Have you ever heard of the brand Waterboy? I hadn’t either—until about a month ago.
Waterboy is a hydration and recovery brand known for its electrolyte-rich drink mixes, tailored for everything from post-workout replenishment to weekend recovery. Recently the business faced some serious backlash after their latest brand trip in June. The company flew a group of influencers to Tulum, Mexico and brought on one influencer to act as their social media manager for the trip. But that decision has stirred up some controversy.
An Opportunity Squandered?
Many feel that the influencer in charge treated the brand’s page more like her personal vlog. Instead of showcasing Waterboy and its products, the content focused almost entirely on her own experiences—what she was doing and who she was with—rather than on the brand itself.
To make things even more interesting, this trip wasn’t just for influencers. Some of them held giveaways and invited fans to join them in Tulum. But those fans were barely featured on the official Waterboy page. It was a missed opportunity to connect with real consumers and spotlight authentic brand moments.
My Two Cents
As a social media manager, I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand, I can admit the influencer brought in solid engagement and reach during the trip. That’s part of the job. But did she showcase the brand in the best light? Not really.
I’m not a fan of overly salesy content—I think the best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing at all. But even with that in mind, I wouldn’t have greenlit a “Who do you think will be the drunkest?” video or a post about someone’s Brazilian butt lift for the main brand page. At that point, it felt like the designated social media manager had forgotten the entire point of being there: representing Waterboy.
It felt very off-brand when she posted videos of influencers so hungover they were just lying around, barely functioning. For a different brand, that chaotic, party-centric content might’ve worked—but in this case, it missed the mark. Sure, she succeeded in getting people to talk about Waterboy, but did the content actually support the brand’s purpose and drive meaningful conversions? That’s a lot more questionable.
To put it in perspective, she didn’t actually post any true brand-focused content until the very last day of the trip. Check out the post now if you're curious.
Interestingly, Waterboy’s marketing team doesn’t seem to think she did a poor job—she’s still running their TikTok account and remains the face of the brand online.
That raises the question: What does successful influencer marketing really look like, and at what point does personal branding overpower brand representation?
