A lot of the time, people hear “social media influencer” and think of brand ambassadors and celebrities. More often than not, people will also roll their eyes when said influencers complain about hardships they experience because content creation is often associated with entitled rich people who have no self-awareness or faces challenges like that of the average person. That’s understandable, but what a LOT of people don’t know is that being a content creator isn’t as luxurious as they believe.
There’s this misconception that EVERY social media influencer (or person with a platform) is “rich” or financially stable enough to survive off their earnings which is FALSE. How do I know? Because I’M a content creator and have been financially struggling even AFTER coming into a platform. My situation isn’t an isolated case, either. Statistically speaking, in order to be considered an “influencer”, a user must have 500K followers MINIMUM across their platforms, and I’m only a little less than half. Additionally, every sponsor is different. With my circumstances, I only receive 10% of commission IF a person uses my referral link and discount code during checkout.
I don’t have many sponsors but that’s for a reason. If I’m going to collaborate with a company, I do extreme research because I don’t want to promote a brand that’s harmful or negatively impacts the environment, community, etc. While my content is very versatile, I try to send the overall message of spread kindness, creativity and education.
I love being content creator because I have the opportunity to educate, entertain and encourage younger black and brown creatives with my content which is a personal mission statement I chose for myself, but the disadvantages make it exhausting. Platforms are constantly hiding black and brown creators content which means we have to work twice as hard. There’s also a lot of racism and discrimination within fandom spaces which is why I have comment filters enabled because every day I wake up, I have bigots calling me slurs. I have to deal with queer phobia, fetishising and other derogatory remarks. I have people assuming I’m “intimidating” because of my platform or believe I’m entitled because most media influencers are. Don’t even get me started on the defamation of character I experienced that started over another person’s envy.
I’m hesitant to collaborate with other creators because I’ve had to continuously disassociate with people who’ve been outed as abusers and predators in the recent past. I’m wary to befriend other creators because I’ve had people take advantage of my kindness and only see me for my platform and not as a person. After being DOXED by a former friend who was jealous I came into a platform, I acquired stalkers who TO THIS DAY, continue to harass me. It’s exhausting.
The anxiety inducing thing about it all is that the more my platform grows, the more my privacy shrinks. I’ve lost friends and relationship partners because of stalkers and people from my platform being invasive, prying into my private life even when it wasn’t publicised, and as a result I stopped sharing milestones of my recovery. I’m being recognised in public and other places I frequent which makes me fearful for my safety. I am not a celebrity or someone with extreme notoriety for me to experience any of this and it’s incredibly frustrating because when I try to be vulnerable about my frustrations, people downplay the seriousness of it.
I don’t know about anyone else, but it doesn’t feel good to vocalise distress about being followed and for a majority of responses to be, “That means you’re famous!” or “that’s so cool, I wish I had stalkers!” Yes I can delete and filter negative or derogatory comments, and yes I can disconnect and take breaks from media. I do it frequently to preserve my mental and emotional health. What I can’t do however is put the stalking to an end and pursue legal action to ensure that.
I don’t want to be hyper vigilant or over analytical of everything because that fear can deprive me of a lot of opportunities. I do my best to keep a clear mind and open heart but repeatedly experiencing traumatising situations in real time triggers me beyond belief. I love being a “social media influencer” but it’s exhausting.
I must confess, I used to be one of those people who thought that influencers have it easy. I imagined it to be a world of glamour and endless opportunities. However, your insights have genuinely opened my eyes to the realities behind the scenes. It's clear now that being an influencer involves hard work, and it's not just about taking photos or creating entertainment. It's about the exposure of your life to the public eye in a way that can be draining, challenging and at times intrusive.
You have made me realize that being open and vulnerable to an audience is hard. It requires a level of resilience and emotional strength that I had not previously considered. The pressure to maintain an image while staying authentic and the persistent threat to your privacy -these are aspects of the job that are often swept under the rug.
The fact that your content creation is not solely driven by commercial interests, but also by a personal mission to educate, entertain and inspire, adds another layer of complexity to your work. It's not just about gaining followers, but about making a positive impact, which is a far more challenging and admirable goal. Your experiences with discrimination, defamation, stalking and the general challenges of maintaining a platform have given me a new appreciation for the work that you, and many others in your position, do. It's clear now that being an influencer is indeed a job, and a tough one at that. It demands a lot from those who pursue it. Thank you for sharing your experiences. It really brings in new perspective!
@𓂀 𝕟𝕠𝕥𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕕 𓂀 you’re not the only person with this mindset because I myself was one of them until I came into a platform and started firsthand experiencing things myself, but I’m happy I was able to provide insight on some of what ACTUAL celebrities and more popular influencers go through. There’s always more than meets the eye so I try to encourage mindfulness of others. We never know what’s going on behind closed doors.
@GDreamy I appreciate you so much for your words of encouragement and I truly hope you’re as kind to yourself as you are to me, I really needed this. Often time people don’t see content creators as human, and because of our platforms we have this “obligation” to be the bigger person whenever met with bigotry or disparaging comments, otherwise we’re crude, insincere, etc. I do my best to focus on the positive but sometimes the negativity does get overwhelming. However when people like yourself take the time to write out thoughtful comments actually acknowledging the challenges and difficulties people like myself face, it gives me a little more hope to press on.
Another thing most social media influencers won’t disclose is that we only share what we want known. A lot of the content we create- the beautiful beach photos and expensive looking dinners on private locations- aren’t always funded by personal expenses. I’ve experienced some luxuries but it’s because I volunteer and the organisations I do work for have connections and appreciate my work, so they extend invitation to me.
Not every day is a good day but we have to “keep up appearances” because it has to look “perfect”, but I myself do my best to steer clear of creating that image because that’s not true to my mission statement. While educating, entertaining and encouraging I want to promote authenticity and remind people that not everything is or has to be perfect.
That aside, I really needed this. Thank you, seriously.
@Mitchel It's so true! We only see what people want us to see, not everything that is actually happening in their lives. That's why it's important to have empathy and not judge other people. We don't know what challenges they are facing or what they're going through. I think most of this misunderstanding comes from comparing yourself to an Influencer, which is something you should absolutely not do. I've learned from experience, in the past I've always compared myself to people with completely different backgrounds and nothing good came out of it.
We should focus on being the best version of ourselves and not compare ourselves to others. That's why I try to help people understand that they are not alone and that they should never give up on their dreams, but also learn to love themselves and their journey. We all have different stories, that's what makes each one of us so special.
Your point about platforms silencing creators of color, particularly black creators, is 100% true. I recently found myself in a heated conversation with a friend regarding this very matter. And his disbelief infuriated me on a completely different level
So I just asked him a simple question: how many POC creators do you see on your fyp? He got real silent. I don’t think this lack of visibility is accidental. Social media platforms are predominantly controlled and influenced by white people. Another sad thing is that it’s happening in spaces that are supposedly open and democratic
@xoxo Platforms like TikTok have openly admitted to silencing black and brown creators, SPECIFICALLY black creators, but a lot of non-black people chalk up the lack of representation as us having victim complexes because they assume the algorithm doesn’t find it interesting enough which is FALSE.
I can tell you from experience that if you’re a black or brown creator, the only time your videos will garnish traction is if you’re talking about racism, discrimination or posting trauma porn related to the suffering of marginalised communities. But you have to be cautious in the way you go about it because if you say something to offend the white majority, your account and content will be flagged. Sometimes INSTANTLY.
During the earlier part of becoming a content creator I wanted to remain actively educational because some people want to do better and actually educate themselves, so I’d post a lot of videos encouraging people to support black/brown creators. I very quickly learned that most people don’t care and neither does TikTok, so I don’t expend energy trying to inform anyone who’s not listening to learn but to respond.
If I collaborate, it’s with black/brown creators and those with smaller platforms. I want to give others a voice if possible, as long as their core values align with mine and I can discern they won’t let the attention go to their head. I’ve had to disassociate from people who came into platforms and started acting like jackasses. It’s genuinely both heartbreaking and frustrating to see.
@Mitchel It seems as if there are those who wish to project the image of being allies, yet they are unwilling to fully acknowledge and accept the realities that poc face. The deeper problem likely lies in an unwillingness to confront the harsh reality. It's easier for them to dismiss it and say: it's not that bad. Or they may say things like: I don't know, it's just too hard for me to understand. But, in reality, the issue is not overly complicated. The main point is whether or not they are willing to step outside of their comfort zones, to challenge their beliefs to foster an environment of equality. It's not about being ready, it's about willing to do something and a lot of people rather not. They’ re not ready to face the uncomfortable conversations and then take the steps to make a change.
Idk how anyone could perceive blogging or content creation as something so easy. As a person who struggles with anxiety and paranoia, I find putting myself out there in such a public space deeply unsettling. My anxiety of losing privacy as the platform grows would be unmatched. I don’t follow a lot of people but I know how invasive followers can be. Sometimes I get bad vibes even on m account, which only has around 50 people and I don’t even post that much and I try not to post pictures of myself. I admire people who do this full time.
@katie if you’re someone who values privacy, being a content creator isn’t for you. I’m an introvert and value my privacy so to constantly have it alongside my boundaries constantly disrespected is incredibly frustrating. It doesn’t help that I have to deal with people stealing and re-uploading my content, catfishing me, etc.
I wouldn’t change being a content creator for the world but the risks don’t always outweigh the pleasure for some people.