Did someone put a curse on Instagram influencers? It seems like it because the past month has been one of the hardest for them. Every day I get a news alert on my phone about how influencers are “ruining” the world or how the industry is going down the tubes. It’s a hard time for everyone on social media right now, no one knows what’s happening or going to happen. Is this the Instapocolyse?

Instagram Checkout 

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to buy things right from Instagram without leaving the app? Well, now we get to find out. In the past, if you wanted to buy something you saw on Instagram it would take you out of the app to another app or to Safari. Now with Instagram checkout, you don’t have to leave the app at all. You can shop and buy all within the platform.

It’s a win-win situation. On one hand, users don’t have to go through web page after web page looking for the item they just say on their feeds. On the other hand, Instagram checkout makes it easier for influencers to promote their brand deals and any discount codes that come with it. It’s also good for businesses because they can maximize their profit potential through the convenience of the new technology.

Fake Followers Cost More Than You Think

Instagram InfluencersBuying likes and followers have not only given Instagram influencers a bad name, but it also costs brands A LOT of money. $1.3 billion to be exact. Influencers hold a lot of power when it comes to convincing the public to buy something. Especially when it comes to gaining a following with younger generations like Gen Z, who live their lives on social media. It’s gotten to the point where people trust influencers word over brand campaigns.

Why do you think Givenchy did their newest campaign with Ariana Grande? Or Louis Vuitton promoting well-known Youtuber Emma Chamberlain to being a brand ambassador?

These are examples of well know people with large, and more importantly REAL, followings. But what happens when a brand wants to partner with an influencer and they’re not what they seem? This mistake it a costly one. Brands take a gamble and sometimes lose a good amount of their budgets to fake followers.

The only prevention method is for brands to make sure they do their research. It’s as simple as comparing their number of followers to their engagement. If it says they have 100K followers but only get an average of 100 likes on a post, there’s a good chance that Instagram influencer bought some of those followers.

Is Gen Z Instagram Influencers Biggest Enemy?

The biggest congregation of social media promotion is on Twitter. In a single scroll, you’ll see an Instagram promo, a clip of someone’s YouTube video, and the most Gen Z thing, a Tik Tok video. Are these other platforms taking over the internet? There’s no doubt people will always use Instagram BUT are other platform starting to catch up?

The most controversial platform of the all is Tik Tok, AKA Vine for the younger Gen Z. When I went to high school, everyone had Vine. That was THE platform, it was even more popular than Instagram. Now people in high school have Tik Tok.

The biggest growing platforms right now are Tik Tok and YouTube. An interesting thought pops into our heads. If these platforms are growing at a very fast rate and Instagram influencers are losing their popularity, does that mean the influencer is dead?

Not quite. Instagram influencers aren’t dying out necessarily. They need to adapt to these new changes and platforms coming on the scene not be threatened by them. Am I saying go out and make Tik Toks all day? Absolutely not, but if influencers acknowledge and plan for these changes then they will reap the benefits.

 

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