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Influencer

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"Influencer" redirects here. For the song, see Influencer (song). For the 2022 horror film, see Influencer (2022 film).
In 2024, Rolling Stone listed MrBeast, the YouTuber with the most subscribers, as the third most influential content creator.[1][2] According to Insider, in 2021, 70% of survey respondents had a positive view of the influencer,[3] who strongly appeals to younger audiences.[4][5]

An influencer, also referred to as a social media influencer, is a term traditionally associated with someone who influences others using inspiration and guidance, however, more recently the term has been associated specifically with people who influence and guide the interest of others using social media.[6] The modern referent of the term is commonly a paid role in which a business entity pays for the social media influence-for-hire activity to promote its products and services.[7] Types of influencers include fashion influencer and virtual influencer. Some influencers are associated with specific social media apps such as TikTok influencers,[8] Instagram influencer,[9][10] or Pinterest influencer, and many are also considered internet celebrities.

As of 2023, Instagram is the social media platform on which businesses spend the most influencer marketing advertising dollars.[11] However, influencer can exert their influence on any type of social media network. Thus, Instagram's leadership in the influencer marketing space has been under assault by platforms such as LinkedIn, TikTok and Roblox.[12][13][14]

Definitions

Influencers may be celebrities of any type with large social media followings, including people who are mainly internet celebrities. Following the National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States in 2021, pre-college and college athletes became eligible for student athlete compensation for use of their personality rights as influencers without loss of athletic eligibility and education-related benefits, which broadened the influencer landscape to people who might not yet be celebrities.[15]

History

2000s

The early 2000s showed corporate endeavors to leverage the internet for influence, with some companies participating in forums for promotions or providing bloggers with complimentary products in return for favorable reviews. A few of these practices were viewed as unethical for taking advantage of the labor of young individuals without providing remuneration.[16] The Blogstar Network was established in 2004 by Ted Murphy of MindComet. Bloggers were encouraged to join an email list and receive remunerated offers from corporations in exchange for creating specific posts. For instance, bloggers were compensated for writing reviews of fast-food meals on their blogs. Blogstar is widely regarded as the first influencer marketing network.[16] Murphy succeeded Blogstar with PayPerPost, which was introduced in 2006. This platform compensated significant posters on prominent forums and social media platforms for every post made about a corporate product. Payment rates were determined by the influencer's status.[16] Though very popular, PayPerPost, received a great deal of criticism as these influencers were not required to disclose their involvement with PayPerPost as traditional journalism would have.[17] With the success of PayPerPost, the public became aware that there was a drive for corporate interests to influence what some people were posting to these sites.[16] The platform also incentivized other firms to establish comparable programs. Despite concerns, marketing networks with influencers continued to grow throughout the 2000s and into the 2010s. The influencer marketing industry is expected to be worth up to $15 billion by 2022, up from as much as $8 billion in 2019, according to estimates from Business Insider Intelligence, which are based on Mediakix data.[18] Evan Asano, the Former CEO and founder of the agency Mediakix, previously spoke with Business Insider and said he believed influencer marketing on Instagram would continue to grow despite likes being hidden.[19]

2010s

By the 2010s, the term "influencer" described digital content creators with a large following, distinctive brand persona, and a patterned relationship with commercial sponsors.[20] Consumers often mistakenly view celebrities as reliable, leading to trust and confidence in the products being promoted.[21] A 2001 study from Rutgers University discovered that individuals were using "internet forums as influential sources of consumer information." The study proposes that consumers preferred internet forums and social media when making purchasing decisions over conventional advertising and print sources. An influencer's personality strongly impacts their audience's purchasing decision, with those who engage with their audience being more persuasive in encouraging product purchases. Companies today place great importance on feedback and comments received through social media platforms as consumers trust other consumers. Reviews are often relied on to persuade consumers to make a purchase, highlighting the impact of a negative review on a business's revenue.[22] A typical method of marketing between the influencer and the audience is "B2C marketing". B2C marketing, meaning Business to Consumer marketing, entails the strategies which a business would undertake to promote themselves and their services directly to their target audiences. This is typically through advertising and creating content through the influencer themselves. The intention is that their followers, who relate or look up to certain influencers, will be more inclined to purchase an item because their favorite "Internet celebrity" recommended it.[23] Internet celebrities typically promote a lifestyle of beauty and luxury fashion and foster consumer–brand relationships, while selling their own lines of merchandise.[24]

"Digital Branding: A Comprehensive Step-by-Step Guide to Strategy, Tactics, Tools, and Metrics" by David Rowles explains the methods online influencers employ to increase their audience and brand visibility. Digital branding encompasses all online experiences and necessitates value provision."[25] It is suggested that users are already familiar with the lives of their influencers as devoted followers. This makes it easy for them to promote companies as their followers feel as though they know the celebrities they follow, despite the reality being different.[citation needed]

Self-branding

Self-branding, also known as personal branding, describes the development of a public image for commercial gain or social or cultural capital.[26] The rise of social media has been exploited by individuals seeking personal fame and product sales. Platforms such as Instagram, Twitch, Snapchat, VSCO, YouTube, and TikTok, are the most common social media outlets on which online influencers attempt to build a following. Fame can be attained through different avenues and media forms, including art, humor, modeling, and podcasts. Marketing experts have concluded that anyone can build websites easily without any technical knowledge or complex coding languages. They can upload text, pictures, and videos instantly from personal computers or phones. With technological barriers diminishing, the web has become the ideal platform for personal branding.[27]

Marketing

This section is an excerpt from Influencer marketing.[edit]
Chiara Ferragni is a fashion influencer and blogger known for her sponsored fashion posts.
Influencer marketing (also known as influence marketing) is a form of social media marketing involving endorsements and product placement from influencers, people and organizations who have a purported expert level of knowledge or social influence in their field.[28] Influencers are someone (or something) with the power to affect the buying habits or quantifiable actions of others by uploading some form of original—often sponsored—content to social media platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok or other online channels.[29] Influencer marketing is when a brand enrolls influencers who have an established credibility and audience on social media platforms to discuss or mention the brand in a social media post.[30] Influencer content may be framed as testimonial advertising, according to the Federal Trade Commission in the United States.[31]

Definitions

This section is an excerpt from Influencer marketing § Influencers.[edit]
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Notes

  1. ^ "MrBeast Is Now The Most Subscribed YouTuber: 'Avenged Pewdiepie'". Times Now. June 2, 2024. Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
  2. ^ Stone, Rolling (August 26, 2024). "25 Most Influential Creators of 2024". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 3, 2024.
  3. ^ Asarch, Steven (February 16, 2021). "POWER RANKING: the 10 most well-liked influencers on the internet". Insider. Archived from the original on February 24, 2022. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  4. ^ Dickson, Ej (April 19, 2022). "Is MrBeast for Real? Inside the Outrageous World of YouTube's Cash-Happy Stunt King". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 20, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  5. ^ Espada, Mariah (June 13, 2023). "Why MrBeast's New Video Became The Second Most Watched in 24 Hours in YouTube History". Time. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  6. ^ "influencer: noun". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  7. ^ "Influencer". Cambridge Dictionary. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  8. ^ Ohlheiser, A.W. (August 6, 2020). "A guide to the TikTokish apps that want to be the next TikTok". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  9. ^ "Video captures men spraying Instagram influencer's dog during alleged robbery". CNN. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  10. ^ "Instagram Influencer Marketing: A Complete 2024 Guide". Shopify. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  11. ^ Lepitak, Stephen (April 17, 2023). "Instagram Remains a Priority Platform for Marketers. Here's Why". Ad Week. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  12. ^ Bain, Phoebe and Gillian Follett (March 1, 2024). "HOW LINKEDIN IS BECOMING A HOT SPOT FOR INFLUENCER MARKETING". Ad Age. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  13. ^ McDowell, Maghan (February 27, 2024). "Influencer marketing has arrived on Roblox". Vogue Business. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  14. ^ Schulz, Madeleine (February 9, 2024). "The Instagram era of influencer brands is over. What now?". Vogue Business. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  15. ^ Murphy, Dan (June 21, 2021). "Supreme Court unanimously sides with former college players in dispute with NCAA about compensation". ESPN. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  16. ^ a b c d Martinue, Paris (December 6, 2019). "The WIRED Guide to Influencers". Wired. Archived from the original on September 6, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  17. ^ Fine, Jon (July 10, 2006). "Polluting The Blogosphere". Archived from the original on August 6, 2006.
  18. ^ Schomer, Audrey. "Influencer Marketing: State of the social media influencer market in 2020". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 5, 2021. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  19. ^ "Instagram is testing hiding 'likes' and some influencers are angry. Industry execs told us how the change will affect their business". Business Insider. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  20. ^ Duffy, Brooke Erin (2020). "Social Media Influencers". The International Encyclopedia of Gender, Media, and Communication. pp. 1–4. doi:10.1002/9781119429128.iegmc219. ISBN 9781119429104. S2CID 225776342. Archived from the original on April 2, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  21. ^ Juntiwasarakij, Suwan (September 1, 2018). "Framing emerging behaviors influenced by internet celebrity". Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences. 39 (3): 550–555. doi:10.1016/j.kjss.2018.06.014. ISSN 2452-3151. S2CID 158069963.
  22. ^ Bickart, Barbara; Schindler, Robert M. (2001). "Internet Forums As Influential Sources Of Consumer Information". Journal of Interactive Marketing. 15 (3): 31–40. doi:10.1002/dir.1014. S2CID 168114871. Archived from the original on December 6, 2019. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  23. ^ Lake, Laura (December 26, 2020). "Understanding the Differences Between B2B and B2C Marketing". the balance small business. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  24. ^ Britt, Rebecca K.; Hayes, Jameson L.; Britt, Brian C.; Park, Haseon (May 3, 2020). "Too Big to Sell? A Computational Analysis of Network and Content Characteristics among Mega and Micro Beauty and Fashion Social Media Influencers". Journal of Interactive Advertising. 20 (2): 111–118. doi:10.1080/15252019.2020.1763873. ISSN 1525-2019. S2CID 219433187.
  25. ^ Rowels, David (2014). Digital Branding: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide to Strategy, Tactics and Measurement. Kogan Page.
  26. ^ Khamis, Susie; Ang, Lawrence; Welling, Raymond (April 3, 2017). "Self-branding, 'micro-celebrity' and the rise of Social Media Influencers". Celebrity Studies. 8 (2): 191–208. doi:10.1080/19392397.2016.1218292. hdl:10453/98736. ISSN 1939-2397. S2CID 59289264.
  27. ^ Labrecque, Lauren I.; Markos, Ereni; Milne, George R. (February 2011). "Online Personal Branding: Processes, Challenges, and Implications". Journal of Interactive Marketing. 25 (1): 37–50. doi:10.1016/j.intmar.2010.09.002. hdl:20.500.12010/9095. S2CID 167381412.
  28. ^ Lipiner, Bryan (September 16, 2020). "What is Influencer Marketing? An Industry on the Rise". babson.edu. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  29. ^ Martineau, Paris. "The WIRED Guide to Influencers". Wired. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  30. ^ Srivastava, Pallavi. "Influencer Marketing: How It Can Make Your Brand Tick". Business Insider. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  31. ^ "FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION 16 CFR Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising" (PDF). Federal Trade Commission. November 2010. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
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