Note: Long article ahead. This article is divided into 4 parts, this being the first part.
It was eve of Christmas. I met a dear friend of mine whom I really look up to for wisdom and guidance in the world of business. We had our usual conversations about grant application and candid sharing of what we feel about each other’s work (s) that we have put out for the year.
Then an interesting conversation popped up about my public image or how the world could possibly perceive me, especially board of directors, potential investors, grant-makers and clients. I was told that my name was put up in the forefront of suggested emcees to host an event. The people in the board of decision-makers suggested another lady; a dear friend of mine whom I really admire for her beauty, poise and intelligence. The people in the board were swayed to go with that dear friend of mine, which I was totally fine with. What I thought was uncool was the reason why they decided not to go with me. The reason cited was; one of them came across my Tik-Tok videos promoting different products, and came to the conclusion that my public image is therefore, unclean. I did try to get clarification from my friend, but I didn’t quite get a clear idea of what the board thought as “my image is unclean”. If you were to go through my Tik-Tok videos, many of them would feature me promoting, what I would term as children-friendly products. These include snacks, cookies, moisturisers, perfumes, Muslimah-apparels, and t-shirts. I do not promote any form of alcohol beverages/ food, nor prohibited items. Neither did I promote anything provocative that could possibly raise a parent’s eye-brow. This is in line with my image as an educator.
After the conversation with that friend, I went back home and did some serious self-reflection. Part of me asked if I should then stop doing promo videos on Tik-Tok. But will the trade-off be worth it? Will such emcee gig be able to pay me the amount I get from making Tik-Tok promo videos? More importantly, will I get the same amount of recognition by doing other things, in place of promo Tik-Tok videos? Yes, some of my Tik-Tok videos have such an extensive reach that I am constantly approached by random aunties in public who would happily share with me that they are using the products that I promoted and that they are of good quality. The aunties at the hawker centre near my house would sometimes drop remarks such as “Today, you not selling things on Tik-Tok?” or “Can you recommend me these other products?” It feels good to know the impact I have on someone else’s lives. It feels good to know that your effort in creating things that you are passionate about, is being recognised. But the question at the end of the day is – how are these videos then impacting my public image. More importantly, how will it impact my main rice-bowl, which is in the education field?
And so, I have decided to summon my trusty friend, who has deep insights of the world wide web, where the bulk on content forming up my public image can be found…my friend, Chat GPT. This is what she says to me:
Of course, I had to punch in the golden question -- Will you have any doubts of his credibility when watching him being as a salesperson/ promoter on tik-tok videos?
To be continued in Part 2.
0 comments:
Post a Comment