Don’t Become an Influencer…

“When everyone is famous, no one will be famous,” US author Michael P. Naughton wrote.

This is especially true for the creator and influencer economy. There are thousands, maybe even millions, of people vying for the same entrepreneurial internet job. It looks fun, glamorous, easy – basically looking nothing like a job. The result? An oversaturated talent pool where it’s difficult to define a creative niche (because there’s established personalities) and even fewer consistent sponsorship/brand opportunities to go around.

Even popular YouTuber MrBeast doesn’t advise people to become influencers stating, “For every person that makes it, thousands don’t. Keep that in mind and be smart plz”.

It’s painful to see people quit their job/drop out of school to make content full time before they’re ready. For every person like me that makes it, thousands don’t. Keep that in mind and be smart plz

— MrBeast (@MrBeast) March 15, 2024

Jacquie Kostuk, Director of Creative Strategy here at FUSE, has worked with internet personalities for 12 years and agrees that it is not as easy as it looks to do content creation full-time with many aspiring influencers failing. The bar to entry is low, which may be where this misconception of ease comes from.

 “Of the 100s of creators & influencers we’ve developed content with, very few still call it their day job. It’s a hyper competitive market that is flooded with new talent everyday” – Jacquie Kostuk.

Think about the challenges of making it in Hollywood – being a creator is like that. This level of endorsement is essential to campaigns in the modern age but if you want to make it a lasting career you need to be more than just popular but create relevant content that connects with brand values. Popular foodie creator Ramen Guy (3.3M TikTok followers) is also a Christian in his personal life, and used this connection to build awareness of our client Compassion Canada on Giving Tuesday.

 

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As we review content creators for campaigns and see where they are now, we’ve noticed one of four things happen to individuals. And if you need a refresher on what these types of influencers are, click here!

1. Stuck at a Nano Following (less than 10k)

Being a creator/influencer becomes a costly hobby (in hours & dollars) while one attempts to keep up with the rate of culture—Especially because you’re mostly paid in-product/experiences with small amounts of cash sporadically at this level.

2. Fade into Obscurity

These personalities are victim to ageing out/outgrowing their specialty or audience, their social platform becomes less popular or disappears (ex. Vine), or the type of content created falls out of fashion. Trends move quickly and you end up replaced. You need to craft an offering, develop subject matter expertise and create programming that outlasts the trends.

3. Transform Popularity & Momentum into Other Projects

Taking a loyal fanbase and turning that love for you into other long-term business ventures like creating traditional media (TV/Film/Radio), making products or services, courses, diversifying into other channels or becoming a production company. A great example is the expansion of the Mythical brand into merch, podcasts, TV show and another success sub brand with Mythical Kitchen.

4. Face Reinvention or Diminished Returns

The difficult task of authentically changing your offering to match current societal tastes. Or continuing to do the same thing for lesser results on a lesser budget which can be difficult when you have an established quality precedent.

To Recap…

Most people stay stuck at 1 and 2, those who experienced a high degree of success must deal with 3 and 4.

Getting paid is another challenge as some platforms like YouTube are easier to monetize thanks to the ad inventory. Others like TikTok heavily rely on brand sponsorship. You could have millions of views and nothing to show for it.

Being a creator may look simple, but for most, it’s unsustainable.