I have been a marketing/communications intern with Find Your Influence since January and coincidentally, as a writer for a student-run lifestyle magazine, I was given the opportunity to interview five students who are considered social media influencers at JMU. My goal was to gain a better understanding of what the influencing world was really like for young college students. I wanted to unlock the truth; the good, the bad, and the ugly of the influencing world. I wanted to get a better sense of how these students balance being influencers while still trying to have a normal college experience.

Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and the ever so addictive app, TikTok, have taken the world by storm. We scroll for hours until the blue light, illuminating from our smartphones, ultimately exhausts our eyes. Five-minute break; time to scroll again.

Social media influencers have become a growing phenomenon. Influencer culture has exuded a pristine image of perfection. It has become the life that most adolescents envy; brand deals, sponsorships, money, fame and followers. Sounds like the ultimate dream, right? But what about what’s behind the camera? What about what’s off screen? The time, energy, tears shed, self-shame, death threats, humiliation. Welcome to the not-so-perfect side of being a publicized punching bag.

 Megan James | 604.3K on TikTok

What do you do as an influencer?

“I do your relatable type of content on TikTok, fashion content on Instagram and work for Snapchat by posting videos on their Spotlight Feature every day.”

Do you actually enjoy being an influencer?

“I don’t think there will ever be a point in my life where I could sit in front of everybody and complain about what I do. I can tell you that it’s a lot of work, but I wouldn’t want to do anything else. So, if I have to work for however many hours a day, then fine I’ll do it because this is what I want to do with my life. I enjoy the hell out of it. Is it exhausting? Do I want to rip my hair out sometimes? Absolutely. But who doesn’t when you’re working? It’s what I love, it’s what I’m passionate about, it’s my work, it’s everything.”

What are your goals for the future after college?

“I have some pretty fun plans coming up! I graduate this May and then in August I’m moving to Los Angeles, California. When I move out there, I’m not getting your typical job, I’m going to focus primarily on social media. At the moment, I just started working on this business idea so I might start up a business while I’m there. I’m really just going out there and throwing everything at pursuing a dream. The way I see it is that I won’t let myself fail, I can’t. I have all the time in the world to put everything I’ve got towards this one thing. Now, say it doesn’t go how I want, then I just get a job. I live, I love, I can do whatever I want, so why the hell not?”

Anna Medykowski | 322.6K on TikTok

What do you do as an influencer? When did you first get started and why?

“I first started out in December of 2020 mostly posting my outfits and dancing videos. I think the first video I ever made got around 50,000 views and I thought that was the coolest thing ever, so then I kept going and my account just slowly started going up.”

What is the most difficult part about being an influencer?

“The hate on the internet. You can post something and not even think anything is wrong with it, but people will pick it apart and find anything to comment on. I have my own humor and my own style. If you don’t like it, I don’t really care, but at the same time it’s still aggravating to see these hateful comments.”

How has becoming an influencer affected your college experience? 

“Even though I’m constantly filming TikToks and working to keep my followers, I’m still having the same college experience I would have even if I wasn’t on TikTok. Sometimes it’s a bit annoying because I don’t get to expand and do everything I want to do with TikTok. I’ve had many photographers ask me to come out to LA, but I have to say no because I can’t miss class. So right now, I’m just focusing on the people that are in my area and those who are willing to come see me.”

Spencer Aitken |  2.3M on TikTok

What do you do as an influencer?

“I typically make story time videos on TikTok. I would make story time after story time and then last summer I had my most viewed video which was close to 60 million views. That’s when I really started to gain more followers.”

Is it hard to balance doing TikTok and school?

“Yeah, definitely. I’ve been putting a lot more emphasis on school this year rather than TikTok. Before the school year started, I had the opportunity to not go to JMU and go out to LA to be a part of a content creator house, but I decided to go to school instead because my parents always emphasized getting a degree first. Even though TikTok is good money, it was important for me to focus on the long-term.”

How has becoming an influencer affected your college experience? 

“It’s definitely positively affected my college experience. I feel like it’s made me into a more confident and self-assured person. I think that has reflected on my relationships and the people I’ve met. A few years ago, I wouldn’t have the social skills that I do now. I can now be myself without any repercussions. I’ve also gotten a lot more organized. Before TikTok, I was terrible with time management, but when companies give you deadlines, you have to meet them. It’s correlated to a lot of my school assignments as well.”

Tram Tran | 881.7K on TikTok

What do you do as an influencer?

“I went viral by making all you can eat sushi videos on TikTok. My friends always knew that I ate a lot and as a joke they told me to film a TikTok and my first video ended up getting around a half a million views.”

How much time, work, and effort does it take to keep your following?

“Before becoming an influencer, I never realized how much work it takes to keep up with your following and stay relevant. I had to email my advisor and ask to do all my classes online for this semester because it’s so hard to keep up with classes along with my work. Just posting a 15 second video can take me almost three hours to make. I also have certain deadlines I have to meet for brands. I’m part of an agency where they assign me certain deadlines and if I don’t meet them, not only does it look bad on me, but it looks bad on the agency as well, so there’s a lot of pressure to ensure everything is filmed on time.”

Do you actually enjoy being an influencer?

“I have this platform where I get to make people happy which is so rewarding. I still don’t think I have grasped how many people watch me on a daily basis. Like I’m just that girl that eats on TikTok, nothing special. My favorite part about influencing is the reaction from my followers. I get a lot of DMs from girls saying how much I helped them with their eating disorders and how I encouraged them to eat today. To know that I am making someone’s day a little brighter means that this is all worth it.”

Kendall Vertes | 7.3M on TikTok

How did you get started?

“I’ve done competitive dance my whole life and eventually we got a call from the TV show, ‘Dance Moms.’ After seven years of ‘Dance Moms,’ that was the steppingstone that opened a lot of doors for everything that came after. We were getting sponsorships and a lot of us got into music, acting and modeling.”

Do you actually enjoy being an influencer?

“Overall, my life is a revolving door of posting on Instagram, filming movies and making TikToks. My life is work, but I love it. That’s what I do. The hatred that people will post about you is the hardest part. I’ve been through a lot and I have tough skin but at the same time it’s difficult to bear sometimes. It’s hard not to respond, but most of the time I just have to let it go. I guess it comes with the job.”

How has being an influencer affected your college experience? 

“It was definitely a transition. Coming to a big campus in an entirely different state where I knew no one was definitely a big change for me. Everyone here at JMU has been so nice and I never imagined having the number of friends I do. I didn’t want my friends to like me for being ‘Kendall from “Dance Moms”’ I wanted them to like me for who I am now. I don’t really consider myself an influencer at JMU, and I don’t even like to consider myself famous because I came to college to be a normal person and get the typical college experience. I didn’t want to blend the fame part of my life and the normal college part of my life, so I try and keep those separate. Sometimes I just need to take a step back and remember to live my life for myself too, not just for my followers.”

Influencers are role models, public figures, comedians, fashion-icons, and more, but they are also real humans too. They go to school, watch way too much TV, fail tests, get their hearts broken and even do the dishes. Through hard work, dedication and a strong work ethic, Megan, Anna, Spencer, Tram and Kendall have developed the strength and resilience to make it in the influencing world and have preserved through the challenges of balancing college and millions of followers.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Jordan O’Connor.

The post How College Influencers are Affected by the Influencing World appeared first on Find Your Influence.

It’s difficult to know how much money a creator can make on TikTok. It often depends on where they live and where their followers live. Content creators with 100,000 followers or more can get paid $200 to $1,000 per sponsored post. Creators with a million or more followers can get paid $1,000 to $5,000+ per brand partnership.

The biggest question beginning creators often ask is “How do you make money on TikTok?” We offer the following seven ways to make money on TikTok:

1. Join the TikTok Creator Fund
2. Go Live and Collect Virtual Gifts
3. Partner With Brands in the TikTok Creator Marketplace
4. Make Money from TikTok Ads
5. Sell Merch to Users
6. Become a Consultant
7. Influencer Marketing

Join the TikTok Creator Fund

The TikTok Creator Fund is not an ad grant or revenue sharing program. Creators receive funds from their videos based on many factors. The Creator fund is a way for TikTok to thank and reward their creators for their videos and creativity. In order to join, creators must meet eligibility requirements and apply in the app through their pro/creator account.

Go Live and Collect Virtual Gifts

Going live is an easy way to make money on TikTok. Creators must have at least 1,000 followers to go live. Followers can give creators “coins” as a way to show appreciation for their content. Users can purchase 100 coins starting at $0.99. Prices vary if one chooses to purchase more coins. Once a creator has collected a certain amount of coins they can exchange them for real money through PayPal.

Partner With Brands in the TikTok Creator Marketplace

Creators can apply for the TikTok Creator Marketplace when they have 100,000 followers. This will allow them to partner with brands and get sponsorship opportunities. Videos dedicated to brand sponsorships can earn up to $1,000 for a single post with 100K views, and videos dedicated to app sponsorships can earn $100 to $250.

Make Money from TikTok Ads

TikTok Ads are a great way for businesses to widen their reach among customers. Creators can use TikTok for Business to make money by using in-feed video ads, branded Hashtags, brand takeovers, and branded effects.

Sell Merch to Users

TikTokers can sell merch (merchandise) to make money. Some items may include hoodies, sweatpants, hats, and phone cases. Creators don’t have to have millions of followers to capitalize on this idea.

Become a Consultant

If you are a TikTok expert, there are many brands and individuals who will hire you for your services. This is a good way to leverage your expertise and diversify your income.

Influencer Marketing

Brands are always looking for individuals with a large following. It’s important that the influencer relates to the brand in some way. Based on follower count and engagement, it’s possible to earn tens of thousands of dollars for a post.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Katie Meyers.  Meyers is an SEO Specialist at SEO Design Chicago.

The post Top 7 Ways to Make Money on TikTok appeared first on Find Your Influence.

Whether it’s a YouTube star like James Charles advertising for a makeup brand, or a podcast host like Joe Rogan advertising for a tech company, the popularity of influencer marketing is growing fast. Add the unprecedented growth of the gaming industry on top of this already booming marketing plan and you’ll have a real recipe for success.

Online Gaming Industry Ripe with Marketing Potential

Not so long ago, there was a real crusade against Let’s Play YouTubers and streamers. Multitudes of people were asking why gamers were watching other players play, instead of playing themselves. Fast forward to 2022, and not only are many more people playing video games themselves, watching influencers and online personalities play video games has also become one of young America’s most beloved pastimes. The gaming industry has officially completed the move from the dark ages of non-acceptance and demonization to a new dawn in which it’s the face of worldwide entertainment.

Any preconceptions about gaming being harmful to young minds and being a weak form of entertainment is completely outdated. The modern cultural landscape has now fully accepted gaming. Gamers are not a special breed of people, they buy cars, houses, food, and drinks just like anyone else. Influencers in this area are thus perfect for absolutely any product advertisement, as they are not bogged down to a specific industry and audience base. In the first quarter of 2021 8.8 billion hours of gaming content was streamed, demonstrating the immense audience potential that these online gaming celebrities have.

Gaming Influencers Making Big Waves

PewDiePie for example currently boasts over 110 million YouTube subscribers and has partnered with G-Fuel, promoting their products to his droves of fans in each and every video. G-Fuel benefited immensely from this partnership and now has a social media footprint of over 1 billion followers. The brand has recently launched a global retail campaign as PewDiePie’s fanbase has millions of people from a variety of different locations.

Another example of influencing making waves in the gaming industry is the survival of the Fire Emblem series. The series was launched by Nintendo back in 1990. It’s endured until the present day due to fanatics of the series and influencers who promote their love for the game. There’s now rumored to be a new Fire Emblem game scheduled for release in 2022.

Capitalizing On The Influencer Trend

Gaming influencer marketing is unique in that its proponents and potential partners have the space to market for whatever they please. Their fans are global, and their popularity is only increasing with each passing month. The technological advances in the mobile sphere of gaming are also producing fantastic results for brands who make use of this industry.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Karoline Gore.

The post Gaming Influencers: The Next Generation of Promotional Superstars appeared first on Find Your Influence.

One social media influencer who has been dismantling these standards is Bethanie Garcia. Bethanie started her blog, The Garcia Diaries, in 2014 as a creative outlet for writing, photography and her musings on motherhood. Since launching, The Garcia Diaries has transformed into an inclusive platform for women and a true “diary” of Bethanie and family.

Bethanie’s blog has a “body positivity” section where readers can go to feel empowered in their own body. In a post titled, “Sexy At Every Size || WomenIRL Photo Series” Bethanie reveals that, “Once I started my journey towards self-love and body positivity, there was a huge shift in my mentality. I started loving my body, appreciating my body, seeing my body for what it was”. 

Bethanie has been a social media influencer that people of all identities can look to as an example. She is transparent of her struggles and how she has been able to work through them, which has been a powerful tool for her readers that are going through similar situations. 

Although sometimes this is easier said than done, here are some ways to begin your self-love journey. 

Remove influencer accounts from your feed that make you feel bad about your body

Research shows time and time again that the exposure of unattainable body types can cause negative self-perception. To ensure that you are ready to begin your journey of self-love you need to cleanse your social media of any accounts that lower your self-esteem. 

Practice saying self-love statements

When you think highly of yourself, you are more likely to nurture your well-being and make life choices that benefit you. Just by practicing self-love statements can form a better relationship with your mind, body, and soul. 

Stop judging other people’s bodies

For you to find peace and love within your own body, you need to stop judging people based on theirs. Once you begin realizing other people’s worth is not based on their appearance, it will become easier to apply this to your own self-worth. 

Appreciate all of the things your body lets you do

Take a step back and realize all the amazing things your body lets you do. Whether that be taking a stroll in the park, breathing, digesting food, or just simply keeping you alive. 

Exercise to feel good and be healthy

Find a form of movement that makes your body feel good. This can make you appreciate the way your body can move, without battering it down to an “ideal” shape. Exercising is a natural way to increase mood, energy, combat health conditions, and promote better sleep. 

Surround yourself with uplifting people

It is important to surround yourself with positive people who recognize your importance for who you are as a person, not what you look like. By having people in your life that love you, it is easier to fall in love with yourself. 

Scrap the calorie counting and the scale

Calorie counting overlooks nutritional value. You could be eating something “low calorie” and not fueling your body with the nutrients it needs. Calorie counting also causes you to ignore your body’s wants and needs. Our body sends signals to our brain to let us know when we are hungry, and if you ignore these signals it can become routine to over or under-eat. 

Do something good for yourself once a day

Get into the habit of doing something good for your body everyday. This can look like giving yourself a face mask, writing an empowering message on your mirror, or ending the day with a nice warm bath. Just by getting into a ritual of celebrating your body each day can make you appreciate it even more. 

Meditate

Meditation can transform the perception you have created of yourself. It can help you navigate through negative and harsh thoughts you have about yourself.

Follow influencer accounts with similar body types

When scrolling through social media it is uplifting to see other people that look like you. If you feel there is a place to go to find comfort in the representation of your body, you have the power to alter your perception of what makes a beautiful body. 

At the end of the day, we only have one body, so it is our own responsibility to take care of it. Disregard all of the negative background noise. Self-love isn’t something that will appear overnight, but by just devoting your time to practicing these steps you are ready to begin the process. 

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Alice Wholey.

The post Practicing Body Positivity in an Influencer World appeared first on Find Your Influence.

Doctor Influencers vs. Medical Professional on Social Media

It is essential to distinguish between a medical professional who is a paid influencer and one with a large social media following who is not paid for product promotions. Influencers in other industries often spend significant time building a marketable image and a sizable online audience to sell their influence to companies by producing paid reviews, promotions, and un-boxings for various social media platforms. In other words, a paid influencer is someone who makes advertisements for their sponsors and presents them to their followers for a set fee, free products or a percentage of sales using a promotional code.

A medical professional on social media can influence their followers without being a paid influencer. Most digital marketing strategies for clinics, hospitals and private practitioners will include social media accounts that post health tips, opinions and company promotions. Being affiliated with a medical company both online and off is not generally considered a paid influencer, even if you are paid to put up a specific number of blogs or social media posts a week. Digital marketing professionals and medical reputation management strategies can help you determine where the line is in your situation.

Marketing and Ethics for Medical Professional as Influencers

Weighing the balance between marketing your healthcare company with the online presence of medical professionals and the ethics involved with profiting from influencing large audiences is not as easy as declaring all profits as unethical. Most experts agree that how you use your online influence is much more critical to the question of ethics than whether or not you profit from it. Sharing new research or opinions on current health trends can often be a marketing strategy to keep your practice ranking high in search engine results lists. Your posts can often remind your followers to make needed appointments. However, suppose you are paid to promote a product without mentioning or considering potential health risks. In that case, you are compromising your ethical standing and the wellbeing of your followers for a profit.

Battling Misinformation

One of the most critical questions to ask yourself when deciding whether you should leverage the power of your social media accounts is if you are using your platform to battle misinformation, ignore it or promote it. In the past, celebrity medical professionals have faced ethical challenges and lawsuits or other legal action for what they have said and done on television and the internet. More modern medical professional influencers have gained audiences by posting some of the real joys and frustrations of their careers and have positioned themselves as directly as possible between those audiences and the misinformation found in the media. It is unnecessary to debunk everything you see in the media as an ethical and online professional in the medical industry. Still, you should ask yourself whether what you post can harm those who follow you.

Confidentiality Concerns

No matter how else you use your online presence, it is crucial to keep confidentiality concerns in mind before publishing a social media post, writing a blog update or giving an opinion to media outlets. Confidentiality is about more than just refraining from using patients’ names when talking or writing about your job. It is about considering whether the details you are giving are enough to identify someone, whether you have permission to share patient stories even in vague forms, and whether you violate any rules from your employer. Remember that your patients and colleagues are likely to see your posts and may be able to identify the subject of stories with less presented detail than you may think.

Determining whether medical professionals should also be influencers is complex, with many ethical and practical questions. For instance, you will have to draw a line between posts that breach confidentiality or promote potentially dangerous products and those which help your facility market valuable healthcare information and services. You will also have to determine whether your social media content counters, ignores or spreads misinformation which can affect your future as a medical professional and as an online influencer. Rules and guidelines put into place by your employer and governing bodies can help inform these decisions.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Lindsey Patterson.

The post Should Medical Professionals Also Be Influencers? appeared first on Find Your Influence.

She grew up just outside of Washington, D.C. in Northern Virginia and attended Virginia Commonwealth University, graduating in 2013 with a degree in Mass Communications. As a college student, her budget was limited, so traveling wasn’t her main focus when she started. As Alicia and her audience got older, the topics she chose to cover expanded to fit her own lifestyle.

Alicia is no stranger to the internet. When she was ten years old, she created her first website and has had a presence online, on and off, ever since. Success does not come easy in the influencer world, but Alicia’s strong work ethic, consistency, attention to detail, and professionalism has allowed her to continue to build her following.

Since Alicia Tenise started her blog in 2011, she has been named one of the top D.C. fashion and beauty Instagram accounts to follow by Washingtonian Magazine, featured on Essence Magazine’s Website, interviewed by The Washington Post, and appeared in ELLE Magazine in their April 2017 issue.

In February we connected with Alicia to take a deeper look into how she became the influencer she is today and learn more about what it takes to become successful in the travel blogging industry.

Photo credit: Tom McGovern

When did you first realize that you wanted to start the blog, Alicia Tenise?

“I initially started as a fashion blogger, but as I got older, I wanted to add a bit more depth to my blog and cover more topics. When I moved back to D.C. after I graduated from college, I loved having the chance to explore my hometown in a new light as an adult. I also took a job at a regional magazine, which required spending my weekends traveling throughout the D.C. Metro area attending local events and festivals. I loved incorporating this lifestyle element into my blog, and I quickly realized that my local content was pretty exciting travel content for readers who lived outside of the area.

I started by doing staycations and small guides for D.C. — I didn’t have a huge travel budget in my early 20s, so doing local content was essential. The local content I produced caught the attention of other regional hotels and travel partners, and I started to grow my coverage area and began to cover destinations that were 2-4 hours away. After a few years of regional travel, I started partnering with brands outside of my area and was able to fly to and cover other destinations.”

What is some advice you could give to inexperienced travel bloggers just starting out in the industry?

“Start out sharing finds in your own city. What you might consider to be local content is travel content for someone else. Staycations and local restaurant reviews are a great way to get started and figure out your voice and content production style. You will need to produce content on your own dime before partnering with brands, so starting local is a great way to create consistent content with lower overhead costs.”

Photo credit: Tom McGovern

How did you start to gain attention on the Alicia Tenise blog and grow your following?

“First, I engaged with other bloggers’ content—following, leaving comments, sharing, etc. Pre-COVID, I actively collaborated with local bloggers for shoots and content on a pretty regular basis. It’s a bit intimidating cold emailing another blogger or influencer to partner on a project, but it’s something that definitely helped me grow. Lastly, I try to focus on creating shareable content—making travel guides that are so researched, thorough, and targeted that you’d want to share them with a friend. Being vulnerable and sharing personal posts that people can relate to is also an effective way to grab your audience’s attention.”

What are your best tips for creating a successful travel blog?

“Consistency is key in the beginning. This is how you’ll grow your audience. I’ve also invested in several workshops and blogging conferences over the years to help improve the quality of content I produce. I’m not afraid to outsource some things I might not be the best at as my business grows (i.e. photography, video editing, etc.). I also think it’s essential to find your own voice and show your personality. My audience trusts me like a friend when it comes to travel, and it’s important to try to find what makes you unique and personable.”

“Find your own voice and show your personality.” – Alicia Tenise Chew

How much time, energy, and work does it take to be a travel blogger?

“It’s definitely a full-time job. A crazy one that I end up working 50-60 hours a week. Since local content for me is travel content for someone else, I always have a long list of places to explore in my local community to share with my audience. When you’re traveling for the blog and partnering with brands to produce content, you always need to be “on”—friendly with PR people, interviewing chefs, local reps, etc., making sure you’re on time for appointments, and so on. You don’t have much time to relax when you’re actively travel blogging, but I still prefer it to sitting in a cubicle!”

Photo credit: Tom McGovern

Top Five Takeaways for Aspiring Travel Bloggers by Alicia Tenise:

1. Consistency is key. Being consistent with the content you share will help grow your audience.
2. Show your own voice and personality—your audience will trust you more like a friend when you are authentically yourself.
3. Collaborate with other bloggers and influencers—this will allow you to reach a larger and more diverse audience.
4. Find what makes you unique and personable. Followers don’t like to see the same content they’ve seen a million times before. Spice it up and share what makes you, you.
5. Start local and share finds in your own city. What you consider local content could be travel content for someone else!

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Jordan O’Connor.

The post Travel Blogging Tips from Expert, Alicia Tenise appeared first on Find Your Influence.

At the same time, the home fitness industry is in the middle of a boom. According to an analysis on industry statistics, the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of the industry is 13.1%. If this continues, the home fitness equipment market will reach a value of $23.27 billion by 2025. This makes it the perfect time for home fitness companies to get into influencer marketing. If done well, collaborating with fitness influencers can be the very thing that helps your company stand out from the sea of home fitness retailers out there.

Matching Brand To Influencer

The most important thing to get right when it comes to influencer marketing for the home fitness sector is to find the right influencers for your brand. As a company partnering with an influencer, you won’t have ultimate control over the content the influencer posts to showcase your products. Rather, according to Zine, you should see influencers as creative partners. That’s why it is so important to find influencers that are a good fit with your brand identity. Make sure to study an influencer’s prior posts before reaching out to find a good match, but also to make sure they aren’t already sponsored by a direct competitor.

For example, suppose one of your main products is exercise bands. Resistance bands are a great addition to anyone’s home fitness inventory. Because resistance bands are easy to use, they make it super convenient to do strength training efficiently with lower risk of injury, while activating the core at the same time. Those who exercise with resistance bands see results like improved strength and athletic performance quickly. When looking for influencers to partner with, you may want to find someone who already incorporates exercise bands into their workout content. Fitness influencers who focus on strength training would be a good match, as would those who focus on injury-free workouts.

Questions To Ask in Your Search for Influencers

When searching the social media space for fitness influencers who could represent your brand, there are a number of key questions you should ask yourself.

What is your target audience? Who do you aim to market your products to? Think about gender, age group, location, and activity of choice. All of these factors will have an influence on the influencers you choose and the other questions below.

What platform(s) do you want to use? Depending on your target audience, you should look for influencers popular on different platforms. For example, while Instagram is still the most popular influencer platform, TikTok is increasingly popular among younger people.

What tier of influencer do you want? Influencers may be micro-influencers (>15k followers), rising influencers (15-100k followers), or macro-influencers (100k-millions of followers). Ultimately this is a question of budget, but it relates to brand identity too, as macro-influencers tend not to have the kind of engagement with their fans that micro-influencers do.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Karoline Gore.

The post How To Find Influencers To Market Your Home Fitness Equipment appeared first on Find Your Influence.

Then came TikTok, an app that quite literally took over the world during a time of global quarantine. While we were locked down in our houses where all we could do was stare at our phone screens for hours on end, our new hobby involved watching random people create a 15 second dance to any Doja Cat song they could get their hands on.

Eventually, TikTok influencers became a reality and we were all infatuated with the lives of those like Charli D’Amelio and Addison Rae.

TikTok has become the most used social media platform on the planet, and a new generation of influencers have arrived. What sets these TikTok Influencers apart is their age; teens, even tweens, are dominating the content created on the app, and making millions while doing it.

The Hype House was formed in December of 2019 by TikTok Star, Lil Huddy (Chase Hudson), and YouTuber, Thomas Petrou. It was made as a way for TikTokers and other social media influencers to collaborate to gain more views and followers. The Hype House is a group of mostly teen influencers who live together in an LA mansion. Their livelihood revolves around making TikToks and other collective content.

Recently, on January 7, a new Netflix reality TV show came out about the Hype House. The show exploits the lives of a group of young TikTok influencers, while we get to see an inside scoop into what the world of influencing can be like.

According to NBC News, the stars of the show, Petrou, Hudson, Nikita Dragun, Alex Warren, Kouvr Annon, Jack Wright, Vinnie Hacker, Mia Hayward, and Larray (Larri Merritt) had no control over what was going to be put in the show. They did not have access to the show or get to see the final cuts.

The drama-filled show received a lot of backlash and criticism because it made being young, rich, and famous seem depressing. It was interesting to see the struggles that come along with content houses. Instead of showcasing how exciting and entertaining the Hype House influencers lives are, viewers mainly saw the pain and misery that followed them.

There are also certain rules the influencers are required to follow in the house. One being that they must post three original TikToks a day. This is for brand-deal purposes, specifically their most reliant brand, Bang Energy Drinks. This influencer marketing strategy of product placement in their TikToks, while also receiving endorsement deals, is how they have made an extensive amount of their money.

One question still stands: Is the Hype House reality show a true depiction of what the influencing world is really like for young influencers?

After finishing the show, I almost felt bad for the influencers. The constant influx of viewers judgements and expectations was overbearing and would be difficult for anyone to handle, let alone a group of teenagers.

Unfortunately, the world we live in today has cast a negative connotation around young influencers like those of the Hype House. In the Netflix show, we see how hate comments, cyberbullying, and getting “canceled” can affect these influencers’ lives.

Do I believe that the Hype House reality show is a perfect representation of what the lives of all young influencers is like? Not quite, but I do see how certain aspects of their lives could be considered a clear example of how the world of social media can affect young people, both negatively and positively.

Millions and millions of people constantly watching your every move can be a daunting experience, especially when you are under the age of 18. The Hype House reality show has vulnerably exposed what being a young influencer is like for so many people. Sure, it comes with the benefits of million-dollar mansions and designer clothing, but we also need to remember that these are real human beings with feelings, not computer-generated robots.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Jordan O’Connor.

The post Netflix Hype House: Fantasy or Reality of Life as a TikTok Influencer? appeared first on Find Your Influence.

With Bearenger, it’s more than delivering healthy recipes to her millions of followers, she finds true joy in creating, testing and developing new recipes. From blended drinks to desserts, her followers continue to return to her pages for delicious inspiration. Bearenger enjoys a plant-based diet and serves up mouth-watering images that are as tasty as they are healthy.

Find Your Influence connected with Bearenger Petrella to talk about her daily routine, inspirations, how she maintains a healthy lifestyle, and what her future endeavors might look like.

What is your favorite thing about being a social media influencer focused on health and wellness? 

“Health and wellness is one of my greatest loves. As someone who had a difficult relationship with my body and food, I have been able to use health and wellness to heal myself and that relationship. I love learning all the new things in the health and wellness space and creating content with everything I learn!” 

How much time do you dedicate to planning your social media content? 

“Hardly any! Most days I just create what I feel like or try the latest trend. I have an ongoing list of content ideas that I will pull from if I need a little inspiration.”

Where do you find inspiration for all of your different plant-based recipes?

“Though I am not fully plant-based, I do share a lot of plant-based recipes. I find inspiration from different places I’ve been, other creators, Pinterest, my environment, so many things!” 

Photo courtesy of Bearenger Petrella

In what way do you try to influence your followers? 

“I want my community to feel love for themselves. I want to inspire others to create good food, good habits, good health, and good relationships. Everyone is on their own path and will take something different from my content.”

How do you keep your followers engaged? 

“I am still learning everyday on how to foster a growing community. I find that if I show up and if I am engaged, then often they are as well. I like to stay in touch with everyone in the DM’s.”

What does a typical day as a social media influencer look like for you? 

“I usually get up and do my morning routine to really set up my day (lemon water, workout, breakfast, shower, get ready.) Then, I get right to creating.

I’ll film a few new recipes or videos and edit them. I’ll answer emails and do any other computer work I need to. I like to break my day up with some walks if possible. At night I make dinner and finish up any work. I am constantly struggling with boundaries between my life and work.”

Photo courtesy of Bearenger Petrella

What are your top three tips for maintaining a healthy and fit lifestyle? 

“Have your “WHY.” If you don’t have a reason to do something, then why would you stick to anything? My why is “to be the best version of myself, for myself, and the people around me.

Find what works best for you. Just because someone does something does not mean it will work for you. Take everything with a grain of salt and do your own experimenting. 

Make it fun! Find a new recipe on Pinterest, cook with a friend, find a workout buddy.  It’s a lot easier when you are actually having fun.”

What is your favorite cheat meal? 

“I don’t think any meal should be a cheat meal. We should look at our food as fuel. Some of my favorite meals that I don’t make very often are garlic butter noodles & plant-based ice cream.” 

What advice would you give an aspiring social media influencer? 

“Show up everyday. Consistency is so important. The only way you can find what works and what doesn’t is to keep showing up and experimenting.” 

What are your goals for this upcoming year? 

“I have a few goals. Move into a new space that really inspires me to create even more. Meet new people in the creator community. Step out of my comfort zone more. There are a few biz goals but I’m protecting the energy of those goals :)”

Keep up with Bearenger Petrella’s health and wellness journey on Instagram and TikTok where you can find inspiration in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. 

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Alice Wholey.

The post Healthy Living Tips from Social Media Influencer Bearenger Petrella appeared first on Find Your Influence.

An influential voice

The benefits of bringing together influencers with colleges to help promote one another’s brands are fairly clear. College can be an extremely anxious and nervy time, especially for those in undergrad school; finding methods to help manage stress are often crucial. TikTok and other influencer outlets can be valuable means of expression that give those users a different way to approach their stress and manage it, as well as providing a powerful tool for other students to help manage their own workloads. According to Wired, colleges have harnessed the powers of their influencers to help spread good news on campus and raise awareness of important tools, as well as acting as brand ambassadors for the college.

Conflicts of interest

Acting as an in-person brand ambassador is invaluable to any company. Colleges, which can have a harder time than most when it comes to advertising (the rules and regulations governing colleges, and their funding, impact their ability to market), can make more use than most out of these influencers. Unfortunately, as the New York Times report highlighted, there can be conflict of interests. Influencers and actresses who would otherwise not have found college spaces are, reportedly, finding space in college where they might otherwise have gone to other students. While preferential treatment is nothing new where money or fame is concerned, finding the balance is key.

A healthy influencer strategy

In September 2020, the New York Times highlighted efforts by the University of Missouri to use their big-name influencer students to promote coronavirus awareness and safety. Other similar stories popped up around the country, with the original plan influencing a viral-style wave of new purchases. This is clearly a force for good, and shows the way forward for colleges. Using influencers has to be ethical; money can, of course, be exchanged, but the academic side of affairs must be left to the side. Regardless of the success of the student, their image and name can help to spread good messages, and benefit both parties.

Keeping higher education and business separated is key. Influencer work must be identified as such, and cannot have any influence on academic success. Therein lies the key to a healthy college-influencer relationship, and one that will continue to bring successes for both parties without risking the integrity of the college or the assurance of the student’s education.

Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Karoline Gore.

The post Can Influencers Have A Healthy Interface With Higher Education? appeared first on Find Your Influence.