Influencers: Why do we idolise them?

Do you ever wonder to yourself why you copy or feel influenced to buy products promoted by influencers? Endless scrolling on Instagram looking at celebs reviewing teeth whiting products, whilst smiling with their pearly white veneers. Why is it we fall for the trickery and fake reviews?

From a business perspective, social media marketing proves advantageous, with cheap marketing, only paying the influencer to promote, the platform completely free and an endless target audience. According to recent studies, influencer marketing is expected to reach $15 billion by 2022.

So what's in it for us?

We all dream of a simple life, so it's easy to idolise what we don't have. Posting pictures on a beach, fancy dinners, everything in their world seems so easy and aligned. Millennials crave the lifestyle, so following in their footsteps seems one way closer to reaching the life they desire. Social media influence seems to be quick money and a "job" that all teenage girls want. Who wouldn't want to post trendy photos and get paid?

To trust or not to trust... The reality of celebrity endorsements is for their gain. No one is going to promote a random product without gaining some form of credit, either money or free items. Kim Kardashian promoted the morning sickness pill Diclegis, yet failed to disclose possible side effects, violating FDA standards. Pharmaceutical companies considered rethinking their marketing strategy through influencers, and Kim was forced to take the post down and share the side effects on a later post. This is just a prime example of deception within social media and how naive we can be to just trust public figures, especially with pills and other forms of medication.

It's so easy to get caught up in the fantasy that buying from influencers will make you just like them, that people forget about their own identity. The concept of associating a product with a certain person and their lifestyle is memorable and is an easy way to influence control society. So often, stereotypes and social media catfishing mask reality, influencing younger generations to purchase products that don't even work.