How much of your watch collection is purchased due to the influence of hype, social media, and pop culture? 😇

I’m a little guilty as well. I watch Jory Goodman and they guys on About Effing Time.

60% personal attraction to watch and 40% influence, positive or negative from reviews and YouTube.

If negative reviews, then that will definitely influence my No decision to probably 0% purchase, no matter how much I want or like a style.

It’s hard to ignore this as they’re the purveyors of the information. You can come to your own conclusions afterwards digesting the info.

Jory is funny as (quack) 😉

And about Effing time is entertaining if not a bit long. Good show to watch while having my hour lunch break 😄

I mean…aren’t we all going to say the opinions of others mean very little? Almost nobody thinks others make their decisions for them.

I watch/read reviews. I use them to get an idea about what things I might enjoy or dislike about a watch. But I would say the overall look of a watch is the biggest thing to me. I don’t tend to nit pick, however I feel about the overall package is how I feel about the watch. But am I really oblivious to the small things that bother others?

In the end, how would I know? How do I know these are my opinions and aren’t those of others? How do I know the difference between agreeing with others and being influenced by them?

Oh i definitely use youtube and forum reviews before making a final purchase decision. More often than not though, youtube is the cause of me finding out about that watch in the first place. 😆

If it happens to spark my interest i would then search it and proceed to look at all the negatives and positives about it and if i could live with all the negatives. This is pretty much my routine since no watch boutiques in my city at all. #thirdworldproblems 😄

Have you ever made a purchase 100% due to a youtuber's review of the watch?

For me i have really no personal interest with chronographs but here we are 🤪 (admittedly it is growing on me🥰)

You could totally call me gullible and i wouldnt even be mad 😆

You have never considered or purchased a watch after first seeing it reviewed on youtube? Am i the only one? 😄

I would say that the influence of YouTubers has reduced for me over the last few years. I used to be very influenced by "the next must have watch" on all the YouTube channels, but I don't succumb nearly as much to that sort of thing. I think when I began my collecting journey I was more susceptible to their influence, owing to my lack of confidence in my judgment and the "fear of missing out" syndrome.

After a number of years collecting, and more importantly learning, and I have found my own voice, or judgement, or confidence, so I am much less susceptible to the influence of others. I have developed my own approach to building my collection.

That is not to say I am beyond being influenced, especially regarding a watch that appeals to me even a little bit. It is really that I no longer fear missing out on the next must have watch, and I can enjoy the opinions on YouTube without rushing out to get the watch featured.

As mentioned by @Cdn_4watches, negative reviews will still have much more influence over purchasing decisions, and I do search for YouTube reviews on watches I am considering adding to my collection for any negative aspects of the watch.

As @RyanGochuico stated, YouTube personalities and WatchCrunch are how I get introduced to certain models. I wouldn’t call it “hype” though. Some of the things I see I like and I then go and absorb as much information as possible. Sometimes it turns out to be the right watch for my collection, and sometimes it’s a watch that’s not for me, but most of the time it turns out to be a piece I respect but wouldn’t buy.

I’ve watched hundreds, if not thousands of YouTube videos, and read articles on hundreds as well, but I’ve only bought 16 watches in my life, and there are about half as many more that I would currently consider buying.

I just wouldn’t call that hype purchase. Am I defining it differently than everyone else?

Most of my watches are old school choices, along with brands that are notoriously unpopular with social media so I am going to claim very little influence from the usual avenues of information but I receive emails from a few different manufacturers that keep me in the loop with new launches etcetera. I also receive essentially advertising bulletins from a familiar Canadian major watch and jewelry seller. There are also a handful of specialty magazines that publish issues about timepieces probably to draw watch advertisers that land into my home somehow via serendipitous events.

As a beginner with only 2 years into the hobby, i could totally relate to the fear of missing out syndrome, especially when the brands release them in Limited Edition. Seiko and grand seiko is guilty of this the most.

Only 16? Your self control is legendary 🫡

I am in that stage where if i have the money, i go for it and regrets later. 🤣

*realization* so thats where all my extra money went 🫣

I do watch JOMW, The Mad Watch Collector, some TGV, some Cheap Watch Guy, some Teddy Baldassare (O-H!) and they hit the high points of what the industry is doing.

As for me, I like something that is aesthetically pleasing to ME. So for me, because I'm a big military/aviation/space travel history nerd, I like watches that speak to that aesthetic.

So my first "real" serious watches were Timex Expedition Scouts. I love the field watch design. Now, as I've moved on in the hobby, I don't like the Scout as much anymore. Mostly because of the bronze case and the cheap feeling movement. I've heard some car transmissions described as feeling like a screwdriver in a bucket of rocks for feel. That's kind of what the movement in the Scout makes me think of on a microscopic level. Gritty, exposed, cheap. Love the Indiglo, but Timex can do better. I've since upgraded my field watches to a blue Seiko SNK and a cream dial SNZG. Night and day.

Professionally, I'm a massage therapist. So I can't wear my watch while I'm doing treatments on my clients. But I can have it with me in the room to time said treatments. In that capacity, I really like divers and chronograph watches with good visibility. So for example, my most worn watch, at the moment, is a Seiko 7002-7000 dive watch. Nice, big black face, big visible white hands and a very visible triangle on the dive bezel that I use to show me when I need to wrap up a service. On the chrono end I really enjoy my Bulova Lunar Pilot (original 45mm) and Pagani Design Speedmaster homage. Again, nice big, black faces with big, contrasting, white hands that are easy to see in a lower light environment.

I suppose if I have any brand preference, it's Seiko and Bulova. The history of both companies means a good bit to me.

So, if anyone reads all that blather, thank you.

To paraphrase Harvey Penick, "If you like watches, you're my friend."

Good for you😄

I am slightly jealous 😆

Hey, should you get a GMT sooner than I, looking forward to seeing it too!

I sit at Teddy's feet and soak up the knowledge. And the salesmanship.

Yes his content is gold. I even watch episodes of watches i dont personally like just in case he'd mention something that could change my mind 😄

Yeah!!! The blue one with orange seconds hands is 😙👌.

The Formula 1 has a special place in my car loving teenage heart. 😅

I'd say i'm not that influenced on my buying decision, but I do use social medial to find watches I may not have otherwise seen. For example, I look through every single comment and picture on WRUW every day, because you just never know when someone will post a pic of something that you don't know about and you absolutely love!

Heyyy thats not a bad idea 🤔

I know, I'm very clever, hahaha

Great points. Thousand dollar beanie babies? How about million dollar sports cards? 😅

I rather got deinfluenced a lot from getting some watches.

While I like watching some watch related content, I'm usually already know what I like and I just google the particular model. And in the end it would always end up in me, lurking through the auctions and marketplaces, getting completely sidetracked lol

The only watch i put my paws on because of an outer influence was the gw 5000 u. @MWC2020 is 100% guilty. Well, ok, my newest purchases, the casio moon phase and the casio cosmo phase goes back to an old catalogue i ve come across

Not bad at all 😁

'Influence...' is a bit of a too strong word for me. They sites have exposed me to different watches, but I've never felt compelled to buy a single thing based on someone else's opinion.

I remember. Also Rolex ads in magazines, and Timex and Accutron on television. Unlike today, people were absolutely fascinated when quartz came out with its one tick per second.

Indeed. It was simpler of times. 🥳

I use YouTube for reviews or to study and learn about new models but I don't buy 'hype' watches