Influencer culture has become a significant factor in marketing sales with the advent of social media. If a Kardashian wears it, people rush to buy it. When an athlete promotes a protein powder, fans are desperate to try it. Influencers existed pre-internet, from fashion icons to artists. But with the immediacy of social media, influencers can now cultivate a closer relationship with their audiences and influence them to buy products or change their lifestyle. Many successful brands are reliant on the trustworthy, fun and interesting face that influencers provide.
But if the influencer’s reputation is affected, so are sales.
Recently, the negative aspects of influencer culture have become a fixture in the media. Accusations of entitlement, fraud, deception and manipulative sales tactics are being associated with influencers. When the owners of a luxury Dublin hotel publicly banned influencers from their residence, it made international news. This followed influencer Elle Darby asking for a free five-night stay at their hotel. In return, she promised to promote them to her audience online. The hotel owner pointed out how commonplace these requests had become by self-appointed influencers, unconcerned about how the hotel would pay their staff if influencers stayed for free. This marked the first time I began to think about the culture that influencers had ushered in. Now there appears to be an unending spate of influencers being exposed for their entitlement, demanding services or products for free
Influencer culture can make or break a brand
Audiences can point out inconsistencies in an influencer’s messaging quicker than ever before. When this happens, every piece of advice they have ever given will be called into question.
Recently, makeup influencer Mikayla Noguiera experienced this first-hand. During her partnership with L’Oréal, she was accused of using fake eyelashes to enhance the performance of their mascara. Upon doing this, her brand as an influencer was considered untrustworthy. This type of fall from grace casts my mind to my teen years when I was learning how to do my makeup from Michelle Phan. Before ‘influencing’ was a term as it is now in the current vernacular, it was easier to think of popular social media figures as the ‘girl-next-door’ producing authentic content. In the beginning, Michelle Phan was a relatable YouTube star with big dreams to have her own company someday. She possessed fantastic makeup skills and her likeability was heavily connected to the way she appeared relatable to young teenage girls.
The relatability paradox
However, Michelle’s illusion of relatability began to crumble when her appearance began to change. She underwent a physical transformation; likely cosmetic Botox, filler or surgery but denied this to her fans. Her message of loving yourself the way you are and embracing your unique face no longer matched her actions. Michelle repeatedly telling her fans to deny what they were seeing with their own eyes caused her authenticity to chip away. Her once positive fanbase filled her comment sections with distrust, anger and annoyance because her words no longer matched the visage of her brand.
She launched various business endeavours which also failed because fans no longer felt they could connect to Michelle. It seemed her increased financial stability warped her perception of the prices her young fans could afford. The disconnect this caused affected Michelle’s fame in the growing influencer space. Many people refer to her legacy, suggesting she was one of the first online influencers, and I agree. But the issue with her influencer brand was a blueprint for the issues to come with other influencers. There is a paradox many influencers experience. They become famous because they have a relatable persona, which leads to success and riches. This in turn decreases their relatability to the average person, who no longer feels connected to the influencer, causing their success and income to fall. In some cases, the influencer’s reputation doesn’t recover and for others, this is a circle their career begins to cycle.
Michelle Phan returned to the platform in 2017 and then again in 2019. But her authenticity is still being called into question. Though she has since enjoyed success with her makeup brand Em Cosmetics.
The toxic relationship between influencers and their audience
I believe there was a noticeable difference between early social media influencers, who didn’t get paid for the work, vs. today’s influencers. In a perfect world, influencers would get paid for their labour, but it wouldn’t influence their opinions.
I experienced the other side of influencer entitlement first-hand when I opened a small jewellery shop. I already experienced the occasional plea as a freelance artist to make art for friends or family at a ‘friends or family discounted price’. But it’s only gotten worse as time has gone on. When I started selling jewellery, I was shocked by the sheer number of people who felt entitled enough to ask me for free jewellery in return for social media ‘shout-outs’ or positive reviews. 95% of the time, these accounts appeared to have very low engagement with their audiences. Their pages had fewer social media followers than my own, but the tactics these people emulated were direct from the influencer playbook.
On the other hand, sometimes this type of partnership with influencers works for companies. But this new influencer culture can be exploitative towards small businesses who cannot afford to gamble with their income.
The cult of influencer
Influencer marketing is a competitive job now where influencers are in a constant fight for relevance. While some influencers provide invaluable advice to their audience, like recommending changes to their diet, with proof of what has worked for them, others encourage materialism and affect the mental health of their viewers.
Some of the same influencers I’ve watched amass huge collections of products in order to make reviews of cosmetics or art supplies, have later admitted they have developed issues with hoarding. In turn, the audiences’ fear of missing out can create the feeling that it is normal to make large purchases out of their budget, to emulate the influencers they watch. Sometimes the feeling that they are missing out on perceived experiences leads to anxiety and depression.
Constantly comparing your productivity, attractiveness or success to others negatively affects everyday people. Especially young people who may not be aware that what they view on social media isn’t an accurate representation of life. No one experiences success 24/7, even in their chosen field or the talent they’re known for. Being a content creator is a modern job that requires a lot of work and some people’s desire to become an influencer can lead to bankruptcy, debt and tragedy.
Where did it all go wrong?
Even people who think they’re not at risk of being ‘influenced’ by social media influencers are. The recent fame of Liver King has shone a light on the steroid addiction many young men face and the body-image issues they ignore. Telling your audience they can look like you if only they eat the right food or drink the right tea, is a tell-tell influencer lie. The dieting, health issues, steroid abuse and sickness going on behind the scenes belies the fame and fortune influencers project to their audience.
There was an undeniable authenticity to influencer culture during the late 2000s-early 2010s on platforms like YouTube. The influencers I have fond memories of didn’t pretend to have it all figured out. Often, their trials and errors were more frankly displayed and sponsored ads were rare. I have vivid memories of improving my haircare and skincare routines using advice from my favourite YouTubers. I learned lots of haircare tips that saved my damaged hair and irritated scalp from one influencer in particular.
This influencer made reviews about products on the market for curly hair. Her honest advice about products she didn’t like saved me from being too experimental with my finances. Then she was caught by eagle-eyed fans removing her old critical reviews of products from a specific company, at the same time as she began to post new sponsored content from the same company she previously said she would never work with. When she was called out for her deception, her denial and unwillingness to admit to her lies sobered me. Many people are willing to sell out their values when a paycheck big enough is offered to them.
A big platform doesn’t equal expertise
There is genuine harm to influencers pushing a certain lifestyle, especially when it includes medical advice from unqualified individuals. Influencer culture has contributed to eating disorders. Self-declared vegan frugivore, Leanne Ratcliffe, more famously known as ‘Freelee the Banana Girl’ has made a career off pushing an extreme lifestyle and dieting advice. She has proudly told her female viewers that the absence of menstruation is an indicator of health. That losing their hair on her diet is normal and that her advice is based on science.
Influencer campaigns have also become downright distasteful. Bioré’s 2023 campaign for their new skincare line was about how their products helped a school-shooting survivor cope with her experience. The battle for relevance and revenue pushes some influencers to desperate and sordid lengths to distinguish themselves.
Can we still trust influencers?
So many influencer controversies reaching the media affect the way we view influencing as a culture. Influencers who get caught in scandals are now commonplace. Influencers not declaring that their posts are sponsored is still happening. Some influencers will argue that they have to take sponsorships wherever they can get them because content creation online doesn’t create a stable income for influencers unless they are extremely successful.
A few years ago, I witnessed a popular artist in the art community bragging about the huge boxes of free products companies sent her. The implication was obvious that while they were sent for free, they hoped she might talk about her favourite products from their range. The artist bragged about how big her platform was, how many free products she threw away regularly from these companies and publicly shamed them for sending her products she believed were ‘below her standards’. Videos like this make me wonder how toxic the influencer-brand relationship has come.
Regulations on social media
Today, influencers must disclose if their content is an advert or if they are otherwise collaborating with a brand. Influencer culture is in a state of change right now. Lots of influencers are losing their credibility overnight and new ones replace them in an instant, enjoying a small amount of fame for an indeterminable amount of time before they too are replaced. Influencers will sometimes create publicity stunts that are irresponsible or dangerous to push products. They hope these stunts will distinguish them from their competition. Influencer Ken Wak’s recent controversy where he faked an attempted kidnapping to push a safety and travel-planning app comes to mind.
Changes in legislation to do with online content are slow. While ads have to be declared on most social media platforms now, not all of these platforms are successfully enforcing this transparency. This lack of action continues to provide their viewers with a skewed perception of reality.
What will the future of influencer culture look like?
Lawsuits for lying influencers are materialising gradually. For others, the punishment is more social, like Yovana Mendoza Ayressome. Yovana was a vegan food-vlogger who was caught eating fish. Since the scandal broke, her public career has never quite reached the same level of success. When influencers are willing to push products or ideologies solely for content and profit, it comes back to bite them.
Over and over again I have witnessed likeable influencers sacrifice their morality and honesty for revenue as they transform their persona to fit new moulds. It’s hard not to miss the days when influencer culture was very different. When influencers I respected promoted products, techniques and services that they truly liked and believed in because the monetary incentive hadn’t yet arrived on the scene. Whenever I hear an influencer utter the words, “no one is paying me to say this”, I feel dubious. Because even video revenue calculates to money. And some influencers are far simpler: attention is their currency and drama is the method by which they get it.
I don’t think influencer culture is purely toxic. I can credit so many of my skills to influencers who are full of talent. Influencer content can be genuinely educational and life-enriching. But the communities full of drama are the ones who get the mass-media attention, the brand deals and sponsors.
How to navigate the influencer space safely
If an influencer is trying to sell you something, think about whether you truly need it. Try to check if the influencer has a brand deal with the company. By UK law, influencers are obligated to show their post is an ad, usually using the word #ad in the caption of their post. But it must be remembered that not every country is enforcing these rules. Each social media platform enforces these rules to different degrees.
Don’t reward influencer dishonesty with viewership, because this leads to revenue. Remind yourself that having a large platform does not equate to expertise. Although, it can create the illusion of such. It is important to do your own research. Influencers are people and people make mistakes. Be wary of giveaways and offers of free products that seem too good to be true. This could be an attempt to defraud you. If you have children, monitor what they are watching. Do not cave into overspending to fill your social media pages with hauls and purchases you want to show off. There’s a wealth of information and services to explore in influencer spaces. Navigating trustworthy social pages is a landmine you will do well to be wary of.
There will always be a place for charismatic influencers online. But the way they function on social media is subject to change in the future. As audiences demand more honesty and transparency from the content creators they support, the culture around influencing will change. Hopefully, for the better.
Written by Chanté-Marie Young
Illustrated by Francesca Mariama
