shades fills you in

Seems like everyone wants to be an influencer these days! CBS reports that 86% (!) of young adults want to join the $6.5 billion influencer industry

What’s an influencer, you ask? SproutSocial explains it as a person with serious clout over a target audience

Forbes says influencers have actually been around since way before social media or the internet. For example, back in 1760, King George III’s tea set was all the rage -- it was marketed as having “royal” approval

FindYourInfluence explains that the rise of the internet influencer really started with mommy blogs in the early 2000s. And it started to take off on social media platforms in the 2010s

The pandemic shifted a ton of power to influencers. And, more importantly, they’re viewed as authentic in a way celebrity endorsements aren’t -- Forbes, again

It makes sense -- the internet is a crowded place. Grin.co says the influencer market helps brands focus eyeballs

So are influencers the new celebrities? Forbes says some influencers might be celebrities but not all celebrities are influencers

Ion.co sees the influencer as the celeb 2.0: Among Gen Z and millennials, influencers are becoming more trusted than celebrities

And with TikTok influencers like the D’Amelios reaching over 100 million followers on the platform, The Federalist thinks influencers are killing celeb culture

But The Daily Cougar is sick of influencers trying to break into the entertainment industry: Just because you can influence people on social media doesn’t mean you’re talented!

And Linkfluence says people are starting to get sick and tired of influencers -- the clichés, fakeness, and exploitation of social causes for commercial gain is not a good look anymore

This media analyst agrees -- we don’t need any more influencers. We need real people!

But! Say you still think influencing is for you. This TikTok influencer exposes what it takes