Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to gain a better understanding of social media influencers in general and to outline the various effects they have on adolescence. There will also be some concern about how brands use social media influencers to promote their products and content. This paper was divided into two sections: “Impact of social media influencers on teens” and “How brands promote their products and content through social media influencers”. As a result, peer-reviewed journal articles, books, articles, and surveys were used for this. Therefore, the primary focus of this study was to investigate the relationship that exists between social media influencers and adolescents, the impact they have on these adolescents, and how brands actually promote their products and content through these social media influencers.
Keywords: #Social Media Influencers (SMIs), #Youths, #Social Media, #Influencers, #Product Branding, #Impact.
Introduction
Social media has drastically altered how individuals, organizations, and businesses interact and share information. This evolution obviously began long ago, but it was discovered in 2017 that people spend more than two hours per day on social media, messaging, and sharing content (mander, 2017). As the years passed, social media influencers became more well-known. As a result of their social media visibility, they began to be contacted by many brands in order for them to promote their products, and these brands also knew they had a high power of persuasion and could influence customers of all age groups, particularly adolescents, in various ways such as dressing style, consumption manner, and so on (Double Click, 2006). The majority of these influencers are even compensated to advertise these products (Solomon, 2020) because it is a source of income for some of these influencers and they have even dedicated their lives to it.
However, according to (Shupei and Chen, 2020, 134)” analysis shows that these social media influencers have a powerful impact on youths”, first and foremost because youths spend the majority of their time on social media viewing, commenting, sharing, watching, or even imitating the content of these social media influencers. Second, most of these youths look to these influencers for comfort, advice, or even jobs, rather than just for discussion or entertainment. Furthermore, because they spend more time on social media, these social media influencers have a greater impact on them than older people (Frontiers in Psychology, 2020).
Actually, it is important to emphasize that these social media influencers have both positive and negative effects on these youths, such as teaching them to be ethical, introducing them to new ideas, and raising their awareness, but they also have psychological effects on them, whether through thoughts, feelings, or emotions and even influencing their lifestyle, consumption habit (Charles et al.2021, 59). However, there is no doubt that they had a strong influence on youths, and it is difficult and debatable to know to what extent this influence extended. As a result, throughout the paper, awareness was raised about these effects and how brands promote their products through social media influencers.
Body
Social Media Influencers in general
Influencers are people who have the ability to persuade or affect the purchasing power of others, whether through their relationship with the audience, knowledge of a particular domain, or experience (Werner, 2022). However, it is important to note that these influencers are not just marketing tools, but also assets that brands use to promote their products and content. When discussing influencers, it is important to note that there are many different types of influencers, such as social media influencers, marketing influencers, and famous people (Rob, 2022) in order to know in which category social media influencers fall in. Also, the success of influencers stems from the fact that they cultivate very deep and intimate relationships with their followers and personal brands (Abidin and Thompson, 2012). Other influencers have a variety of characteristics. For starters, they are regarded as experts in specific fields. Furthermore, they are frequently contacted by their followers who want product recommendations. They are similar to idea sharers. For example, when a new product is released, they will always be the first to inform their followers or even friends. Nonetheless, they share trends, content, and so on based on their followers’ interests, and they are very active online, on blogs, and via e-mail in order to stay in touch with their followers (Double Click, 2006).
The term “influencers” first appeared in the eighteenth century. They first appeared in the 1760s, thanks to Josiah Westwood, who began sharing marketing products. Then, in the 1920s, the Coco channel began sharing content on dressing styles, particularly black clothes and pantsuits (. Then, in 1984, celebrities began to enter, but that year, Michael Jordan and Nike were discovered to create the most appealing and liked the content. Finally, in 2002, there were mammy bloggers who shared content about how parents should care for their children. Then, in subsequent years, more emphasis was placed on bloggers, you tubers, Instagrammers, and so on (Guest, 2021) correct here.
Therefore, talking more specifically about social media influencers it is important to know that social media influencers are mostly people who have built a reputation for their expertise and knowledge in specific domains (Werner, 2022). They switch to regular and captioning posts on their channels or social media pages, which most of the time capture the attention of their audits and make them enthusiastic. One of the main reasons brands like using social media influencers is that they can create trends or encourage their followers to buy the product.
It has been discovered in recent years that social media has experienced a flourishing and rapid growth because more than 3.4 billion people, or 45 percent of the world’s population, use this platform (Werner, 2022). As a matter of fact, these people look up to these social media influencers to guide actually turn to shape, transform and also influence their decision-making (Glucksman, 2017, pg. 77-87). These social media influencers are classified as mega, micro, Nano, or macro-influencers based on the number of followers they have (Werner, 2022). However, the majority of them are mega influencers because they have a large number of subscribers or followers on their page. These social media influencers developed a distinct “self-brand” or mannerism content or concepts in order to gain commercial or even cultural capital (Khamis et Al. 2016). They primarily use Instagram and Facebook as channels to promote and advertise products that brands offer them by creating short videos, trends, or even games in a friendly manner in order to gain followers. According to Ryan (2014, p.50), “Social Media Influencers are the online Opinion Leaders.”
As a result, most people rely on and value the opinions and judgments of social media influencers (Saidel, 2017). They concentrate on various daily activities such as sports, beauty, fashion, and education. Perhaps they have already carved out a significant space in the hearts and minds of social media users (Ryan, 2014). Finally, it all comes down to consuming or even accepting what they are doing or saying, which can be false, imaginary, true, advice, or even opportunities. All of this obviously raises concerns about the impact such influence can have.
The Impact of Social Influencers on Youths/ Adolescences
According to Gray et al. 2017, p.22, “Adolescence is a stage of rapid and extensive physical, psychological and biological change”. Most of the time personality traits tend to stabilize by the age of 30 and remain stable (Terracciano et al.2006). However, at this period in their lives, they turn to be a little more flexible. As a result of this adaptability, these adolescents are exposed to online influence, and because they were born in the digital world, some adopt this influence and even become influencers (Charles et al.2021). This is due to the fact that adolescents or youths have a proclivity for identifying or relating themselves to certain groups, not just to look at the different identities, but to find the identity that best matches theirs i.e. where they can find self-confidence, resulting in a large identification where each of these adolescences wants to relate himself or herself to each other (Saidel, 2017).
It should be noted that social media influencers have both positive and negative effects on youths, with a focus on the negative. Therefore, the following section and paragraphs will concentrate on and emphasize specifically the psychological impact and consumption habits i.e. eating and behavior on adolescents.
Psychological effect
In terms of psychological effects, psychologists have issued a warning about the negative effects social media influencers will have on adolescents. As a result, there is a potential to link social media influencers as catalysts in youth identity and personality development. Youths have become obsessed with their own bodies as a result of this social media platform. This is because they are still undergoing physical and mental transformations, some of them become confused or even blurred by all these frames. These adolescents may be unaware, but some of these social media influencers are still competing for visibility on social media platforms (Gleason, 2017). According to experts, this new generation of social media influencers seems to be more likely than previous generations of child stars (such as Hollywood stars) to build emotional issues because of the constant broadcast and watched by thousands or millions of people around the world (Jumana, 2019). As a result of these emotional issues, today’s youth suffer from depression and anxiety (Saidel, 2017). This is due to the fact that these social media influencers may reveal false information or even portray a life they do not live, and because these youths are addicted to social media, they may fall into a psychological vulnerability situation. This emotion is due to a rigorous evaluation of these social media influencers’ lives and theirs because they are not perceiving ‘real life’ but rather a visual life and a manipulated version of life (Hunt, Max, and Lipson, 2018).
Another study was conducted by (Hogue and Mills, 2018, P.5) where this time they focused solely on female adolescence, and it was discovered that most female adolescents compare their bodies to those of these social media influencers, some of whom may have undergone surgery to achieve the body they have. As a result, these young people begin to develop low self-esteem because they perceive themselves to be less attractive or to lack the perfect body that these social media influencers possess. As a result, because of this dissatisfaction, these youths turn to changing their bodies to be more attractive (Hogue and Mills, 2018). On the other hand, these youths should limit the amount of time they spend on social media and try to reconnect with their families and lives, which is critical for their well-being.
Consumption Habit
As previously stated, social media influencers have an impact on youth not only psychologically, but also in their purchasing habits. When we talk about consumption habits, we are referring to the behavior that someone adopts as a result of the repetitive repetition of a situation. According to studies, (Bandura, 2018, P.121) said: “whenever a child develops a strong attachment to a particular character, the likelihood of the child imitating that character is extremely high”. This means that when these youths follow or adapt to these social media influencers’ way of life or eating, drinking, or smoking, the likelihood of them following or adapting to their way of life or eating, drinking, or smoking is high. As a result, youths who are more exposed to social media influencer marketing or who spend their time sharing content about food, alcohol consumption, or smoking will be more susceptible (Anna et al. 2019). According to some studies, some of these social media influencers promote products related to drinking and alcohol and all this content makes youths to be vulnerable (Curtis et al. 2018, p. 978). The relationship between youths/adolescents and social media influencers, as well as their drinking behaviors and habits, was the focus of this study. These figures clearly demonstrate the strong link between social media alcohol-related issues and youths.
However, according to some researchers, most social media influencers have a post about alcohol, whether it’s for branding or just because it’s part of their everyday lives (Hendriks et al.2020), and given that these social media influencers have thousands or millions of followers and that a significant portion of their followers is youths/adolescences, a large number of these youths will be exposed to these alcohol-related posts, putting them at risk of being negatively influenced. This not only pertains to alcohol, but also to food and nutrition. However, because these social media influencers spend their time promoting or even eating foods high in fat or sugar, these young people become vulnerable. Many studies have found that the majority of obese children and adolescents are those who are exposed to social media influencers who share content and trends about sugary, fatty, or salty foods (World Health Organization, 2018). To reduce the rate of obesity among these youths, the rate at which they follow social media influencers should be limited, and they should also keep an eye on trends that encourage them to eat healthily.
Actually, all these brands use social media influencers for their content and product advertisement, mainly because of the high persuasion power they possess in order to influence purchasing or buying decision-making. This is because they raise brand awareness that enables consumers to stay liable and continue recognizing the brand (Yang et al. 2009).
Conclusion
To sum up, the paper primarily focused on the negative impact that these social media influencers have on youths, specifically their consumption habits and psychological effects. It also highlighted how brands use influencers to promote their products and content, as well as raise brand awareness. In terms of the psychological impact on youth, fame, false body images, or a manipulated life on social media were some of the factors that impacted these young people psychologically, causing them to experience anxiety or depression as a result of their vulnerability. Furthermore, because these youths turn to social media to view posts about alcohol consumption and unhealthy food, they have a high proclivity to adapt to this way of life and even become addicts. A brief insight, on the other hand, the question of how brands use social media influencers to promote their products was raised.
We can’t, however, say that social media influencers only have a negative impact on teenagers. It is critical for young people to strike a balance between their lives on social media networks and their real-life lives. On the other hand, social media influencers should not use their platforms to disseminate false information or to portray a life they do not live, but rather to bring authenticity, teach youths to be ethical, and bring influence that will propel young people forward. I also advise parents to keep an eye on their children’s social media activity and to look at the lifestyle they lead.
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Hey Pierrine,
You present a very well-informed, and chronological argument with regard to your thesis. I found that your impressions were more inclined towards the negative aspects of social media influencers on adolescents across a couple of fronts, including psychological effects and consumption habits, which you have successfully substantiated. Nonetheless, I believe it is also important to recognize some of the positive influences of social media influencers in general, especially as this topic implies more of a two-sided argument. Please check this blog post on Forbes by Garnès (2020) — https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2020/01/21/influencers-positive-social-value-and-how-to-develop-a-responsible-influencer-partnership/?sh=3342ea6c19ef
Hi Baher,
Thanks for your appealing comments and the shared link.
Although I acknowledge that these social media influencers also have a positive impact on young people, the focus of my paper was on the drawbacks. However, (Garnes, 2020) highlights these positive effects of social media influencers on young people, including attention to and awareness of important information, the financial benefit young people receive from their creativity on social media platforms, and the diversity they bring to social media.
Yes, I absolutely agree. My attention was just to add value to your findings and to contribute to the arguments. Well done!
Dear Pierrine,
Your research paper on the impacts of social media influencers on youths, is very informative and insightful. The positive actions (in conclusion paragraph) that need to be taken to counter the negatives highlighted, are well advised.
Hello Shija,
Great thanks for taking the time to read my paper. I really think you and I as adolescents really need these advices to face all these issues and have a balanced life between social media and our everyday life
Hello Shija,
Great thanks for taking the time to read my paper. I really think that you and I as adolescents need these pieces of advice to be able to face these problems and to have a balance between our everyday life and social media
Agreed. from personal experience, maintaining a balance between the internet and reality helps one stay grounded and have perspective.
Hello Shija,
Thanks, I also agree because I think this balance will help teens to build up their own personalities and ethics.
Hello Pierrine, I love the topic you discussed because it is a real issue in our world. To provide more insights on this topic you could’ve also discussed how there are positive impacts of some influencers, for example, those who are all about body positivity and the ones who start trends showcasing the reality behind those fake social media shots posted by other influencers. You can view some of these body positivity trends highlighted in this article https://www.womenshealth.com.au/women-are-embracing-body-positivity-in-this-latest-tiktok-trend/
Hello Hiba,
Great thanks for taking the time to read my paper and for the shared link. Even though the aim of my paper was to put more insights on the negative impacts I approve of the fact that it is also a good thing to put emphasis on the positive impact these social media influencers have on adolescents. Therefore, for that reason what i will add to my conclusion part is that these adolescents should follow or view contents that will build their minds positively and will make them to accept themselves as they are.
Hello Pierrine,
Your paper presents a good study on social media influencers and the negative impacts of social media influencers on teens. However, do you think that the community guidelines and content policies of major social media platforms are so fragile that content that alcohol consumption is branded so openly for teens? Do you think that community guidelines and content policies can be made better to avoid such circumstances?
Hello Uzair,
Thanks for reading my paper. I think somewhere our social media platforms are facile because such content is realized to teens. Nowadays we find everybody on social media teens, adults even old people especially teens and I think social media can’t control to whom certain information is been shared. Policies and guidelines are made available for this kind of content but we all know that as teens we will always like to see what is behind the forbidden notice. Therefore, I think in this case parents play a big role. Firstly, they should talk about unsettling and inappropriate content in an open manner in such a way that if they encounter a disturbance on social media they will open to them. Also, they can stay in touch with what their children are doing on social media and with whom they are conversing. Another, they should remind and encourage their children to use social media platforms safely and to read policy settings. Finally, they can keep talking about unsafe content, and harmful and teach them how to come across such kinds of content.
I hope it cleared and answered your questions?
Yeah it did. Thanks
Hi Pierrine,
I really like your paper. I think it is very well-written and informative. But I want to know your personal viewpoint on your paper that do you agree with your paper’s argument? or you have a different point of view on social media influencers and their impact on youth.
Hi Pierrine,
You have done a great job in showing the various impacts of social media influencers on youth. Your paper is supported by excellent studies as we can see how brands promote their products through the social media influencers. However, do you believe that the negative impacts outweigh the positive impacts?