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.

  • davemeech@lemmy.ca
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    8 months ago

    Probably an old man yelling at cloud sentiment, but I hated them from the very beginning.

    • Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      I’m definitely an old man. And i remember when YouTube influencers started being a thing.

      To this day, I have no idea what the hell a Mr Beast is or any of these famous YouTubers are. And most of them either fade away or get propped up by some bad news.

    • nifty@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      I am not an old man, and I felt the same. I left Facebook in 2008, don’t have insta, TikTok, or tweet. I also left Reddit in 2014ish.

      I only use HN (on and off to comment on articles), and recently started Lemmy. Will I stay? Idk. Some international acquaintances and friends use WhatsApp, but I’ve mainly quit it.

    • Cosmicomical@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      Influencer is a bad name, but I see them as bottom-up content creator, instead of the top-down conventional media. In this sense it’s more democratic approach and there is a wider choice and plurality of voices. But mainstream media is now enrolling them, for instance Reach Plc (who owns the Mirror and the Daily Express) fired a bunch of journalists and hired influencers. So you know, now you’re going to get the worst of two worlds.