EOTO Reaction - Online Influencers

Online influencers have built a reputation for their knowledge on a specific topic. They create consistent posts about this topic to generate a large following. Most influencers will build their accounts based on what their viewers respond to. 

Influencers often try to relate to their audience to gain their trust. This is how they are able to sell products
to their viewers. 60% of people say they have bought something through an influencer's recommendation. 90% of respondents said they would trust an influencer over a celebrity. These statistics show how the world we live in is changing. 

Prior to online influencers, most people would watch commercials with their favorite celebrities and buy the product they were promoting. Now, we have developed a new sense of trust issues with celebrities after realizing they do not rely on views and genuine products to keep their careers alive.  

Most influencers will promote real products that they think will benefit their followers while also keeping them related to their niche. This is the key to influencing. Influencers must find out what kind of content their viewers want and continue to post videos or pictures related to this.

If you are an influencer trying to venture out from your typical content, most of the time, you will notice these posts do not do as well. This is because your followers have become comfortable with you and your niche. Straying away from your regular content will always result in lower views, fewer likes, and a lack in the increase of followers. 

There are pros and cons to being an influencer and working with others. Some pros include expanding your audience, building confidence, and bringing in sales. These pros help promote the life of an influencer and make it look like it is an easy, glamorous career. However, the cons to being an influencer are losing control of your brand, not being able to measure results, and even working with the wrong people. 

I personally can relate to this topic. I have been an active influencer on social media since 2020. While influencing may appear easy, it is actually a full-time job. Every day I must come up with new content related to my page to post to keep my followers engaged. With each post I make, I learn something new. I get to learn about what is trending, and what isn't. I discover how my followers feel about the content based on views, shares, likes, and follows. I also get the ability to learn what to do differently the next time I post.

Overall, influencing has a huge impact on social media today. Online influencers have the power to persuade people's opinions and control their interests. While they cannot make you do anything, they can highly promote different things to the point that you have now gained an interest in them. Social media influencers help run social media the way we see it today. Without these influencers, social media would lose its ability to sell products, collaborate with popular creators, and appeal to a bigger audience.