By 
As social media becomes increasingly popular, the ability to turn the platform into a business is expanding. You may have come across regular people, maybe even your friends, who join a scheme to sell products such as perfume and skincare online, it’s the alternative to ‘Avon parties’ back in the day.
Although it is great that these people are earning a living and resourcefully working from home, it can be quite annoying for their friends who are constantly invited to Facebook groups to buy products they have no interest in. One company who have expanded into this way of business is The Body Shop.
It has been reported that a local girl has been shamed on Facebook for her acne, and targeted by sellers for a profit.
The young woman had done a live Facebook video to her friends and followers. Not long after appearing live, she received a message from a body shop ‘sales person’ on Facebook. This was not someone she had spoken to before so the message was completely out of the blue. It read:
“Hey Hun, hope you don’t mind me messaging, I watched your live last night and offered to send you something for your spots? I work for The Bodyshop and would love to help you out. You’re a beautiful girl and I love sharing my products. If you’re interested let me know.”
The girl who had posted the video who will remain unnamed, felt completely shocked by how inconsiderate the message was. She has stated:
“I’m sorry this is not okay, I went live last night knowing I wasn’t feeling all that confident and I get this message. Yes my spots are awful at the moment but I really don’t need this kind of kick in the teeth, safe to say I won’t be making that mistake of going live again”
The issue here is that this stranger has approached this young lady as a target to sell products. In another instance for example, you would not take kindly to someone knocking on your door trying to sell you a blow up doll when you’d just announced you split up from your boyfriend.
Although these social media sellers are saying nice things like they want to “help” you, or they want to “share” their products; it is ultimately a way for them to make money. Some people may be interested in these products, but when someone approaches another as an ‘easy target’, it becomes unsavoury.
