specific ways, to “pay someone to make your ads.”
Then, Hannah said that in the company guidelines she first noticed there was a lot of lying. “They wanted me to lie,” she emphasizes.
She mentioned she received a 5-page document about everything they told her to change in the video she submitted if she wants to receive the money from the brand deal.
She said the document had “ a lot of stuff that I needed to lie about to make it look like the product can do stuff that it can not do.” Examples she mentioned include making messes and cutting videos in a specific way to look like the product worked a certain way.
“I responded and I said I’m not gonna lie, that is just not something that I do on my page,” she said.
Hannah told the brand she’d make another video for them but that she still refuses to lie. After submitting her second video, Hannah said the brand still did not deem her video worthy of being paid.
“I kept telling them that I refuse to lie about a product, like I will not be paid to lie,” Hannah said, “that’s just all against my morals, I will not do that.”
Hannah said the company told her that they would not be paying her anymore but that it was still in her “best interest to post any videos.”
She said she told the brand to F-off and that they will “never get any free promo.” The Daily Dot reached out to Hannah via TikTok direct message and Tineco via email.
As the popularity of influencers online has grown, viewers have documented key moments of when creators try to pull a fast one on them, according to Buzzfeed. For example, audiences called out Mikayla Nogueira, accusing her of using false eyelashes in a before-and-after TikTok video sponsored by L’Oreal. In another instance, people ridiculed French influencer Oceane El Himer for claiming in an Instagram photo she was traveling via business class but was later spotted in economy class.
Viewers in the comment section of Hannah’s video found the hint to the vacuum in the back of her video humorous.
“I was like why is that Tenico up on a counter, good to know,” one person said.
Other viewers chimed in giving their own opinions on Tineco.
“They offered me $500, I countered with $5,000,” one person joked, “but now I’m super glad I didn’t mess with their measly money.”
Although some professed, “I love my Tineco, this is so sad.”
“What a shame, I love mine, but what a bummer!” another said.