Under The Influence Rise of Social Media Influencers
if you’re anything like me
you probably spend a considerable amount
of time on social media
let’s be real we’ve all found ourselves
scrolling
endlessly through images of the same
company logos on linkedin
of people announcing their summer
internships or
we found ourselves wanting a very
clearly randomized instagram filter
to tell us which disney villain we are
it happens we’ve all been there
but i definitely spend the majority of
my social media time
on instagram i’ll come across my
friend’s vacation photos
the occasional meme a cool dance video
and sometimes i’ll come across a
sponsored post promoting some type of
product
by an influencer you’ve probably heard
of the word influencer
or even come across their posts and
cringed at their captions
that constantly remind you to use my
code for 10
off but what does it mean really
the term influencer is one of those
words that’s just so overused and
misunderstood
that it doesn’t really mean anything
anymore like blockchain
influencer can be an insult but also a
marketing method
or a career path but also that thing
that my friend does for fun
essentially an influencer is someone who
possesses the power to affect purchasing
decisions of others
based on their knowledge credibility and
relationship with their audience
within the context of social media an
influencer promotes a brand or product
to their follower base
through digital content in exchange for
monetary compensation
oh i know what you’re talking about now
you’re talking about those obnoxious
people on instagram who get paid for
posting
and make ridiculous amounts of money
without putting in any real effort
well not quite i’ve always been
interested in how the influencer
industry actually works
this past year i decided to give it a
shot
with just over a thousand followers on
instagram i jumped on the hype train
of becoming an influencer
i absolutely without a doubt love
fashion
and for the past few years i’ve
particularly enjoyed shopping with a
local boutique
that’s become my one stop shop dress up
last year when i heard that the branch
was recruiting brand ambassadors
from georgia tech i was immediately
interested
not for the perks but for the
opportunity to be affiliated with a
brand that i held close to my heart
now i’m a computer science major so i
have no professional knowledge of
communication strategies
or marketing practices all that i know
about social media marketing stems from
my own experiences
and what i enjoy viewing and engaging
with
but with one passionate application and
some luck i got the gig
all i had to do was post regularly
according to the loose guidelines
and watch the perks roll in i’m an
active instagram user i know how to do
this
how hard can it be turns out
it’s a lot harder to be authentic
relevant engaging consistent active and
unique
than you would think brands are tapping
into
the communities of influencers who are
experts in their respective niches
but who have also harnessed the
accessibility of social media
to create personal connections and trust
with their followers
now we can see with business insider
that in 2019
the influencer marketing industry was
worth 8 billion
and it’s projected to be worth up to 15
billion dollars
by 2022. so it’s very clear
that influencer marketing is becoming a
huge aspect within the industry
in 2019 mac cosmetics initiated the most
successful ad campaign with influencers
on tick tock
to boost their profile amongst gen z
that collected over 2.3 billion views
in 2018 lyft became the most mentioned
brand
on instagram through a series of
influencer campaigns
promoting ride sharing and active
engagement
in 2017 nike gained significant buzz for
the launch of the air vapor max
on youtube through a viral video
campaign promoting their shoe and what’s
inside the shoe by influencers
so as you can see these are just three
of the several brands that
that have invested heavily into
influencer marketing
so it’s clear that these companies are
now investing
heavily into this type of field and it’s
important to consider
in 2017 rihanna launched her makeup
brand fenty beauty that launched huge
success commercially
fenty beauty launched 40 shades of
foundation ranging from the lightest
skin tones
to the deepest that were all marketed by
beauty influencers of varying skin tones
ethnic backgrounds and follower counts
this launch truly set the precedent for
inclusive marketing
and now we’re seeing that marketing is
becoming much more authentic
relevant and relatable we as consumers
are so diverse not only in terms of
thoughts but also
in terms of our opinions our looks and
our backgrounds
so it’s important that we’re able to
look up to people who are
similar to us cassie hoe is an asian
american fitness influencer
who created her brand blogilates as a
way to promote living a healthy
and balanced lifestyle her quick at-home
workouts cater to women
who are looking for fun and creative
ways to stay active
without needing a gym cassie spreads
messages of body positivity within women
who
might not look like the mainstream image
of fit women but who can be
just as active toned and healthy
anchil ceda is an indian british beauty
influencer
who shares her love for makeup while
embracing her culture
and her heritage her recommendations and
tutorials
cater to women who don’t see
representations of their cultural looks
and deeper skin tones in mainstream
marketing
ancho inspires ethnic women to feel
comfortable in their own skin
and to feel just as beautiful in their
cultural looks as they do
in their everyday looks justine zarick
more
commonly known as ijustine is a
technology influencer
who reviews all the latest gadgets and
shares key comparisons
reviews and reactions in an engaging and
easy to understand way
her content caters to people who might
not keep up with tech on their own
but who are still interested in keeping
up with the latest trends
and the latest releases justine’s earned
a spot
as one of the most influential people
within the tech space through her own
style
without fitting the mold of being a
stereotypical tech nerd
and the list goes on and on these
influencers are all representing the
niches that they come from
and they’re driving inclusion within the
marketing space
when you think about it now influencers
are serving a much higher purpose than
just
getting you the best discount right
influencers are no longer
the new kids on the block they’ve
completely disrupted the marketing
industry
and completely transformed it by
capitalizing on their authenticity
and their niche if you think being an
influencer seems like a permanent
vacation
that couldn’t be further from the truth
these creators are putting in hours of
hard work
and working to represent people of every
age
gender nationality and sexual background
so what does this mean for you
when you see a sponsored post by an
influencer don’t
automatically roll your eyes at them
take a second to understand
where they’re coming from and what their
messages
if you can relate to that mission then
support them
and engage with their content so that
they can continue to create more content
but even if you don’t relate to their
mission
don’t put them down you never know who’s
positively impacted by their message
influencers are here to stay whether
you’re on board or not
so let’s support them as they make
strides in bringing diversity and
inclusion to traditional marketing
let’s make way for these new age
entrepreneurs
thank you