Is selling out no longer a concept for Gen Z?
In this guest column Kara Richards discusses the line between authenticity and selling out for influencers who endorse multiple brands.
Our traditional celebrities are often branded as ‘sell-outs’ when they align themselves with too many brands, but vloggers can peddle as many brands as they like without affecting their image in the slightest.
They are the new brand ambassadors and their personal brands are mint. Even before they finish high school…
YouTubers such as Jenna Marbles reach more than 15 million subscribers – that’s more than Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj combined. Or Nash Grier, who has more than 9 billion video views on the social app Vine. This is more than Leo’s latest film The Revenant.
Is this a reflection of Gen Z’s attention span and want for snackable content? Perhaps ‘selling out’ doesn’t apply to this generation? That it’s a Gen Y concept?
Everything seems more seamless for this generation, or do they simply strive to be a YouTube star themselves?
Home-grown YouTubers and Instababes are resonating with consumers more so than traditional celebrities because they have built their life around connecting with their audiences and creating communities.
They are more authentic and reliable, which is why we are seeing more and more brands hire vloggers as brand ambassadors. The results are not only amazing, but also grown organically – a major bonus for marketers.
The key is authenticity – these social influencers are vlogging from their bedroom and they are growing up in the global eye.
Local YouTuber Troye Sivan – who felt the need to write an autobiography at the tender age of 20 – even ‘came out’ publicly on a YouTube video. Audiences see the content as real and authentic; word of mouth from a close friend who just so happens to have millions of close friends in their network.
Of course, many of your more conventional celebrities are recognising the power that comes with being a social influencer, and are adapting to remain current.
Take a look at Kim Kardashian, for instance (although I must admit she is anything but ‘conventional’): She shares every single aspect of her life across social platforms like Instagram, and as a result she remains relevant, constant and interesting, even if she isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.
In contrast, the Jennifer Anistons of the world will become less and less relevant with younger generations.
It’s not all about making teenagers multi-millionaires. One of my favourite campaigns that utilised social stardom came from the U.N. For the International Day of Peace, the UN selected several vloggers to become youth ambassadors for their #ForgiveForPeace campaign. The stars were tasked with promoting the hashtag across social media, and of course the results were outstanding.
According to the Huffington Post the campaign had over 880 million impressions in less than 24 hours, and #ForgiveForPeace was trending at the number two spot on Twitter in the US.
Social stars have mastered the art of word of mouth and have the ability to make people listen when they talk. Because they are honest and reliable, audiences are more apt to take their word over a traditional celebrity’s.
As a result, marketers are getting on board in a big way. An Ad Week report from the US revealed that 75% of marketers partnered with social influencers in 2015 and 84% of marketers plan to include influencer marketing in their strategy this year.
YouTube has recognised this phenomenon for the cash cow that it is.
These teenage stars are not only being supported through a cut of the profits, but also through advertising extravaganzas like Brandcast – YouTube is actively promoting these social influencers and making a mint in the process from the ad space on their channels.
The newly-launched Google Preferred is another sign that vloggers are big business, capable of raking in millions upon millions in advertising revenue.
Vloggers command legions of adoring fans and they are seen as ‘authentic’ despite their blatant infusion in the worlds of capitalism and marketing – these are two factors that marketers should be noting with interest.
The future is bright for social influencers. I expect traditional brand ambassadors who don’t remain relevant may fall to wayside in the face of these word of mouth gurus.
Kara Richards is a senior account director at Atomic 212
I’m dubious until I see one of these “influencer” data backed by sales figures. They are making highly disposable content that’s not really valued by their audience. Their audience is following hundreds of people. The watch but they don’t care.
Their are niche exceptions.
The essence of influence is change. Influencers are change agents shifting consumer behaviour. Influence is more than attracting views, likes or shares.
A key line in the article runs influencers spend their lives “around connecting with their audiences and creating communities.” They take care to create consistently compelling content that is relevant and resonates with their select audience. If they shill too many brands or start promoting brands which seem at odds to their values Influencers will lose their authenticity and shortly after, their ability to influence a following.
In terms of making money, influencers must declare each time they publish whether that content is sponsored advertising. It is the right thing to do ethnically and legally. There are strict disclosure rules in countries like the US with the FTC guidelines & UK’s CAP codes.
“Selling out” – when did this not happen?
Media last century was one long, long ride of sell-out to sell us.
Graham Kennedy?
Cash For Comment?
I Love Lucy – commissioned by advertisers –
Gen X/Y/Z and “tots” today just know they are being sold – and THEY are the product.
Influencers are the new shiny thing in the marketing mix, but will eventually come under the same scrutiny as other channels. There will come a time when they need to provide real data about who they’re reaching and the relevance to the brand writing the cheques.
@beau ushay
I agree. With only a reported 16% of PR & marcom practitioners NOT planning on using Influencers in at least one campaign this year it’s a sellers market for Influencers.
Many Influencers have doubled their fees for working with brands in the last 12 months.
Brands should set measurement goals in the planning stage. And do their digital due diligence in the identification phase. There are tools to use which track Influencer data. Brands should then look to fake & inactive followers. Influence isn’t all about reach. It’s about changing opinions & behaviour so need to identify proper relevance & resonance, too.