Poolside shots decorated with girls in swimwear. To the bottom right, a bag of coffee beans lying unassumingly on a deck chair.
Caption reads: Summertime calls for swimsuits and while you’re at it why not enjoy a nice cuppa with xxx brand? Check out my bio for 15% off -insert winky face/heart shape/blush face/eggplant emojis here-
‘Social media influencers’, the buzzword that has turned into sour and a distasteful term to characterize someone. We wonder, what’s in it for them, apart from the complimentary bag of coffee beans, or the beautiful piece of garment they carefully photographed and raved about in their captions.
It seems like they are always trying to sell us something.
Let’s Talk Figures
A report by Dailymail has unveiled that the big game influencers on the internet that have 100,000 followers and upwards can charge up to $1000 for an Instagram photo. Any lesser of such accounts can still fetch up to an average of $500 for a feature.
The astonishing part is when Forbes’ top influencers list revealed that the most sought-after yogi on the internet can seek up to $25,000 for an Instagram post. That is someone’s annual paycheck condensed into a digitalized photo.
Amidst the glamorous shots and the facade of a perfect life, sometimes we forget that they’re only humans just like you and me.
A Local Influencer, Or Rather, Just Another Instagrammer
A local personnel of such, Hazel (not her real name) has said that despite her 15,000 followers and recognition from her peers, she’d rather not be associated with the term ‘influencer’.
‘I feel that the term “influencer” has in my experience been associated with negative connotations for the longest time. People don’t see it as a real profession, though some legitimate social media influencers really do earn a living from posting pictures on Instagram. They think it’s a joke.’
‘I’m primarily embarrassed because I don’t think I’m qualified enough to be titled an influencer. But it’s also due to the negative connotations attached to that very word…’
It’s easy to assume that a person who earns their living through fronting the superficial and looks-driven platform, lacks substance when it comes to intellectual curiosities and indulgence of academic interests.
Hazel here proves otherwise; she’s currently an undergraduate at NTU and interests herself with reading and astronomy.
‘… I also had a blog where I used to discuss how I turned my grades around and started working hard and writing stuff like how the effort will never betray you/you reap what you sow and all that.’
For Hazel, this opportunity came about when the authorship of her blog prompted and inspired many ‘O’ and ‘A’ level takers.
‘Somehow, my Facebook posts/photographs started garnering 100-200 likes per post when I was in secondary school. Then Instagram came into the picture -no pun intended- and whenever I post a photo it got 300, 400 likes.’
When Hazel was 15, she already gathered a good 3,000 followers under her belt, which doesn’t seem like a lot now but most certainly a considerable sum when Instagram first started out. The surge caught the various blog shops’ attention and the rest is history.
At the same time, she was receiving hundreds of likes across all her other social media platforms, which led to blog shop owners approaching her for collaborations in exchange for an Instagram post. Since then, her popularity has grown exponentially, which led to the present state of her account.
There’s More To Just Pretty Dresses And Sponsorships
The ability to influence is not always a bed of roses, it also means that you’re under scrutiny for the tiniest fault especially when you’re a role model to the masses.
‘I was appalled because damn, who knew?! So because of that, I felt like I have the need to maintain a certain image on my social media posts. Sounds so corny but I try to promote positivity whenever I can on my Instagram page. I also think that everyone should do the same TBH… ‘
So How Much Does A Local Influencer Earn?
*Disclaimer: This by no means is a representation of the entirety. If you’re one of those big game influencers who feel demeaned, to each its own. We all need a little more transparency in this world.
‘A “sample” of how much I earned would be more than $80 for an Instagram post.’
With some of Singapore’s renowned influencers posting up to 2-3 sponsored posts a week, adding up to around 8-10 posts a month, we’ll let you do the math.
This stint extends beyond just sponsorships and free stuff.
‘Choosing the right filters and coming up with the wittiest captions. Just kidding.’ Hazel joked when asked what are the difficulties that she faces on a daily basis.
As you can imagine, being an ‘influencer’ entails transparency of your social status whenever you go online, it’s only appropriate that a person of such position transpire the right message to her followers.
‘I simply don’t respond to them or tell them, “Thank you so much for the opportunity but I’ll give this a pass!” to not sound like an ungrateful brat. After all, it’s not commonplace for people to get approached by brands to advertise for them in the first place.’ She humbly explained when brands or causes of odd sources approach Hazel.
At The End Of The Day, We’re All The Same
Until the false ideas and notions of these social media influencers dissipate, Hazel stresses she’s just like any one of us out here. ‘I’m just a normal human. So the question is, are there any difficulties being a normal human? Sure, but we’re human. We’ll adapt like we always do. :’-) ‘
