These Asian-owned LA restaurants paid influencers to promote them. They failed to deliver
Los Angeles restaurants that fed and paid for posts are being left with a bad taste, highlighting the pitfalls of an industry with few rules
It started with US$500 and a comped meal at Hollywood Thai.
That is what the family-run restaurant in Los Angeles’ Thai Town paid an influencer in exchange for a single social media post. When that post did not immediately materialise, the owners aired their frustrations on Instagram. The internet responded, roiling with online comments that publicly called out the influencer, who has more than 1.5 million followers on Instagram.
Some restaurateurs say social media influencers help spread the word and provide valuable marketing; others say it is hard to tell whether their posts result in new customers at all.
In recent months, some paying restaurants in Los Angeles say they have been professionally “ghosted”, and the fallout has resulted in deleted accounts, threats from a purported lawyer, allegations of bought followers, and countless harassing comments left on creators’ accounts.
