What do you think about the term 'Influencer'?

[Sarra]

I've seen numerous youtube personalities get awkward over the term 'influencer', not just in the Tech but also in the gaming or firearms circles. Seeing Jay get all wishy washy and awkward always makes me giggle, but it also brings the term to mind, and gets me thinking about the term itself, and what it actually means.

 

So, personally, I break it down into concepts. The first question I asked when watching I first heard the term in the Tech community was, 'how does this term make me feel?' And after some introspection, and thinking a little bit about it, my personal answer is 'actually, I kinda like it'. Why? It's honest.

 

A lot of people who are into technology, weather computers, cars, firearms, specialized equipment, etc., are often looking for videos for information. Sometimes, looking for information regarding a purchase. And honestly, it's sometimes more influential, and beneficial, to watch someone who is genuinely trying to influence you in a specific way. Why? Because most people who do make videos in this vein are trying to get you the best experience possible. Watch a Tech Influencer get a product for free to review, and HATE on it for 20 minutes. Is it genuine? I don't actually know for sure, but it feels like it.

 

I think we're lucky to have people making a living by putting out reviews on products that are more than just 'numbers on a sheet', datapoints, or marketing fluff. Seeing LTT staff review a product and give their personal feel on how the product is is almost more important than numbers; if a product has amazing numbers on paper, but is an amazingly bad user experience to actually set up, use, or work with, then that information is more beneficial to a consumer.

 

In the same vein, I'm always asking myself 'is this genuine, or marketing fluff?' Watching how a reviewer or influencer talks about personal experience usually makes it obvious which way this goes. I am constantly confused by the 'you're a shill' comments that get flung at some YouTubers. I've never felt that about the people I'm subscribed to. I guess it helps that I personally could care less about who makes my next purchase; performance and user experience is more important to me than the logo on the box. Maybe I'm just old?

 

The final thing that goes through my mind is 'what does the youtube personality get from this video?' The answer: Sponsorships, product samples, income, and influence. There was a video awhile back where LTT reviewed a NZXT PC case, and the video was sponsored by a Corsair product placement for: A PC case. It made me lol quite a bit, but it made sense. I personally think that most, if not all, of the youtube channels I'm subscribed to are hosted by genuine enthusiasts, and the sponsorships, samples, income, and influence seem to be a bonus, not the base reason for doing it in the first place. Well, maybe the income comes first, but personally I feel that passion is still important, even though there's an HR department and CEO Linus watching over everyone.

 

When I think of LTT, or Jay, or any of the other youtube tech personalities I watch regularly, I never would hesitate to put the label of 'influencer' on them, and I'm okay with that. Just as long as they keep influencing me to make the right decision, and help me avoid garbage that isn't worth the money, I'll stay subscribed, and enjoy watching the content.

[Volbet]

The doubt about whether or not something is marketing or genuine praise is the driving force behind influencer marketing. 

You're much more inclined to trust a genuine experience than an ad. That's why old infomercial had testimonials all throughout their runtime. 

 

The main reason why people, who would be considered influencers, are hesitant to adopt the title of "influencer" in front of their audience, is that it signals a commodification of the parasocial relationship between content creator and audience. In that sense, it creates a paradox of sorts. 

If an influencer acknowledges that they are an influencer, they're losing the relationship makes the influence possible.  

[Tech_Dreamer]

theres a fine line between influence & bias. there lies the audience/viewers trust , as long as that trust portion isnt abused it's okay to do "influencing" to a certain degree. substituting for actual products that are relatively better is obviously a marketing scam instead of genuine influence. And at that point you're watching product placements instead of recommendations that are true.

[Trik'Stari]

I think most of social media is poison and destroying the fabric of our society. 

 

Extend that to the term "influencer". Not the people who are "influencers" but the people who look at them and think "I can use you to manipulate people to one end or another". 

[kasugatei]

IMHO there are two types of influencers:

1) Guys like Linus who are actually putting effort into their content and by doing that influencing people on certain products/services. Those kind of preople are actually useful in society.

2) Useless Instagram and similar social network "celebrities" parasites which demand free stuff just because they have lots of followers and all that they are doing is putting photos on social media and behaving like "look at me peasants, I am enjoying".

[Levent]

I dont like anyone who calls themselves "influencer(s)". Society is changing in a way that people are becoming more and more dumber, cant make their own minds and people around them arent that different. This led to a vacuum that is being filled by those manipulative people called influencers. Anyways I can go on and rant about how I dislike most of the tech media outlets (like LTT) but I have said it enough times here and I dont feel like typing few thousand words on a lost cause such as LTT.

[Levent]

Just now, Benji said:

Well then, what are you doing here in the first place?

Attempting to help people? 

[Guest]

People follow what people they admire’s words. 

 

To compare to the schoolyard, the young kids follow what the big kid does & says because they admire him. 

 

Same thing. 

[Trik'Stari]

1 hour ago, Caroline said:

influencers are black holes confirmed

Not so much the influencers, more "Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube are black holes". 

 

Only YouTube has content worth viewing, and they're actively working to kill that content in favor of their preferred content.

 

You know, the kind they crammed into that rewind video that ended up being the most disliked thing on their platform? 

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

Influencers are as fake as the puppets you hire on Fiver. 

[Trik'Stari]

45 minutes ago, Caroline said:

The most disliked thing on their platform so far

 

Just wait for this years rewind, I bet it's gonna be a cringeworthy motivational video about the rona, with clips of doctors, nurses or whatever and some famous youtubers talking in the background, oh and it's going to end with a cheesy song about cheering up or whatev because the new edgy thing nowadays is being depressed because of the kworinteen. Mark my words.

Oh my god, that will spark a troll fight of epic proportions. One the one half you will have facebook Karens who like that kind of thing, and on the other hand you will have everyone else on the internet just wanting to downvote because of who will be doing the upvoting.

 

God I love the internet.

[atxcyclist]

The term is significantly overused, and used too broadly. Yes, there are some people that genuinely influence certain markets and products,  like Linus/LMG. However, social “influencers” are just Internet celebrities in my opinion; It’s just giving someone that’s won popularity contests more significance than they deserve. 
 

 

[Trik'Stari]

7 minutes ago, Caroline said:

I bet they'll disable downvotes for a top clown platform experience.

Downvotes maybe, comments definitely.

[Andreas Lilja]

Don't mind them, except those who want me to play RAID Shadow Legends, use Express VPN, or that wallet I forgot the name of.

[David1207]

Social media influencer are mostly talk based on their personal benefits. So I never blindly trust on them.

[captain_to_fire]

On 8/20/2020 at 12:58 PM, Sarra said:

've seen numerous youtube personalities get awkward over the term 'influencer', not just in the Tech but also in the gaming or firearms circles.

I see "attention whore" when someone puts "influencer" in their social media biographies or LinkedIn profiles.

[Intergalacticbits]

I think it is just entertainment and influencers are entertainers.

The more successful they are at it the more money and good things they get.

I don't mind at all because I liked to be entertained.

 

Watch the national news on TV sometime and see how desperate those people are to be influencers.

Its funny because they are so bad at it.   

It is so weird Its like watching propaganda from some country on the no fly list. 

Bad entertainment for old people who live in the past.     

 

A good troll fight and the comedy that ensues, that's entertainment for some people too. Heck I think that is half of what sells social media platforms.

 

If your not hurting people what's the harm?

I say hone your skills, what ever you got internet influencers and entertain me well. 

 

I just wish I had something or some way to do it. What a fun way that must be to make a living. 

 

 

 

 

[Guest]

On 8/21/2020 at 8:50 AM, Caroline said:

The most disliked thing on their platform so far

 

Just wait for this years rewind, I bet it's gonna be a cringeworthy motivational video about the rona, with clips of doctors, nurses or whatever and some famous youtubers talking in the background, oh and it's going to end with a cheesy song about cheering up or whatev because the new edgy thing nowadays is being depressed because of the kworinteen. Mark my words.

Going to be about the BLM movement 1000%. I doubt coronavirus would get much due to how political it is.

[vortextech77]

On 8/21/2020 at 6:50 AM, Caroline said:

The most disliked thing on their platform so far

 

Just wait for this years rewind, I bet it's gonna be a cringeworthy motivational video about the rona, with clips of doctors, nurses or whatever and some famous youtubers talking in the background, oh and it's going to end with a cheesy song about cheering up or whatev because the new edgy thing nowadays is being depressed because of the kworinteen. Mark my words.

Don't forget the stupid zoom calls.

[mr moose]

I had muh vaxtinations so I don't get dem influences.  

 

 

Humanity is not mature/decent enough to have nice things like social media without the shit side of it too.

[NewbieOne]

What do you think about the term 'Influencer'?

 

I tend to associate it with our culture having gone completely wrong, or at least become seriously derailed, at some point. I'm not a fan of attention economics involving monetization. We would be better off without the entire space of gamed images, reputations, emotions and such like. The problem is not with trying to look good or help one's reputation spread faster, or just simply advertising. The problem is with people now no longer knowing where to draw the line or not being willing to draw any lines any more, trying to game, to mathematically optimize, just about everything, and to subject everything to Excel-based management. And that's like turning life into a corporation and a commercial activity, whereas much of the beauty of life comes from being in a space that's free from any concern of monetization.

 

Owing to the foregoing, influencers can kiss my… are not to my taste as a concept, I thoroughly and vehemently disagree with what they do and how (unless they spread worthy causes, including knowledge and expertise), and I dislike the terrm itself as a sorry example of the kind of low-quality newspeak the recent generations have a propensity to generate in abundance (though there's hope the youngest post-millennials might be capable of showing a hearty middle finger bras d'honneur to the system we have created for them).

 

I wish people could and would focus on friggin' work instead of devoting more than 50% of their time and effort to the marketing of that work and to the management of the brand and image associated therewith, all of which is essentially wasted resources that could be better applied at work or in private life.

 

Whatever has happened to just being good at what you do or just making a good product (one that does what it says on the tin and does not drive a why-based cult running around in golden circles peddling the audience's own emotions to the audience as a commercial commodity, which on some level is not unrelated to prostitution if you remove the sexual aspect and focus on the illusion of something real that it provides for money)?