From personal branding to the pressures of being an influencer
The pressure is on both to become an influencer and when you become one.
Since their emergence and democratization, social networks have opened up a wide range of possibilities. Brands have seen the opportunity to establish links with their fans, subscribers or "followers", people have been able to keep in touch with loved ones or reconnect with old but lost partners, and so on.
Gradually, networks became advertising tools and springboards for various businesses. While the power of example and success is useful, we might wonder about the pressure this creates for some people.
" The personal brand is a personal development concept that consists in seeing oneself as a brand that needs to be built and protected with the aim of differentiating oneself. Developing a personal brand is about identifying and communicating the characteristics that set us apart, that make us relevant, different and visible in a homogenous, competitive and changing environment. "
Without going as far as personal branding, it's hard to deny that maintaining a thoughtful online presence is useful, if not essential, at least for certain professions. However, when it comes to the next step of generating revenue from your personal brand, it can be a success, or it can be something more complicated!
The road to success
Successful businesses have been created and developed by people who have made a name for themselves solely through social networking. For example, in this video, Yann Leonardi dissects the story behind the creation of the "Respire" deodorant brand.
It's an interesting critical look, but it doesn't detract from the fact that it was a success!
The "new" influencer business
It's mainly thanks to Instagram that the influencer business has mainly developed.
An influencer can be defined as anyone with a social media account and the ability to influence their subscribers, fans or followers to adopt a behavior. The term now refers to people who participate in the marketing and advertising efforts of one or more organizations. While the phenomenon has a long history in the form of sponsorships, testimonials and product placements, its massification is more recent.
We're talking about mega, micro and even nano-influencers. Today, it seems that all it takes to monetize a "community", whatever its size. More and more people are dreaming of traveling, and earning a comfortable living by publishing images in idyllic settings.
But the other side of being an influencer is a lot of hard work and preparation. Elena Traber, a Youtuber with 597,000 subscribers said in an interview:
"There's a misconception that this type of career is easy to take on and succeed in. It took me five years to build my platform, and today I work full-time alongside my management team and assistant to run my platforms. Creating videos for a brand often means wearing all the hats of a production company. You're the creative director, producer, editor, talent, stylist and marketing manager all rolled into one." Source
Self-imposed pressure
Most people go on the networks to spend time and relax. They come to get their daily dose of dopamine. Others, inspired by great stories, use social networks in the hope of developing a means of generating income.
We can then become prisoners of social networks and observe the following phenomena:
Forcing yourself to post
Watching for reactions, comments, shares, number of views, subscribers, etc.
Becoming sick and anxious when hoped-for results aren't forthcoming, etc.
This quickly becomes a vicious circle that has repercussions on mental health.
People who make fools of themselves gain visibility through the absurd situations they put themselves in. It's reminiscent of the worst moments of reality TV, where immortalized lines ensure notoriety for their authors.
I'm sure many of you have heard a joke or two that included the line: "The question, it's quickly answered". Jipé Fanguin
If you haven't seen it yet, here's the original video
In terms of personal branding, it's fair to say that the image could be better:
The pressure we're under
But the story doesn't end there. People who have developed a community are under constant pressure from it. They become spied on, and every word or gesture they make is commented on, sometimes violently.
The dream is sometimes close to a nightmare. If you want to blossom, it's best to avoid idealizing certain professions and seeing them only through the prism of dreams. It's only by understanding what's involved that you can decide what you're not going to be. It's the first step before deciding what you want to become.
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