Although the spectacle of influencers flaunting their affluence has long been a staple of social media, there are signs that audiences are growing tired of it. Experts say “influencer fatigue” is wearing on young people who crave authenticity as inflation rises and achieving a stable livelihood becomes increasingly difficult.

According to data from a YPulse study shared with Yahoo News, 45% of people between the ages of 13 and 22 say influencers just don’t have the same power that they used to. About 53% said they were more likely to trust recommendations from regular people online whom they don’t know rather than creators with large followings.

Influencer marketing once offered an alternative to typical celebrity marketing. Celebrities appeal to us as salespeople because of the psychological phenomenon known as the halo effect. If someone is talented or beautiful, we assume they are highly qualified in other ways as well, which boosts sales. Influencers, who are powerful but not conventionally famous, offered a more relatable and accessible alternative. They’re far enough removed from celebrities that we can relate to them — until we can’t.

  • snooggums
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    3 months ago

    Influencer = self employed advertiser. Being a fan of an influencer is like being a fan of the insurance gecko.

    • Psychodelic@lemmy.world
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      3 months ago

      What do y’all call people that make video essays or make funny skits but make money if ads? I thought most of us understood the game and weren’t hating the players as much

      • RBWells@lemmy.world
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        3 months ago

        Entertainers. That is a job. I had a dance teacher who taught dance, danced professionally, did singing telegram deliveries, dressed in costume for historical tours at old places, she was just an all around entertainer, that was her job.

        Influencer is different, as I understand it, that is more like the content itself is advertising. Like a social media department at a company might hire them. I guess that is also a job, but most people don’t want to watch a ten or twenty minute ad.

        • Psychodelic@lemmy.world
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          3 months ago

          Fair enough. Thanks for explaining. To me, it seems like influencer is used to put down anyone that makes money from yt, insta, tt, etc.

          That’s almost all the content/format I watch. So it’s weird to think people just don’t care if they get paid because they depend on ad revenue.

          Do you consider twitch streamers influencers or entertainers? I don’t watch many but I’d assume they’re worse in your mind when some have a gaming chair they’re promoting and/or they were directly sponsored by the game they’re playing.

      • DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafe
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        3 months ago

        Entertainers. An influencer is an evolution of the model, someone who exists to hang a branded product on and make rubes want to imitate them, not someone that provides entertainment.

        • Psychodelic@lemmy.world
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          3 months ago

          Does everyone know that? Influencer seems to be used for anyone that makes money from youtube, insta, tiktok, etc.

          Also, why y’all so hostile to basic questions? Does everyone here already think the same? No questions allowed? lol. Alright I’m done.

      • snooggums
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        3 months ago

        Creators? I just called them entertainers.

      • stufkes@lemmy.world
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        3 months ago

        Video essayists. I watch them exclusively on YT and it is very important to me that they stick to their area of expertise and don’t include shady sponsorships. I think the video essayist is a very small portion of youtuber that make enough money to get by. Low quality stuff is far more effective at gaming the algorithm.