2023-06-25 22:05:29
We’ve all seen these photogenic guys promoting fashion, food or services to their followers. Many of them originate from platforms such as “Tik Tok” and “Instagram”. But now a new breed of “influencers” has arrived, and they say overpriced physical purchases no longer entice buyers. As consumers monitor their spending during these times of hyperinflation, this emerging group of social media users is urging people to assess whether they really need the $185 bulky blanket.
Their messages are simple and direct: “These items are overrated, you don’t need them, and here’s why.” Sometimes they suggest other options. They also talk about sustainability and the cost of waste associated with certain industries, such as beauty and fashion.
momentum and popularity
The popularity of this type of influence is growing. On TikTok, for example, in the past 12 months, they have 582 million views out of a total of 584 million views of the hashtag #deinfluencing, the platform reported in May.
To get a deeper idea of what the countereffect is, we spoke to the people who understand it best. What is the counter effect? Social media analyst and head of Ruby Media Group, Chris Ruby, says that the counter influence is an emerging trend on social media that discourages consumers from buying certain products that the counter influencer believes are not worth the money.
This comes at a time when social media has become essential for marketing products and services, especially to young consumers. A recent study showed that 87% of people surveyed follow a brand, visit its website, or make an online purchase after seeing a product advertised on social media, which makes visual platforms such as Instagram and TikTok Effective in promotion.
Campaign against extravagance
Brands and companies pay influencers to market goods, experiences, and services to their followers. In short, influence is trying to convince social media users to buy certain products. The opposite effect is the opposite, but with some caveats. Instead of saying buy this, they say don’t buy this. Both are forms of influence, not unlike “vote for this candidate” versus “don’t vote for that candidate,” Ruby says.
However, Ruby believes that the mitigation of impact and the backlash against overconsumption reflect a growing trend towards simplification. Rather than buying a quantity of “must-haves,” promoted by a social media icon, this trend prompts consumers to evaluate whether they need an item before they spend money on it.
St. Louis content creator Michaela Maines, 28, says she is associated with the counterinfluence culture. She says this trend refreshes a person at a time when social media marketing feels stressful, by suggesting that you need expensive luxuries to feel good about yourself. She says, “As someone who is always struggling in a world created by an ethic of influence, I would love for us to take a turn in a different direction.” And she continues: “Although I don’t think the effect is completely bad, we must take a step back and rethink how we consume not only products, but also content.”
Live within your means
Canadian activist Michelle Skidelski used a recent post to tell her 173,000 TikTok followers that they don’t need a new wardrobe at the start of each season. “First of all, new clothes that don’t look like fast fashion are very expensive these days,” she says. “If you’re going on a trip or to a concert, you probably don’t need an entirely new wardrobe for any of these things. Live within your means.” Then Skidelski discourages people from going overboard in summer accessories like sunglasses, wallets, belts and handbags. “You definitely don’t need several new pairs of sunglasses,” she says. And she goes on: “You should know that it is really fun to have sunglasses that match your clothes and use them as accessories, but how do you feel about your bank account when you constantly buy new sunglasses? Maybe this is not feasible.
How much can we trust influencers?
Not everyone agrees on the opposite effect. Social media lifestyle creator Aria Connor, 36, says some influencers in the opposite direction don’t have the right rationale. “Many of the people involved in the opposite trend are interested in making people feel bad for spending their money in a way that doesn’t align with the influencer’s values or budget,” she says. Others, she says, are simply trying to convince people to buy some other product, neither of which Connor thinks is good for consumers.
Connor believes there are a lot of counter-influencers out there telling their audience, “Don’t buy this, buy that, and in this case this person shouldn’t be called a counter-influencer, we should call them disagreeing about what the best products are.”
Some counterinfluence experts suggest their followers avoid certain products, while others generally talk about not wasting money on things people don’t really need. It’s not clear, Ruby says, that some counter-influencers are getting paid by competing brands to undervalue products.
She says that those who tell followers what to avoid may have more credibility than people who only share recommendations on what to buy. Ruby says counter-influencers instill more confidence in their followers because their advice seems honest.
Maines, who has 13,000 followers on TikTok, says anti-influencers can bring a much-needed balance to social platforms that encourage overconsumption and have been blamed for increasing mental health problems among teens. The social about what to buy or what not to buy is not meaningful at all. Instead, counterinfluencers should push in the direction of getting people to “ask how we consume, what we consume and why we consume it”.
• Brands and companies pay influencers to market goods, experiences, and services to their followers. In short, influence is trying to convince social media users to buy certain products. The opposite effect is the opposite, but with some caveats. Instead of saying buy this, they say don’t buy this. Both are forms of influence, not unlike “vote for this candidate” versus “don’t vote for that candidate,” Ruby says.
• Some counter influence experts suggest their followers avoid certain products, while others generally talk about not wasting money on things people don’t really need.
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